Matthew 2:1-12
Epiphany
Pastor Ron Koehler
Grace—Tucson, AZ
January 8, 2023
Asking if the United States is a Christian nation is a tricky question to answer, isn’t it? One person might say, “No, the United States was designed to be religiously neutral. Freedom is built in.” Someone else might point out the faith of the founding fathers and how that influenced the establishment of our nation. Another might answer trying to gauge the percentage of Christian people in our country. Most probably think in those terms, and I’ve heard many Christians say that it was more so Christian in previous generations. What would you say to a related thought—if I were to say to you, “Jesus is important to most people in our country?” Would you agree with that? At first blush, you might think that the importance of Jesus would apply only to those who know him as the Savior. But isn’t it true that Jesus is important to a whole lot of people who do not love him as their Savior? He is so important that many people made an intentional effort to keep Jesus out of Christmas celebrations again this year. He’s so important that some don’t want public places to display anything related to him— commandments and crosses for instance—so that he is out of the public eye. Jesus is important enough that many schools and workplaces and clubs are fine with you being a Christian, but they don’t want you flaunting your faith. You may not even be allowed to display a cross or have a Bible sitting around. Whether they love him or hate him, Jesus is important to many people! The words of Matthew’s gospel are typically read when Epiphany is celebrated. As we look at that recording of this historical event of the Wise Men worshiping Jesus, we’ll find that there were from the beginning, people who loved him and those who hated him—and he was important to them all. EPIPHANY REVEALS THE IMPORTANCE OF JESUS 1. IMPORTANT TO HEROD (3-8,12) 2. IMPORTANT TO THE WISE MEN (1-2,9-12) 3. IMPORTANT TO YOU AND ME (6)
Jesus may have been as much as two years old when these events took place. Mary and Joseph were taking care of their infant—or toddler—in a house in Bethlehem, just a few miles outside of Jerusalem. Herod ruled this land as a vicious, paranoid king who actually killed family members whom he thought threatened his throne. When it says that all Jerusalem was disturbed with Herod when he was upset by the news of a Jewish king being born, it is not difficult to imagine! In addition to the fear which he spread with his rule, there was fear in his own heart. You can sense the fear when you recognize how important Jesus was to him! The Wise Men came from a distant land asking about the birth of a Jewish king. On the basis of that one inquiry, Herod’s head starts spinning. He doesn’t know Jesus at this point, but he recognizes his importance when Wise Men from an eastern land come to see a child king of the people he ruled over. So, Herod brought in the Jewish religious leaders and asked them about this newborn king. Sure enough, they knew! They quoted the Old Testament words of God which pinpointed the tiny city where this King would be born—the nearby village of Bethlehem.