INNOCENTS!
Sixth
of nine devotions in Incarnation Parallel
Bible Study series
Jeremiah
31:15, Matthew 2:16-18
Matthew
2:16: “When Herod realized that he had
been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the
boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and younger, in
accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi.”
Matthew
2:17-18 includes the passage from Jeremiah 31:15: “Then what was said through the prophet
Jeremiah was fulfilled: ‘A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they were
no more.’”
Herod killed innocents looking for
the Christ child. Christmas joy of giving reminds us to remember
those who’re in need. They deserve
gifts, too! That’s why “Toys for Tots”
and “Mystery Santa” were formed. Adults
know that kids need to open gifts Christmas morning. Everybody else does.
Kids don’t control anything, and are
dependent on others for everything. They
haven’t done anything wrong (yet). They
certainly don’t deserve to die! But, life
rarely seems fair. Many times, we simply
wring our hands and shrug our shoulders over life’s injustices.
When the Magi swept into Jerusalem
asking where to find “The King of the Jews,” Herod freaked. (Matthew 2:2). Herod was appointed king of Judea by the Roman
Senate. The new baby had to go! Herod only knew one way to handle competition—by
killing it. But that’s not all.
Herod also murdered one wife, three
of his own sons, his mother-in-law, his brother-in-law, and many others. So killing babies was no big deal to
Herod. Surely, the Christ child would be
caught in Herod’s snare of killing innocents. But Matthew 2:13 says that Joseph took Jesus
and Mary to Egypt. They returned after Herod
died, in verses 19-20.
Herod had a problem. He was insecure. By now, I’m sure you get how messed up Herod
was.
Fear. Distrust.
Suspicion. Obsession. Paranoia.
Pick one noun to label Herod, and
you’d be right. But why stop there? The world is full of insecure people who also
fall under these labels. But that
doesn’t have to label you—or any Christian!
Because Jesus came to earth as our Savior, whoever believes in Jesus has
assurance. We’re confident that we’ll
have eternal life (John 3:36, 1 John 5:13).
Hallelujah!
Take
Home Nugget
No
one wants to be poor. But Jesus said
that “the poor you will always have with you.” (Matthew
26:11). People are proud, though. We want to earn our way in life. But God wants His kids dependent on Him! Self-sufficiency and independence from God is
not Jesus’ way. God promises to meet every
need (Matthew 6:8).
Dependence
on God is being independent from worry.
J.D.
Griffith
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