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In the previous chapter we saw that the birth of the Lord was outside religion. His birth had nothing to do with religious matters, people, places, or ordinances. His birth was entirely of the Spirit. Therefore, He can save His people from their sins (Matt. 1:21). Moreover, since His birth was entirely of the Spirit, He is Emmanuel, meaning “God with us” (v. 23).
When we fall into religion, we lose the saving power of Jesus, and we also lose Emmanuel — we lose God’s presence. Both Jesus’ saving power and God’s presence are in the Holy Spirit, not in religion. We should never think that we can touch Jesus’ saving power or have God’s presence in religion. We need to be outside religion and in the Holy Spirit in order to receive the saving power of Jesus and enjoy the presence of God.
Matthew 2:1-12 shows the kind of people who are able to find and serve the Lord. The Lord was born outside religion, and He is found and served by people outside religion.
It is marvelous that although the Lord Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, His star appeared to the Gentile magi. The magi, who were in a heathen land, saw the star, but no one in Jerusalem or Judea saw it. None of the people who were in the realm of religion saw the star. The scribes and the chief priests were people with the equivalent of doctorate degrees in the Holy Scriptures. They knew the Scriptures well, and they understood the Scriptures. They taught people the Scriptures daily. However, the star of Christ did not appear to them. The Gentile magi did not understand anything of the Bible, and it is likely that they did not even have a copy of the Scriptures, but they saw the star of Christ. This is marvelous. Our Lord was born in Bethlehem, but His star appeared to Gentiles who lived far away in a heathen land.
Numbers 24:17 says, “There shall come forth a Star out of Jacob.” Jacob is another name for Israel, and it is also another name for the people of Israel. The Lord is the Star out of Jacob, but He did not show this star to the people of Israel, because at that time the people of Israel were in religion. The Lord as the star appeared to the Gentiles. The Gentile magi had heathen knowledge only. They did not have any religious knowledge, but the star appeared to them and was seen by them.
It is wonderful that the Gentile magi saw the star of Christ. However, they committed a common human mistake: they had natural concepts. When they realized that the star signified the King of the Jews, they followed their natural concept. They did not have religious knowledge or ordinances, but they had a natural concept. Natural concepts hinder us from knowing the Lord much more than our religious knowledge hinders us.
The magi did not have religious knowledge, but they had natural concepts. They exercised their mind and reasoned that the King of the Jews would be born in Jerusalem, the capital of the kingdom of the Jews. Based on this concept, they went to Jerusalem (Matt. 2:1-2), and the star disappeared. The star appeared to them because they did not have religious knowledge; the star disappeared because they had a natural concept. Religious knowledge and natural concepts are two dreadful things that cause us to lose the Lord’s revelation.
When the magi arrived in Jerusalem, King Herod was very troubled and all Jerusalem with him (v. 3). King Herod gathered all the chief priests and scribes and inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. The chief priests and scribes were familiar with the Bible. They were bona fide religionists and Bible teachers. They replied, “In Bethlehem of Judea” (vv. 5-6; cf. Micah 5:2). The chief priests and scribes answered correctly because they knew the Bible. However, what they had was mere knowledge. They did not have revelation.
Not only so, the chief priests and scribes did not have a heart to seek after Christ. They heard that Christ, the King of the Jews, was born, and they knew that He was born in Bethlehem, but none of them went to find Christ. After they answered Herod, they went their own ways. This shows that Bible knowledge alone does not help us. This is the situation of many Christians today. They have Bible knowledge, but they do not have revelation, nor do they have a seeking heart.
After Herod found out the birthplace of Christ, He sent the magi to Bethlehem and said, “Go and find out accurately about the child. And when you find Him, report to me, so that I also may come and worship Him” (Matt. 2:8). Although Herod said this, he did not intend to worship Christ; rather, his intention was to harm Christ. Herod lied to deceive men, but he could not deceive God. God came in, and Herod discovered that he was mocked by the magi (vv. 12, 16).
As soon as the magi left Jerusalem for Bethlehem, the star appeared again (v. 9). Once we leave the realm of religion, we receive revelation. Micah 5:2 says that Christ would be born in Bethlehem, but this knowledge is not enough. The Bible says only that Christ would be born in Bethlehem, but there was more than one street in Bethlehem, and there was more than one home on each street. On which street and in which home was Christ to be born? If the magi had only the prophecy from the Bible, it would have been difficult for them to find Christ in Bethlehem.
Hence, it is not enough for us just to study the Bible; however, we cannot be without the Bible, because the Bible is the Word of God. When we are confused and lose sight of the star, we need the Bible to guide us. I believe that if the magi had simply followed the leading of the star, instead of depending on their natural concept, they would have been brought to the baby Jesus. If they had not cared whether they were being led toward the east or the west, or whether they were going to Jerusalem, Bethlehem, or Nazareth, but had simply followed the star, they would have been brought step by step to Bethlehem and to the baby Jesus. It is a pity that they thought the King of the Jews should be born in Jerusalem and went there. When they went to Jerusalem, the star disappeared because they were in the wrong place. They needed the Bible to guide them. When we lose the guiding of the star, we need the Bible.
Knowing the Bible did not help the scribes and chief priests. It helped only those who were seeking the Lord. After receiving the words of the Bible, the magi left the religious center of Jerusalem and went to Bethlehem. As soon as they left Jerusalem, the star appeared to them and led them to Bethlehem and to the house where the Lord Jesus was. They did not need to ask whether the child was Jesus or why the King of the Jews would be born in a manger, because the star led them. As a result, they did not have any doubts. As soon as they saw the child, they fell down and worshipped Him, and opening their treasures, they offered gifts to Him (Matt. 2:11).
Some Christians teach that the Bible is complete and that we need only the Bible and nothing else. The Bible is indeed complete. However, to say that we need only the Bible and nothing else is not accurate. Our Bible must be living. If our Bible is not living, we cannot say that we need only the Bible and nothing else. Besides the Bible, we must have the living star. We need to see the living star in addition to knowing the Bible.
We thank the Lord that the Bible is on earth, and the star is in heaven. Even today the star is still in heaven. This heavenly star is for those who have a seeking heart. As long as a person has a seeking heart, the heavenly star will appear to him so that he may know Christ.
After following the star and seeing Christ, the magi were divinely instructed in a dream not to return to Herod so that they would not be deceived by him: “Because they had been divinely instructed in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed by another way to their country” (v. 12). Dream in this verse does not refer to the ordinary dreams that people have. Some people have strange and weird dreams that are worthless and meaningless. The dream that the magi had was a trance, a kind of comprehension that is beyond reasoning, a vision that transcends natural concepts. It is a dream, and yet it is not a dream.
I have had at least one such experience. It was as clear as a scene before my eyes. I cannot say that it was a dream, nor can I say that it was not a dream. During China’s War of Resistance against Japan, I was imprisoned by the Japanese military police in Chefoo, Shantung Province. After I was released, I was not permitted to leave home at will. While I was in prison, I suffered to the extent that even after I was released I still felt the fear and threat of the prison. I was released on a Thursday, and on the Lord’s Day afternoon I attended the bread-breaking meeting. Prior to that day I had never fallen asleep in the bread-breaking meeting. However, that afternoon, as the cup was being passed, seemingly I fell asleep, but I did not sleep. I saw a dog coming toward me, but it shook its head and tail in shame and then walked away. I knew then that the Japanese police would seek me out again; however, I had peace within me. The Holy Spirit told me to be at peace because the dog walked away in shame. This was not a dream, but it seemed like a dream. It was a trance. In this trance the Lord gave me a revelation.
The dream that the magi had was this kind of special vision. Later, Mary’s husband, Joseph, had many dreams, which were also this kind of dream. In the dream the magi were divinely instructed not to return to Herod, so they went home by another way. After a person has seen Christ, he will always take another way. A person who has seen Christ will never go the same way that he came. A person who has met the Lord and been touched by Him will always take another way.
After the magi departed, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph, saying, “Arise, take the child and His mother and flee into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you; for Herod is going to seek the child to destroy Him” (v. 13). Joseph was led in a special way. It was not that Joseph was having morning watch and read Hosea 11:1, which says, “Out of Egypt I called My son,” and then Joseph understood that the Bible was instructing him to take his family down to Egypt. This was not the case. The Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and gave him the revelation to flee to Egypt with the child and His mother. Joseph received the Lord’s word, and he took the child and His mother and went down to Egypt. Thus, the fulfillment of the prophecy concerning Christ in Hosea 11:1 was carried out by God through Joseph’s following the leading he received in his dream.
Joseph went down to Egypt and stayed there. This was his service to Christ. Joseph was the first person to serve Christ. He served Christ not according to Bible knowledge or teachings but according to his fellowship with the Lord. Joseph had a humble status and did not attract people’s attention, but he fellowshipped with the Lord. In this fellowship the Lord revealed His heart’s desire to Joseph. By following the revelation he received, Joseph served Christ.
The Lord Jesus was born of Mary. However, Mary was a woman; she needed someone to coordinate with her. We must realize that if there were only Mary and no Joseph, the birth of the Lord Jesus would have been a problem. Perhaps Jesus would have been born in Nazareth, not in Bethlehem, which would not have been according to the Scriptures. The Lord Jesus was conceived in Nazareth, but He was born in Bethlehem. This was the result of Joseph’s coordination. Joseph was from Bethlehem. Hence, when it was time to be registered, he had to return to Bethlehem (Luke 2:1-5). This is the way that the Lord Jesus was born in Bethlehem.
Later they had to flee to Egypt because Herod was seeking to kill the Lord Jesus. In ancient times it was very difficult for a young woman, like Mary, to travel with a child. In this matter it was even more necessary for Joseph to coordinate with Mary. It was only at the time of the Lord’s conception that an angel went to Mary and told her that the Lord would be conceived in her (1:26-38). After that, the angel of the Lord did not tell Mary what to do, where to flee, or when to return. Instead, the angel of the Lord told Joseph what to do, where to flee, and when to return (Matt. 1:20; 2:13, 19-20). All Mary did was to obey Joseph. When Joseph said that they should go to Bethlehem, Mary followed him to Bethlehem. When Joseph said that they should flee to Egypt, Mary went with him. This kind of following was not in vain. When Mary followed Joseph, the prophecies in the Bible were fulfilled, and God’s heart’s desire was accomplished.
Mary was a good sister, and she had a portion in serving Christ. Without Mary, it would have been impossible for the Lord Jesus to be born. However, after the Lord Jesus was born, without Joseph, there would have been no way for Him to flee and be preserved. This is a picture of the coordination between the brothers and sisters. In the church we need the sisters to be like Mary and the brothers to be like Joseph in their coordinating together to serve Christ. The sisters have their portion, and the brothers have theirs, but neither the sisters nor the brothers should serve in a religious way or according to knowledge. Joseph and Mary received the Lord’s living, instant, and timely instruction. When they were instructed, Joseph obeyed and Mary followed. This is truly a beautiful picture.
It is not so simple to follow the Lord. Often the Lord does not take the simple way. He does not tell us everything at once. Rather, He instructs us one step at a time. He told Joseph, “Arise, take the child and His mother and flee into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you,” so Joseph fled to Egypt with the child and His mother and stayed there (vv. 13-15). Joseph did not know how long they should stay in Egypt. After a period of time, the Lord’s instruction came again: “Arise, take the child and His mother and go into the land of Israel” (v. 20). So Joseph returned to the land of Israel with the child and His mother. But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. At this point in time the Lord’s instruction came again, and he departed into the regions of Galilee (vv. 22-23). Although Joseph might not have understood the significance of the Lord’s instructions, through these moves the words in the Bible were fulfilled.
The Bible does not say that the Lord would be born in Nazareth. It says that He would be born in Bethlehem. Since the Lord’s conception occurred in Nazareth, how could His birth take place in Bethlehem? According to history, after the divided Grecian Empire, the Roman Empire rose up and conquered Europe, Asia, and Africa to become a great empire with a vast territory. In that vast empire no census had been taken. Then during the reign of Caesar Augustus, a decree went out for a census to be taken of all the inhabited earth, and everyone went to his own city to be registered. Joseph lived in Nazareth, but he was of the house and family of David. Hence, when the decree was made, he went up from Nazareth to Bethlehem, David’s city. Since Mary was engaged to him, Joseph brought Mary with him to Bethlehem. This was God’s sovereignty; it was His arrangement in the environment for the fulfillment of His heart’s desire (Luke 2:1-5).
Hence, the Lord’s birth in Bethlehem was a very mysterious thing. He was conceived in Nazareth, and He grew up in Nazareth, but He was born in Bethlehem. The prophecies in the Bible indicate that He would be born in Bethlehem but be called a Nazarene (Micah 5:2; Matt. 2:23). The fulfillment of these prophecies is related to Joseph’s service. Joseph truly lived before God and therefore was able to receive step-by-step instructions from God. What Joseph did fulfilled the words in the Bible. It is not good enough to do everything according to the Bible merely because we know and understand the Bible. The best thing is to contact the Lord and live in the shining of His face. Then everything that we do will spontaneously correspond to the Bible.
Last year a very peculiar male in his early twenties came to the church in Los Angeles. He had long hair, a long beard, and wrapped himself in a large and colorful but dirty blanket. Since the church should receive all people, including “tax collectors” and “prostitutes,” this person was not excluded. We received him, but we could not tell him to give up his dirty blanket. Every time he came, he wore his blanket. That was a real test to us. Then one day, after about a month, the blanket disappeared, his hair was short, and his beard was shaved. He was a tidy and clean young man. When he walked into the meeting hall, all the saints saw that he was a different person, and they leaped for joy. The Bible does not say whether or not it is acceptable to wear a blanket, nor does the Bible say that a brother should keep his hair short and shave his beard. That young man experienced a dramatic change in his life because he lived in the shining of the Lord’s face. He did not keep dead letters and regulations; rather, he followed the living Spirit within him.
According to this principle, Joseph followed Christ. He walked with Christ step by step. Wherever he went, Christ was with him. When Christ was still a child, Joseph walked with Him, stayed with Him, and served Him. Joseph did not live according to the teaching of the Bible but according to the living light he received. Joseph lived in the presence of God. Our need today is the living light.
Let us now consider three examples in the Gospel of John that show how knowing just the Bible can cause us to miss Christ. The first example is in John 1. After Philip met the Lord, he went and told his friend Nathanael, saying, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, wrote, Jesus, the son of Joseph, from Nazareth” (v. 45). Nathanael replied, “Can anything good be from Nazareth?” (v. 46). Nathanael seemed to be saying, “Christ is from Nazareth? I know what the Bible says. Christ should come from Bethlehem.” People who have mere mental knowledge of the Bible run the risk of missing Christ. We cannot say that their knowledge is right, nor can we say that their knowledge is wrong. Was the Lord Jesus the son of Joseph? The answer is both yes and no. Did the Lord Jesus come from Nazareth? The answer is both yes and no. The Lord Jesus is not simple.
A person cannot know Christ merely according to the Bible. The Bible says that Christ would be born in Bethlehem. This means that He comes from Bethlehem. This being the case, how could He be from Nazareth? This reasoning is logical and correct; however, this way of reasoning will cause a person to miss Christ. We often miss Christ because we know too many doctrines. Philip did not reason with Nathanael; he simply said, “Come and see” (v. 46). By going to see, Nathanael met the Lord and was caught by the Lord (vv. 47-49). Therefore, instead of arguing with people concerning doctrine, we should lead them to Christ.
The second example is in chapter 7. The Lord Jesus went up to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles and did many miracles. On the last day of the feast, He cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink” (v. 37). Some of the people who heard this said, “This is truly the Prophet,” and others said, “This is the Christ.” However, some said, “Does then the Christ come out of Galilee? Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes out of the seed of David and from Bethlehem, the village where David was?” (vv. 40-42). In this portion of the Scriptures, people missed Christ because of their knowledge of the Bible. They knew the Bible, but their Bible knowledge caused them to miss Christ.
The third example is also in chapter 7. There arose a division among the crowd because of the Lord Jesus (v. 43). The Pharisees reprimanded their attendants because they did not seize the Lord Jesus. Nicodemus, who had gone to see the Lord Jesus previously, spoke on behalf of the Lord, but the Pharisees rebuked him in anger, saying, “Are you also from Galilee? Search and see that no prophet arises out of Galilee” (vv. 45-52). It is true that no prophet had ever arisen out of Galilee. However, out of Galilee arose the greatest Prophet.
Nathanael nearly missed Christ because of his knowledge of the Bible. The Jewish religionists missed Christ because of their knowledge of the Bible, and the Pharisees also missed Christ for the same reason. There may still be Nathanaels, religionists, and Pharisees today, but may we not be Pharisees or religionists! We need to be Nathanaels who go to see the Lord. We should not care for our Bible knowledge; rather, we should care only for contacting the living Lord, the living Spirit. May the Lord have mercy on us and deliver us from religion, doctrines, and Bible knowledge so that we may live in the light and in the Lord’s presence. We must pray for ourselves, for others, and for the church not to miss Christ. We desire that every saint in the church would be a Joseph or at least a Nathanael.
