Matthew 2:1 Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, 2 "Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him."
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The first people to come looking for Jesus were the wise men from the east. It struck me as very interesting that this amazing star is a clear signal to them that He has been born and the star leads them specifically to Jerusalem....but then, once they reach Jerusalem they have to start asking for directions. What's that all about? Why couldn't the star continue leading them directly to Bethlehem without the detour to Jerusalem? It's almost like they had Jesus' location loaded in their GPS and were receiving "turn by turn" directions and all of a sudden they lost the signal! But, as if that isn't interesting enough, they find the answer to their question from the evil king who is bent on finding and killing Jesus. When Herod hears that the Messiah has been born he asks his religious advisors where the Messiah is prophesied to be born and they tell him the location is Bethlehem. Herod gives the wise men the Bethlehem location and as they head out of Jerusalem the star shows up again and leads them, not only to Bethlehem, but to the very stable where Jesus is laying. One of the applications I get from these events is that God's plan to bring the savior to the world and to bring the world to the savior will not be thwarted by evil. In fact, God is sovereign over evil and will redirect evil intentions to complete His good purposes!
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And His Holy Spirit, like the star of the wise men, will guide you to the Messiah, despite the reality of evil that swirls around you.
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blessings,
Rob Smith
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