The Last King
Week 3 - “Every Human Heart”
Matthew 2:1-3,7-8,13-16,22-23
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews?” We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. …Then Herod…sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him…” —Matthew 2
Herod was
When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod… —Matthew 2
When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. …But when [Joseph] heard that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee, and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets, that he would be called a Nazarene. —Matthew 2
Herod was the definition of evil. But before we too quickly disassociate from Herod, let’s talk about evil…
“The full teaching of the Bible is that the source of the world’s evil is every human heart. King Herod’s reaction to Christ is, in this sense, a picture of us all. If you want to be king, and someone else comes along saying he is the king, then one of you has to give in. Only one person can sit on an absolute throne. …Jesus came to us claiming to be God, the King. …It is a claim of absolute authority, a summons to unconditional loyalty, and it inevitably triggers deep resistance within the human heart.” —Tim Keller, “Hidden Christmas,” page 67
We do not belong to ourselves. We belong to
- The comfort: it doesn’t matter who you are or where you come from, God accepts you, loves you, and delights to work through you. (after all, Jesus was from Nazareth)
- The challenge: You have to give up the throne and make way for the King, which involves no small amount of resistance
“No one is really neutral about whether Christmas is true. If the Son of God was really born in a manger, then we have lost the right to be in charge of our lives. …Why do you think it is so hard to pray? Why do you think it is so hard to concentrate on the most glorious person possible? Why, when God answers a prayer, do you say, ‘Oh, I will never forget this, Lord,’ but soon you do anyway? How many times have you said, ‘I will never do this again!’ and two weeks later you do it again? …There is still a little King Herod inside you. It means you have got to be far more intentional about Christian growth, about prayer, and about accountability to other people.” —Tim Keller, “Hidden Christmas,” pages 72-73