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December 18 - Matt 1:18-25; Matt 2 - "King... for a Day?"

Phil Campbell MPC 25^th December 2005.

Ever had that terrible feeling at Christmas that you've left out something important?

Maybe you forgot to put the turkey in the oven before you came to church?

Maybe the present for the Aunty who's coming for lunch.

Maybe that Christmas card that you meant to send to someone important and you forgot. Until you got a card from them in the mail on Friday.

Or maybe even like in the movie Home Alone? Remember the scene? The whole family is on the plane heading to France for the Christmas holidays. And they realize they've forgotten Kevin. Kevin is home alone.

Mind you, the way Kevin went on, I'm not sure if they forgot him. Or they left him at home on purpose.

Which is a bit how it is with the picture I'm going to show you.

It's an advent calendar. A Nativity Scene. Where you're meant to count down the days til Christmas.

But I want you to look carefully and see if you can see if they've missed something. See if there's something they've forgotten. Something kind of important about Christmas.

The Playmobil advent calendar comes complete with a stable. And with stars. And with a horse. And a cow. And sheep. And a feeding trough. There's even an angel. And right at the centre of it all, the focus of everyone's attention… is Santa Claus. So what have they forgotten? Or who?

They've left out the most important person of all. Jesus… the reason for the season… is nowhere to be found.

I mean, it's amazing isn't it? An advent calendar… for a Christ free Christmas.

But if you think back to our bible reading this morning though, maybe we shouldn't be quite so surprised. Because maybe you noticed that right from the very first Christmas there are people who want to get rid of Jesus.

It's a terrible story. And maybe part of the Christmas account we often skip over because it's so brutal and ugly. But it's a fact. Right from the day he was born, there were people desperate to push Jesus out of the picture completely.

Particularly king Herod.

The funny thing was, Herod the king of Israel was not really a King at all. Because he worked for the Romans. Who were in charge of almost everything. But Herod loved to call himself a king. He issued coins that said Herod the king. And he was famous for his ambition. And his cruelty. Herod was determined to be the most important guy in all of Judea. And nobody was going to get in his way.

In fact, a few years before Jesus was born, Herod heard a rumour that his sons Aristobulus and Antipater had plans to take over the kingdom. So he had them killed. Just in case.

Even Herod's boss, the Roman Emperor Augustus was amazed how cruel he was. Augustus said, "It's safer to be Herod's pig than his son."

So what happens when these magi, these wise men from the far east turn up one day and say, "We're looking for the new king who's been born"?

You can see it printed there in the passage on your sheet. Matthew Chapter 2 Verse 1.  

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of king Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, "Where is the one who has been born King of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him."

Somehow these guys from far away, they've seen something unusual in the sky. And they've followed it. And here they are. Somehow they know this star is the sign that a great king has been born. And so the logical thing they do, is they turn up to Herod's palace. Not knowing that the king they're looking for has been born in a cowshed. At the back of a pub. In a village 8 kilometres further down a winding road.

Let me tell you, turning up to King Herod and asking to see the new king - you're talking to the guy who killed his own sons in case they got too ambitious. So what do you reckon he's going to say? For guys who are meant to be wise, these Magi from the East have come to the worst possible place.

Keep reading in verse 3.

"When King Herod hears this he's disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him." He's disturbed - because he doesn't want to lose his job. The rest of Jerusalem is disturbed… because this is what they've been longing for.

And so verse 4 says Herod calls together all the people's chief priests and teachers of the law, and he asks them where the Christ is meant to be born. The king that the prophets had promised for hundreds of years.

And they answer him in verse 5. "In Bethlehem in Judea," they replied, "for this is what the prophet has written: " '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.'" A King who will lead and care for God's people. Instead of beating them up.

So Herod hatches a plot. He calls in the magi, the wise men, and he says, tell me, when did you first see the star? How long have you been on the road? Herod's working on a plan. And then he sends them on their way to Bethlehem, and he says go and find him. Then let me know… verse 8… So I can go and worship him too.

Which of course you know is the last thing King Herod wants to do. King Herod wants to be rid of him.

The Magi get on their way, and the star they saw before is ahead of them again. And it seems to go ahead of them - and then stop. Over the place where Jesus was.

These wise men started out doing something dumb. But they're wising up. When they see the star again, they're overjoyed. And when they see Jesus and they see Mary his mother; these wise visitors, they bow down in front of the baby and they worship him. And they open up their treasures and give him gifts of gold and incense and myrrh. Which is a kind of very expensive perfume.

And here's the important bit. Verse 12 says God warns them in a dream not to go back to Herod in Jerusalem. So they go back to their country by another road instead.

And Joseph and Mary get a warning as well. An angel appears to Joseph in a dream; and says, get out of here. Head down to Egypt. And stay there until I tell you, says the Angel, Herod is going to search for the child… to kill him.

See, it might be the very first Christmas. But Herod wants nothing more than to eliminate Jesus from Christmas.

So Joseph gets up, he takes Jesus and Mary in the night, and they leave for Egypt.

But here's the terrible part of the story. Some time goes by. And verse 16 says Herod eventually realizes he's been fooled. He's been waiting every day for the Magi to come back and tell him where this baby king is, and it finally dawns on him they've caught on to his plan. And cruel Herod is so furious that he gives orders to kill every boy in Bethlehem under two years old. Except of course by this time Jesus is in Egypt. Where the family waits until they finally get news a few years later that Herod is dead.

Wanting to get rid of Jesus from Christmas is nothing new is it. There's nothing Herod wants more.

And you know these days, I reckon people do it for almost exactly the same reason.

Because Jesus is dangerous. Seems safe enough as a baby in a crib. But the danger is he's going to grow up. And he might want to rule the world. The danger is if you don't get rid of him on that first Christmas, he'll want to take over as king. And be calling the shots on the way you live your life.

Which Herod didn't want for a minute. And most people these days don't much want either.

And so it's much safer to just blank him out of Christmas. And then blank him out everywhere else as well. It's not just political correctness at work. It's personal.

But of course, it's not quite as easy as you might think.

Herod tried. And he failed.

Jesus grew up. And said all that confronting stuff like repent. Like follow me. Like love your enemies. Like, forgive.

And even when he was finally executed by Herod's successor; even when he was nailed on a cross for daring to claim to be a king… even then… three days later God brought him back. Which absolutely convinced his disciples that there was no other king worth bowing down to. There was no other name worth submitting to. Which got them into all sorts of trouble as well.

Later on in the book of Acts, there's a fascinating snapshot of what it was like. Paul and Silas, they've traveled thousands of kilometers telling people about Jesus. They're in the city of Thessalonica. And because of their message, there's a riot. They're staying with a guy called Jason. And some Jews stir up a crowd, and they rush to Jason's house looking for Paul and Silas to bring them out to the crowd. They can't find them, so they drag Jason out instead. And bring them to the city officials. And they say this.

These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here, and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar's decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.

See, here's the essence of the problem. And you can paper over it if you want. But the claim of Christmas is that a king has come who calls for your allegiance. A King has come who calls for your commitment. A King has come who calls for a decision one way or another.

And it's an allegiance and a commitment and a decision that counts for a whole lot more than one day a year.

I read in the newspaper the other day there's a guy called Andy Park in London has celebrated Christmas every day for the last 12 years. It's cost him thousands of pounds. But every day, Andy Park roasts a turkey for lunch and pulls Christmas crackers, while he watches a video of the Queen's Christmas Speech. He knows every word off by heart. Andy Park says that since 1993 he's eaten 4380 turkeys and 26,280 roast potatoes, and worn out 42 video recorders.

You know, I suspect Mr Park has a problem. And he should see a doctor. He says he does it because he absolutely loves Christmas. But I reckon he might have a screw loose.

There's no need to celebrate Christmas every day. But I want to suggest if you understand Jesus properly, then it should actually change the way you live every day.