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Theme: Living by Faith in Christ Alone
Theme Verse: "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." Galatians 2:20 NIV
Readings: Matthew 2:1-12
Memory Verse: "But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel."
Background "In the days of Herod the King": Herod the Great died early in 4 BC according to our present calendar. Wise men/Magi were a combination, astronomers and astrologers. They were a class of learned men, possibly from ancient Persia where some of the Jews had gone in exile. For example Daniel served under Babylonian and Persian kings as part of a group who advised the king. Some would have been aware of Jewish scriptures and prophecies. Probably the men were Gentiles. The gifts were gifts for royalty. The early church first celebrated this visit as Epiphany (January 6) in Egypt. Epiphany means manifestation or revealing of Christ to the Gentiles.
Some prophecies that are relevant are Isaiah 60:3 "And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising." Also Numbers 24:17, a prophecy by a pagan prophet refers both to a star and a ruler. "I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel." (Revelation 22:16 also refers to Christ as the morning star.) The one quoted in Matthew 2:6 refers to the King of Israel being born in Bethlehem. This is the prophecy that brought the wise men to Jerusalem and Bethlehem. This king would be both a ruler and a shepherd ("govern" means both). Notice how everything comes together! A word received: I will always do what I say I will do. You can trust me.
Look at the memory verse. This is the prophecy that brought the wise men hundreds of miles for many months, through great dangers to worship the one born to be King of the Jews. Amazing! A word received: How far are you willing to go to worship me? "Where is he who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the East and have come to worship him." (Matthew 2:1b-2) A word received: I want my people to have the same hunger to come into my presence and worship me that the wise men did. They were wise because of the choices they made. I want worship to be a priority in your lives. God's top priority is worship. There are many things we need to do to obey God but the first priority is to love the Lord our God with all our minds, souls, hearts and strength and worship him. Out of this the rest will flow.
Herod was a really evil man. When he heard about some baby born to be King of the Jews he felt threatened. When he was troubled so was everyone else with good reason! He had a huge building program, the greatest of which was the reconstruction of the Temple. In his domestic life he was cruel and unstable. There were scores of assassinations including one of his wives, Mariamne, her brother the high priest, and three of his own sons. Before he died he ordered the murder of several leading Jews in the hippodrome in Jericho at his death in order to guarantee a period of national mourning when he died. Ordering the death of all male children under two was typical of his cruelty.
The priests and scribes knew right where to find the prophecy but they didn't go and investigate. They were blind. Prayer: Lord, give me eyes to see and a heart to respond. But King Herod secretly inquired about the details about when the star first appeared. It doesn't say the priests and scribes were interested. Herod's claim was a lie because he planned to kill the baby.
"When they came to the house, they saw the young child" (Mary, Joseph and Jesus seemed to have stayed a while in Bethlehem). When "they saw the young child…they fell down and worshipped him." A word received: That is the response I want from my people when they come into my presence -- that they will fall down and worship me.
The goal of the Wise men was to find and worship the infant King and give him gifts from their treasure. They came all that way to do that -- and then they went home. When we worship Jesus, do we remember that not only is he our Savior, but our King! What do we offer him? How do we worship him?
The gifts were easy to carry, easily sold, and were part of God' provision for the trip to Egypt. This visit and the gifts would have been additional confirmation for Mary and Joseph. A word received: I will always provide for my own. Traditionally the gifts have been seen as symbolic of who Jesus is: gold for a king, frankincense for a priest and myrrh which was used for burial.
God's protection is clear. He warned the wise men not to return to Herod and to go home a different way. They obeyed at once and so did Joseph. That very night God warned Joseph to get his family out of town. Bethlehem was only seven miles from Jerusalem. It would not take soldiers on horseback long to get there. God also protected the wise men who probably would have been killed too because of what they knew. Look at the humility of the wise men. They risked everything to go on this journey to worship the baby King. (They could see the difference between the one on the throne and the true King whom they recognized and worshiped in spite of his humble surroundings.)
"How lovely is your tabernacle, O LORD of hosts! My soul longs, yes, even faints for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God." (Psalm 84:1-3) A word received: Cry out to me, I will hear you. "Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young-- even your altars, O LORD of hosts, my King and my God." (Psalm 84:3) A word received: Everyone is welcome at my altar. No one is too small or humble to be welcomed by God. Jesus scolded his disciples and told them to let the little children come to him. He welcomed the lepers, the repentant sinners and forgave the repentant thief on the cross. The wise men symbolize the Gentiles who would come to believe later.
"Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they will still be praising you." (Psalm 84:4) A word received: Come into my house and praise me. Worship and making the choice to come into God's presence is something our God longs to have us do. Do we make the choice of Mary of Bethany to come daily and weekly into Jesus' presence or are we so busy trying to serve him that we neglect our King and Savior and friend?
Note: The wise men/Magi according to the Greek historian Herodotus were from Mede/Persia, a hereditary pagan priestly tribe. They were monotheistic and some think they were Zoroastrian.
How to teach word for teachers: "Come to Me all you who are heavily burdened and I will give you rest." Make the same choice that the Wise Men made. Come to Me, whatever the cost, whatever the journey. Come to Me and I will give you rest.
Epiphany gives us the same call as the Wise Men and Abraham, to worship, to respond in obedience and come to Jesus, not knowing what will happen, knowing that God is faithful.
Teaching Ideas for Lesson 14
Please read the Study Guide first. Go over Memory Verse to make sure the children understand it and then if they have memorized it.
Remind them their parents need to sign a report slip monthly if they have read the lessons, so they will get credit at the end of the year.
Make sure they know what happened in the story. Get them to tell you.
Basic points of the lesson for little ones:
1.The Wise Men came looking for Jesus because of the prophecies that foretold about him as King. God keeps his promises.
2. They wanted to worship this new king. God wants us to worship Jesus just like the Wise Men did.
3. God used the Wise Men's gifts to supply Mary, Joseph and Jesus' needs. He will provide for us too.
4. God protected the Wise Men and Jesus by sending dreams to warn them.
Teachers' note: The Lord is really emphasizing worship in this lesson. That is why we go to church, to serve God by worshiping him. We do other things too but that is the most important thing we do. Jesus said, "Let the little children come unto me."
A little discussion of how we are to act when we come into the presence of our king would be helpful.
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