The Life and Ministry of Jesus
When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet: ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, Are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.’ ” Matthew 2:3–6
He didn’t ask; he demanded. He said, “I know that you have the Scriptures and in them you have a record of a Messiah that is coming. I want to know where He is to be born.” One of the amazing things is that they were able to tell him. When Herod asked the scribes this question, they didn’t have to search the Scriptures for it; they knew where it was—Micah 5:2. They knew all about the coming of the Messiah. The problem was that their knowledge was academic. It was not personally meaningful to them.
They are examples of folk who know the history contained in the Bible and they know certain factual truths, but these things carry no personal meaning for them. You would have thought that they would have said, We are looking for the Messiah too!” 1
Personal Encouragement
Suppose He broke in today where you are and into what you are doing. Would He interrupt anything? Would you like to say, “I wish that You would postpone your visit to some other time”?
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Matthew 7:21
All your spiritual academics mean nothing if there’s no personal application.
A Prayer
Lord, be my Shepherd. If I fail to do Your will, please correct me.
1. Ryle, J. C. (1993). Matthew. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
