It amazes me how many times in chapter 2 alone there are references to the words of the prophets. We see it in verses 5, 15, 17, and 23! Jesus fulfilled 4 Messianic prophecies in 23 verses! That's a pretty big deal, and it reveals a pretty big God. The plan has been in place since Adam and Eve sinned in the garden. The 1st Messianic prophecy was all the way back in Genesis chapter 3! God has been weaving this plan of redemption from the very beginning, and now it is finally coming to pass...in spite of Herod's best efforts.
The Magi come from the east to find the new child king, and so they go to the current king to find out where the child is so they can worship Him. Herod seems shocked, and obviously wasn't well read in his Bible, so he asks about it. Once he is informed that the child will be born in Bethlehem (according to prophecy), he sends the Magi on their way with instructions to let him know what is going on so he too can worship the child (and by worship I mean kill). Herod was paranoid, as confirmed by history, he would kill anyone who he thought was even a potential threat to his throne. So when the Magi didn't come back, he did the logical (and by logical I mean crazy person) thing to do, he killed all the boys 2 years old and younger in Bethlehem (which also fulfilled a prophecy)! Thankfully Jesus and the family had already left town to go to Egypt (which was also a prophecy)!
Once Herod died Joseph brought his family back to Israel, but he was afraid of Herod's son killing them so he moved his family to Nazareth. This is why Jesus is known as a Nazarene, although He was born in Bethlehem (a fulfillment of prophecy!). It is pretty incredible the amount of detail that God is putting into His story. It is also pretty amazing to know that I am a part of the same story! That means that God is still writing the story, and He is still in control. It is a very comforting thought, because sometimes I feel like I'm just spinning out of control. The good news is I was never in control to start with. I'm learning to be ok with that!
Enjoy the Journey
No comments:
Post a Comment