Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.” Matthew 2:1-2
Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him.”
When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, 15 and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”
Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men. Matthew 2:13-16
Jesus was born under the nose of the Pharisees and Sadducees, but they didn’t notice or recognize Him! On the other hand, the wise men as outsiders, from a far country, came a long way seeking to see the King of the Jews and worship Him! Sometimes, we think that if we had been raised in a Christian home, we would have had an advantage in knowing God early in life and having more knowledge of Him. Looking at the religious people of Jesus’ day, it is clear that they they had knowledge but no revelation! They were blinded to the reality of who Jesus was even when He walked among them. It was the illiterate and the uneducated who accepted Him more readily and believed who He was!
The wise men came to King Herod looking for the King of the Jews, but this became a point of intimidation for King Herod! He was so scared of this baby that he was willing to take the lives of many boys under the age of 2 to ensure that Jesus was eliminated. How can a baby be so intimidating!? Did he ever stop to ask what was the baby’s lineage that would qualify Him to be the King of the Jews!?
In John 10:10, Jesus stated that the enemy comes to steal, kill, and destroy. The enemy is threatened by those who worship the King of Kings and attempts to steal the seed of life! He tried to snuff out the life of Jesus before He had the opportunity to grow and fulfill the Father’s mission. He will try to do the same in the lives of people!
Thankfully, Mary and Joseph were warned in a dream about King Herod’s plans and fled to Egypt to ensure that Jesus would not be touched by his men. Similarly, God provides a way of escape from temptations and the trappings of the enemy. We need to remain in tune with Him and listen to His instructions. It would have been very inconvenient for Mary and Joseph to travel all the way to Egypt with a baby on a donkey, but it was necessary if they were going to protect the promised Child!
Sometimes we have to distance ourselves from certain people or situations to ensure that we are not affected by the behavior or lifestyle of others. We have to guard what the Lord has entrusted to us from those things that could endanger our faith or the call of God in our lives. It may feel lonely for a season. It may also cost us something, but if God has directed it, He will provide the grace to go through it until such a time that He opens new doors.
The Lord entrusted the King of Kings in the hands of Mary and Joseph. They carefully paid attention to God’s instructions every step of the way and protected God’s son for the call that He had on His life! Are you stewarding what God has placed in your life? Are you protective of the call of God? We are all carriers of His seed of life in us, and we’re called to steward it for His glory and purpose!
Image by Myriam Zilles from Pixabay