I hate it when this happens. Everyone gets the memo except me.
Ok, will someone please tell me what’s going on? I want to be in on it too!
So who is paying attention to what God is doing? Joseph and Mary hear God’s voice. The wise men from the east see the star. There are a few others.
But what is striking about this story is who is out of the loop.
Almost everyone else on the planet!
Especially troubling is who should have been in the know but seem oblivious. King Herod and the entire religious community in Jerusalem!
Even more unsettling is their reaction when the wise men informed them of the birth of their King. Matthew says Herod was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.
Not only are they out of the loop, they are so far out they can’t recognize God’s purposes when they are announced and confirmed from Scripture. Worse yet, Herod hatches a scheme to thwart them.
I don’t think the memo helped.
Really disappointing stuff! God came to be with them and they missed it. Carried on as before or worse!
Today it’s different, right? I’m not so sure.
Forgive me if I wonder where we fit in this story.
Out of the loop? Carrying on as before? Even opposing God’s purposes?
The King is here. The Teacher is ever-present. God’s will is for us to become more like Him!
So, who is paying attention to what God is doing this time?
I was struck by this statement in today's post: "Especially troubling is who should have been in the know but seem oblivious. King Herod and the entire religious community in Jerusalem!" That is the essence of the problem in learning about God. The religious community thinks they know Him and can explain Him, but as Lenny says, they only know ABOUT Him, but not Him personally. It is the Holy Spirit's job to help us know Him personally. We'll never get there on our own and God knew that, which is why He sent the Comfortor, the Counselor, the Holy Spirit to lead us and guide us into all truth. Hallelujah for that!
ReplyDeleteLove and blessings to you and yours with prayers that God will bring readers and open hearts to your blog.
Hugs, Jan and Lenny Antonsson
I really appreciate the coment about knowing about him but not knoowing him!
ReplyDeleteThese wise men, Magi - who were they? Where were they from? A distnat land - possibly a 2 year journey - maybe from Syria or another of the places that took Israel captive - or how else would they have known the Jewish Law and the prophecy of the star? Maybe they were Jewish - but probably not. Yet they recognized something special was takingplace - AND they acted upon it. As well, they come bearing gifts - to the King of the Jews. Not the one who would become king, but "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews?" (Mt 2:2)
As the song says, "Jesus, Lord at thy birth" they recognized this. (Yet wasn't he Lord long before!?!)
Kevin