BBCC Bible Study Notes

FAITHFUL ENDINGS INSPIRE CURRENT FAITH.  - Matthew 2:1-12

December 8th, 2024

TheStory of the Wise Men (Matthew 2:1-12)

"Now after Jesus was born inBethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from theeast came to Jerusalem, ² saying, "Where is he who has been born king ofthe Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him."³ When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him;⁴ and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquiredof them where the Christ was to be born. ⁵ They told him, "In Bethlehem ofJudea, for so it is written by the prophet: "'And you, O Bethlehem, in theland of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from youshall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.'" Then Herodsummoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star hadappeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search diligentlyfor the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may comeand worship him." After listening to the king, they went on their way. Andbehold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it cameto rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, theyrejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw thechild with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, openingtheir treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. Andbeing warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their owncountry by another way." (Matthew 2:1-12, NIV)

BiblicalExamples of God's Providence

A. Joseph's story (Genesis 50:20) "Youintended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is nowbeing done, the saving of many lives." (Genesis 50:20, NIV)

B. The Psalms: Proclaiming God's faithfulness through difficult times

C. Paul's sermon in Acts 13:16-25 "SoPaul stood up, and motioning with his hand said: 'Men of Israel and you whofear God, listen. The God of this people Israel chose our fathers and made thepeople great during their stay in the land of Egypt, and with uplifted arm heled them out of it. And for about forty years he put up with them in thewilderness. And after destroying seven nations in the land of Canaan, he gavethem their land as an inheritance. All this took about 450 years. And afterthat he gave them judges until Samuel the prophet. Then they asked for a king,and God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, forforty years. And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king,of whom he testified and said, 'I have found in David the son of Jesse a manafter my heart, who will do all my will.' Of this man's offspring God hasbrought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised. Before his coming, John hadproclaimed a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. And as John wasfinishing his course, he said, 'What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. No,but behold, after me one is coming, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthyto untie.'" (Acts 13:16-25, NIV)

Stepsin the Christian Life.

A. Admitting our brokenness and needfor a Savior

B. Trusting in God's kindness andJesus' sacrifice for our sins

C. Continuing in faith, believing thatGod will bring goodness out of our difficulties

Faithends in the Joy of the Lord

A. Joy is the response of the soul toknowing Jesus Christ

B. Joy gives hope, resilience, andstrength in the midst of challenges:  "Nehemiahsaid, 'Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those whohave nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joyof the LORD is your strength.'" (Nehemiah 8:10, NIV)

BBCC Verse of the Week: 1Chronicles 16:31 (NIV) Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let themsay among the nations, “The LORD reigns!”

Study Guide

In spite of the well-knownChristmas carol “We Three Kings of Orient Are,” there is little historicalcertainty behind the wording of the stanza. As early as the third century A.D.,the Magi were considered kings, fulfilling Psalm 72:11, “All kings will bowdown to him.” But the Magi were probably more along the lines of religiousadvisers to their court. Their actual number is uncertain. Eastern traditionsets their number at twelve, but Western tradition sets it at three, based onthe three gifts of gold, incense, and myrrh. Likely the Magi, whatever their number, traveled with a much largernumber of attendants and guards for the long journey. The Magi’s goal is to find “the one who has been born king ofthe Jews.” Matthew has traced the lineage through King David (1:6), preparingfor Jesus Messiah to be called “king of the Jews.” The people of Israel hadlong waited for the rightful heir to the throne, but God announces his arrivalfirst through these Gentile Magi. An expectation had circulated in the world ofthe first century that a ruler would arise from Judea. Suetonius writes,“Throughout the whole of the East there had spread an old and persistentbelief: destiny had decreed that at that time men coming forth from Judea wouldseize power [and rule the world].” Israel’s prophets had long spoken of aperiod of world peace and prosperity that would be instituted by a futureDavidic deliverer (e.g., Ezek. 34:23–31). This belief had penetrated beyond theborders of Israel, so that others were looking for a ruler(s) to arise from theland of Judea.  The Magi announce of the king whom they seek, “We saw his starin the east and have come to worship him.” The word “east” (anatole) can mean either the “rising”of the sun and stars (cf. Luke 1:78) or the locale called “the east” (Rev.21:13). The phrase “from the east” in 2:1 appears to be the latter, but theexpression “in the east” in 2:2 implies the former, indicating that they sawthe star rise. That is, they didn’t see the star rise in the eastern part ofthe sky, otherwise it would have caused them to travel east. Rather, while theywere to the east of Jerusalem, the star rose, perhaps to the west of them,causing them to travel west to Jerusalem. Throughthe Jewish community in their homeland, the Magi would have become familiarwith Balaam’s prophecy, “A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise outof Israel” (Num. 24:17). In many quarters within Judaism this prophecy wasunderstood to point to a messianic deliverer (e.g., CD 7:18–26; 4QTest. 9–13).In Revelation, Jesus refers to himself in similar language: “I am the Root andthe Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star” (Rev. 22:16; cf. 2:28; 2Peter 1:19). - Michael J. Wilkins

Over the years I have had people say to me something likethis: “I don’t know what I believe about Jesus. I don’t know if I believe inthe incarnation or all these dogmas. But really, doctrine doesn’t matter. Whatmatters is that you live a good life.” However, when you say, “Doctrine doesn’tmatter; what matters is that you live a good life,” that is a doctrine. It is calledthe doctrine of salvation by your works rather than by grace. It assumes thatyou are not so bad that you need a Savior, that you are not so weak that youcan’t pull yourself together and live as you should. You are actually espousinga whole set of doctrines about the nature of God, humanity, and sin. And themessage of Christmas is that they are all wrong. You may believe that you canearn your right to heaven with God, or you may reject religion altogether andbelieve you simply have the moral resources within yourself to live the life ahuman being ought to live. If you hold either position, however, your life willbe characterized by fear and insecurity, because you will never feel like youare being quite good enough; or it will be marked by pride and disdain forother people if you feel like you actually have been good enough; or it will bemarked by self-loathing if you feel you have failed. You may find yourselfwhiplashed back and forth between two or more of these ways of life. There isanother possibility, however. You can believe in the truth of Christmas, thatyou are saved by grace alone through faith in Christ alone. Then you can get anidentity that is humbled out of your pride but affirmed and loved out of yourinsecurity, and one that offers you forgiveness and restoration when you fail.– Timothy Keller

‍