1/01/05 Matt 2:13-23 The Tale of Two Kings
1 Sunday after Christmas
Text: Matthew 2:13-23
Title: The Tale of Two Kings
Please join me in prayer. Eternal God, pour out your Spirit upon us that we might be aware of your presence in our midst, that we might be attentive to your Word, and that we might be faithful always to your way, through Jesus Christ our Lord we pray. Amen
Our Gospel for this morning is a tale of two kings. One king is Herod, the other king is Jesus. King Herod was willing to do what ever it took to get to the top of power so he could control his destiny. King Jesus on the other hand was willing to do what ever it took to get to the bottom of power, so that he could serve, and therein is the tale of the two kings.
Our tale of the two kings begins on the edge of absurdity. Herod the Great, the all-powerful king of Judea is worried about a baby born in Bethlehem. At first Herod uses deception to try to discover the location of what he thought was the rival king. When that did not work, he orders the execution of all boys living in the area of Bethlehem that were under the age of two.
As outrageous as that might sound, it really is not surprising, for King Herod is consumed with moving up in order to have more power. When you compare his behavior with others in history he is right up there with the bad boys of our world. His mode of operation fits right up there in the monster category.
Herod was born into a rich well connected family 44 years before Jesus birth. His family had to fight for their political survival so Herod was destined to play hard-ball with all that got in his way. You see his father was poisoned by a political opponent. Soon afterward Herod formed a rather ingenious plan to get back at his father’s enemies. He invited them to the palace for what was to be a cozy dinner party. Once all the guests had arrived he had them all murdered.
From that point on he did what ever it took to climb up the ladder of power. He killed countless people if they got in his way. He arrested, tortured, blackmailed, and beat up any who did not agree with him. Why, he even killed two of his wives as well as three of his own sons. No, there was little that he would not do in his moving up. And for the most part, it worked pretty well, Herod ruled for over thirty years.
To say that Herod and Jesus crossed paths would be an understatement. You might compare their crossing of paths in history to a fundamental law of physics. The force of impact on two objects depends on the speed, and direction of the objects. Jesus and Herod were both moving fast, but from totally different directions. One was going up, the other going down. There was going to be a huge collision, a collision that would change the world forever.
Herod is bent on self promotion, Jesus on self demotion. Herod is a tyrant, Jesus a servant. Herod is consumed with self-interest, Jesus is consumed with loving people. Herod manipulates, slanders, deceives, and coerces, Jesus heals, cries, loves, bleeds, and dies.
King Herod was pretty bad guy. Is it not wonderful that we are not like Herod? We would never raise an angry hand against a small child would we? We would never cheat on our taxes, would we? And we always make sure we give to the Lord our first fruits, don’t we? Why, we can even remember the last time we helped someone in need, can’t we?
I am afraid though that if we are honest with ourselves and take a good hard look inside our hearts we would probably find a little of Herod hiding out in there. We certainly have never murdered someone, but all too often we are also consumed with moving up, getting ahead. We might call it office politics, turf wars, marital rights, or parental perks. I am afraid that for the most part, we would rather rule than serve. We would rather have power than submit to authority. We would rather be honored than look for ways to honor others. Yup, I am afraid that in many ways, we share some of those same traits of King Herod.
In contrast to King Herod’s behavior and our own, King Jesus’ behavior seems almost preposterous. Jesus is as powerful as one can get, for after all he is God. He has everything, all he had to do was snap his fingers and legions of angels would be there in a flash to do what ever he wanted. But he chose not to do that. He chose to become one of us.
When he began to be formed in the womb of Mary he took a tremendous step down in the history of humankind. He stepped down to be born in a stable, down to live in the filth and stench of life. Jesus the king was certainly no King Herod, that is for sure. He wanted to decrease so that we would increase in the love of God.
To our eyes, King Herod was an evil and murderous man. But, you know you have to admit, he was pretty successful, if he had just not misused his desire to get ahead, he would not have been that bad. For getting ahead is the way of life. I mean all of us want more and better things, things that will give us security, prestige, and power, don’t we? That is all King Herod wanted.
I think that it might help us to answer the question of how we are to live our lives by looking at how each of these kings died. King Herod died a miserable death for his body was infected by disease. It is recorded that his screams of pain could be heard throughout the palace. But, there was more than just the pain in his body. He was so mentally unbalanced that he thought that no one would mourn his death. On second thought he was right, no one would mourn his death. When he knew the time was near for his death, he called together all of the top leaders in the country. Once they arrived, he had them locked in the palace, telling the guards that at the moment of his death, they should all be killed, thus assuring himself that there would be mourning at the time of his death. Pretty sick, I would say.
Jesus, on the other hand who had been going down all his life, giving up his power, descended even further, for he descended to a Roman beating and execution. His cries of pain rang out across Golgotha. Both Herod and Jesus died in terrible pain, but there is a critical difference between the death of King Herod and King Jesus. King Herod even with all his power, after all he had done in getting to the top, after all the blood he had shed, could not save himself from death. Jesus on the other hand could have saved himself from his death, but chose not to.
King Herod’s body was put into a grave where it stayed, Jesus’ body rose from the grave in great power and glory. Mighty and powerful King Herod did not fulfill the Old Testament prophecies. Jesus in his role of degradation fulfilled the prophecies.
After looking at the tale of two kings; who is the true King now? Herod, laying there in his grave, or the risen Jesus who demonstrated his kingship by saying nothing, by doing nothing, at least as far as the world would see it? Herod even with all his power and political savvy could not stop the divine plan. The sign put on Jesus’ cross, proclaimed “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews”. It was put there to mock Jesus, but we know better, for it stated an everlasting truth, Jesus is the true King.
As different as these two kings were, they both shared one thing in common. They both believed that there was nothing that the shedding of blood could not cure. Sounds strange, does it not, but think about it for a moment. King Herod shed the blood of anyone who got in his way up the ladder of power. Jesus on the other hand shed his own blood as he descended the ladder of power. King Herod shed blood for his own gain. King Jesus shed his blood for us, so that we could be made right before God.
Such is the tale of these two kings whose lives intersected so long ago. King Herod, who believed that life is all about going up, and getting more power. And King Jesus, who believed that the only way to live was to go down, to live a life of servanthood. Two kings in history who came together in a mighty collision, and when they collided only one walked away to tell of it. Only one could, for there really is only one true king, and his name is Jesus Christ. The same Jesus, who in his kingship came to serve us so that we can be free to serve others. It is this life of giving, and serving, and going down that we celebrate and live out during this time of Christmas. Amen
Text: Matthew 2:13-23
Title: The Tale of Two Kings
Please join me in prayer. Eternal God, pour out your Spirit upon us that we might be aware of your presence in our midst, that we might be attentive to your Word, and that we might be faithful always to your way, through Jesus Christ our Lord we pray. Amen
Our Gospel for this morning is a tale of two kings. One king is Herod, the other king is Jesus. King Herod was willing to do what ever it took to get to the top of power so he could control his destiny. King Jesus on the other hand was willing to do what ever it took to get to the bottom of power, so that he could serve, and therein is the tale of the two kings.
Our tale of the two kings begins on the edge of absurdity. Herod the Great, the all-powerful king of Judea is worried about a baby born in Bethlehem. At first Herod uses deception to try to discover the location of what he thought was the rival king. When that did not work, he orders the execution of all boys living in the area of Bethlehem that were under the age of two.
As outrageous as that might sound, it really is not surprising, for King Herod is consumed with moving up in order to have more power. When you compare his behavior with others in history he is right up there with the bad boys of our world. His mode of operation fits right up there in the monster category.
Herod was born into a rich well connected family 44 years before Jesus birth. His family had to fight for their political survival so Herod was destined to play hard-ball with all that got in his way. You see his father was poisoned by a political opponent. Soon afterward Herod formed a rather ingenious plan to get back at his father’s enemies. He invited them to the palace for what was to be a cozy dinner party. Once all the guests had arrived he had them all murdered.
From that point on he did what ever it took to climb up the ladder of power. He killed countless people if they got in his way. He arrested, tortured, blackmailed, and beat up any who did not agree with him. Why, he even killed two of his wives as well as three of his own sons. No, there was little that he would not do in his moving up. And for the most part, it worked pretty well, Herod ruled for over thirty years.
To say that Herod and Jesus crossed paths would be an understatement. You might compare their crossing of paths in history to a fundamental law of physics. The force of impact on two objects depends on the speed, and direction of the objects. Jesus and Herod were both moving fast, but from totally different directions. One was going up, the other going down. There was going to be a huge collision, a collision that would change the world forever.
Herod is bent on self promotion, Jesus on self demotion. Herod is a tyrant, Jesus a servant. Herod is consumed with self-interest, Jesus is consumed with loving people. Herod manipulates, slanders, deceives, and coerces, Jesus heals, cries, loves, bleeds, and dies.
King Herod was pretty bad guy. Is it not wonderful that we are not like Herod? We would never raise an angry hand against a small child would we? We would never cheat on our taxes, would we? And we always make sure we give to the Lord our first fruits, don’t we? Why, we can even remember the last time we helped someone in need, can’t we?
I am afraid though that if we are honest with ourselves and take a good hard look inside our hearts we would probably find a little of Herod hiding out in there. We certainly have never murdered someone, but all too often we are also consumed with moving up, getting ahead. We might call it office politics, turf wars, marital rights, or parental perks. I am afraid that for the most part, we would rather rule than serve. We would rather have power than submit to authority. We would rather be honored than look for ways to honor others. Yup, I am afraid that in many ways, we share some of those same traits of King Herod.
In contrast to King Herod’s behavior and our own, King Jesus’ behavior seems almost preposterous. Jesus is as powerful as one can get, for after all he is God. He has everything, all he had to do was snap his fingers and legions of angels would be there in a flash to do what ever he wanted. But he chose not to do that. He chose to become one of us.
When he began to be formed in the womb of Mary he took a tremendous step down in the history of humankind. He stepped down to be born in a stable, down to live in the filth and stench of life. Jesus the king was certainly no King Herod, that is for sure. He wanted to decrease so that we would increase in the love of God.
To our eyes, King Herod was an evil and murderous man. But, you know you have to admit, he was pretty successful, if he had just not misused his desire to get ahead, he would not have been that bad. For getting ahead is the way of life. I mean all of us want more and better things, things that will give us security, prestige, and power, don’t we? That is all King Herod wanted.
I think that it might help us to answer the question of how we are to live our lives by looking at how each of these kings died. King Herod died a miserable death for his body was infected by disease. It is recorded that his screams of pain could be heard throughout the palace. But, there was more than just the pain in his body. He was so mentally unbalanced that he thought that no one would mourn his death. On second thought he was right, no one would mourn his death. When he knew the time was near for his death, he called together all of the top leaders in the country. Once they arrived, he had them locked in the palace, telling the guards that at the moment of his death, they should all be killed, thus assuring himself that there would be mourning at the time of his death. Pretty sick, I would say.
Jesus, on the other hand who had been going down all his life, giving up his power, descended even further, for he descended to a Roman beating and execution. His cries of pain rang out across Golgotha. Both Herod and Jesus died in terrible pain, but there is a critical difference between the death of King Herod and King Jesus. King Herod even with all his power, after all he had done in getting to the top, after all the blood he had shed, could not save himself from death. Jesus on the other hand could have saved himself from his death, but chose not to.
King Herod’s body was put into a grave where it stayed, Jesus’ body rose from the grave in great power and glory. Mighty and powerful King Herod did not fulfill the Old Testament prophecies. Jesus in his role of degradation fulfilled the prophecies.
After looking at the tale of two kings; who is the true King now? Herod, laying there in his grave, or the risen Jesus who demonstrated his kingship by saying nothing, by doing nothing, at least as far as the world would see it? Herod even with all his power and political savvy could not stop the divine plan. The sign put on Jesus’ cross, proclaimed “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews”. It was put there to mock Jesus, but we know better, for it stated an everlasting truth, Jesus is the true King.
As different as these two kings were, they both shared one thing in common. They both believed that there was nothing that the shedding of blood could not cure. Sounds strange, does it not, but think about it for a moment. King Herod shed the blood of anyone who got in his way up the ladder of power. Jesus on the other hand shed his own blood as he descended the ladder of power. King Herod shed blood for his own gain. King Jesus shed his blood for us, so that we could be made right before God.
Such is the tale of these two kings whose lives intersected so long ago. King Herod, who believed that life is all about going up, and getting more power. And King Jesus, who believed that the only way to live was to go down, to live a life of servanthood. Two kings in history who came together in a mighty collision, and when they collided only one walked away to tell of it. Only one could, for there really is only one true king, and his name is Jesus Christ. The same Jesus, who in his kingship came to serve us so that we can be free to serve others. It is this life of giving, and serving, and going down that we celebrate and live out during this time of Christmas. Amen
posted by Pastor Rhoads | 2:09 PM
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