Power Comes in Small Bundles
Matthew 2:1-6, 16-18 (New American Standard) 1Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, 2"Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him." 3When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4Gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 5They said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for this is what has been written by the prophet: 6'AND YOU, BETHLEHEM, LAND OF JUDAH, ARE BY NO MEANS LEAST AMONG THE LEADERS OF JUDAH; FOR OUT OF YOU SHALL COME FORTH A RULER WHO WILL SHEPHERD MY PEOPLE ISRAEL.'" 16Then when Herod saw that he had been tricked by the magi, he became very enraged, and sent and slew all the male children who were in Bethlehem and all its vicinity, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the magi. 17Then what had been spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: 18"A VOICE WAS HEARD IN RAMAH, WEEPING AND GREAT MOURNING, RACHEL WEEPING FOR HER CHILDREN; AND SHE REFUSED TO BE COMFORTED, BECAUSE THEY WERE NO MORE."
John 14:1-4 1"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4You know the way to the place where I am going."
“When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled.” In some ways Herod was more perceptive in his reaction to the birth of Jesus than the Wisemen or the Shepherds. He was troubled because he could not bear even a hint of a rival to the throne. Four years earlier he had had his two sons, Alexander and Aristobulos, put to death because he viewed them as a threat. “And all Jerusalem was troubled with him.” They were troubled because they knew that whatever troubled Herod could cause trouble for them. And it did, “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.” So Herod adds one more massacre to a long list of atrocities and cruelty.
But Herod had reason to be troubled by this baby born in Bethlehem, because He was born to rule. And, He is as much a threat to our self-will as He was to Herod. Babies always are. This is the first shock wave that parents receive. Their lives become centered around the needs and the demands of that bundle in the bassinet.
The baby born in Bethlehem is a revelation, a pledge and promise of God’s rule. He is also a sign of the way God intends to overturn our self-will. His rule comes to us in the vulnerability and power of the new born child. He comes, not with the threat of harm, but with a love that demands a primary place in our life. The baby in Bethlehem shows us the kind of power God uses to overturn our self-will, and shows what God intends to accomplish through His rule.
The first thing God intends to accomplish is to create in us a child-like trust in the heavenly Father. He brings to life a certainty and confidence in God, a belief that God knows what is good and best for our life, and that God is active in all the events of life to accomplish His purpose for us.
He comes to give our eyes new sight that delight in the surprises of God’s intervention and a new heart that rejoices unashamedly at the work of the Father.
The first thing the baby in Bethlehem seeks to accomplish in us is this child like trust. This trust is not some sacred treasure to be kept under protective glass. It is a trust to be lived out in the world, where the Herods still rule. Do what love requires, based on trust in God. Whenever we are under the gun, whenever problems are popping up at every turn, whenever we feel we are helpless, listen for the quiet voice of the baby Jesus and you will hear him say, “Trust me.”
From a sermon preached by Henry Dobbs Pope
© Rhonda Hinkle Mitchell
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