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We come now to chapter two of Matthew. In the previous messages we have covered the genealogy of Christ and the birth of Christ. In this message we shall consider the youth of Christ.
If we pay attention to the four Gospels, we shall see that John and Mark contain no record of Christ’s youth. John tells us that Christ is God. With God there is neither youth nor old age. God is ancient, yet unchanging. Thus, there is no problem of youth with God. In Mark, Christ is revealed as a slave. No one cares about the youth of a slave. On the contrary, both Luke and Matthew record the youth of Christ. However, as was the case with the genealogies, there is a difference between these two records of Christ’s youth.
The Gospel of Luke proves that Christ was a perfect man. Hence, Luke’s record testifies and demonstrates the humanity of Jesus (Luke 2:21-52). The items of Christ’s youth recorded by Luke show that Jesus was a proper, normal man. Jesus was circumcised on the eighth day according to Jewish law (Luke 2:21). Also, according to Jewish custom, He was named Jesus on the eighth day, not on the first day. He was offered to God with the sacrifice of a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons (Luke 2:22-24). The fact that Mary and Joseph could only afford a small sacrifice shows that they were poor. They nevertheless fulfilled the requirement of the law. Furthermore, Jesus was brought to Jerusalem every year at the time of the feast of the Passover (Luke 2:41). This was also according to the law requiring that all Israelite males attend the feasts three times a year. Luke specifically notes that Jesus was brought to the feast when He was twelve years old (Luke 2:42). Luke also records that Jesus grew physically, that He became strong in His spirit, and that He found favor with God and man (Luke 2:40, 52). All these items recorded by Luke demonstrate that Jesus was a typical man.
Matthew’s record demonstrates that the young Jesus was the King of God’s people (2:1-23). Luke did not include this point, but Matthew, ignoring all the points covered by Luke, dwells on it. By this we see that the Bible has an intention: in Luke it is to prove that Jesus was a man; in Matthew it is to show that Jesus was a kingly child. We shall now consider Matthew’s record to see how Jesus was such a kingly child.
We should not try to understand the Bible by the black and white letters alone. We must enter into it and find something of life in it. Matthew 1 tells us that the Old Testament contained prophecies concerning Christ and that the people of God were waiting for His coming. In Matthew 1 Jesus came. Christ has been brought into humanity; He has appeared on the earth. Chapter two continues by showing the way to find Christ. His coming was prophesied, He has come, and He is here. However, there is the problem of how to find Him.
Matthew 1 reveals that Jesus, the Messiah, has come. If you had been an Israelite at that time, you would have said, “You tell me Jesus has come, but how can I find Him?” Thank the Lord that the matter of finding Jesus was not initiated by us: it was initiated by God.
Consider the background. At the time of Jesus’ birth, there was a religion called Judaism. It was a fundamental, sound, scriptural religion that was formed, organized, and constituted according to the thirty-nine books of the Old Testament. Through the record of Matthew 2, we see that Judaism was very much for the Bible. However, hardly anyone in that religion knew that Christ had come. We find no record in the New Testament that some of those religious people went to find Christ. On the contrary, there is a record that some pagan men, magi, came to find Him (2:1-12). Of course, this was initiated by God, not by them.
God gave the magi a shining star to guide them (2:2). This star did not appear in the Holy Land. It appeared to men far away — far away from the Holy Land; far away from the holy city; far away from the holy temple and the holy religion; far away from the holy Bible, the holy people, and the holy priests. Far away from all these holy things, the shining star appeared to some pagan men in a pagan land. The shining of that star stirred up these pagan wise men regarding the King of the Jews. I do not know how these wise men were stirred up regarding the King of the Jews, and I do not want to guess. There have already been too many imaginations concerning these wise men. At any rate, they came from the East, the Orient, and realized that the star indicated the King of the Jews.
The wise men had the living vision, the heavenly star, and the Jewish religionists had the Bible. Which do you prefer to have — the Bible or the star? It is best to have both. I like to have the Bible in my hand, and I like to see the star in the heavens. It is best to be both a pagan and a Jew as well. As to the Bible, I am a Jew; as to the star, I am a pagan wise man.
After the wise men experienced the vision of the heavenly star, they got into trouble. This trouble came from their natural concept. Although we may have the Bible and the star, we must recognize that trouble may come from our natural concept. The wise men saw the vision and, realizing that it indicated the King of the Jews, they assumed that they should go to Jerusalem, the capital of the Jewish nation, where the King of the Jews was presumed to be (vv. 1-2). Their decision to go to Jerusalem did not come from the light of the star. They went to Jerusalem because they were distracted from the right track by their natural concept. Jerusalem was the wrong place. It was the capital and the city where the temple was located, but it was not the place where Jesus was born. Because the wise men were misled, they caused a serious problem and nearly caused the young child Jesus to be killed. If it had not been for the sovereignty of God, the young Jesus would have been killed as a result of their mistake. Their error cost the lives of many young ones (vv. 16-18). Be careful: you may have the Bible and the star, but do not follow your natural concept.
Many times you have the vision, but when you consider the matter in your mind, you are distracted and misled by your natural concept. Your human concept distracts you from the right track. Whenever you are distracted like this, you need the Bible. After you have arrived at the wrong place, you need the right book. After the magi had gone to Jerusalem, the wrong place, they were corrected through the Scriptures. From the Scriptures they learned that the right place was Bethlehem, not Jerusalem (vv. 4-6). If they had not been misled by their natural concept, the star certainly would have led them directly to the place where Jesus was in Bethlehem. But they were distracted and went astray. Thus, they needed to be corrected by the knowledge of the Bible. When the magi had been corrected by the Scriptures, had departed from Jerusalem, and had been restored to the right track, the star appeared again (v. 9). Living vision always goes along with the Scriptures.
However, none of the religious people in Jerusalem went with the magi to Bethlehem. This is quite strange. If you had been a priest among those priests, would you not have gone with the wise men to see if Jesus had actually been born in Bethlehem? If I had been there, I certainly would have gone to find out for myself whether or not Christ had actually been born. But none of them went. They had knowledge and they could tell people that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem; yet, none of them went for themselves. Although they were for the knowledge of the Bible, they were not for the living Person of the Messiah.
How about today’s situation? Many are very scriptural, but they care only for the Scriptures, not for the living Christ. If the Jewish religionists had cared for Christ, they would have gone to Bethlehem, which was not far from Jerusalem even by the ancient method of travel. Although Bethlehem was not far, none of the scribes, elders, or priests bothered to go. This proves that you can have the knowledge of the Bible without having a heart for the living Christ. To have the vision is one thing, to have the knowledge of the Bible is another thing, and to have a heart for the living Christ is still another thing. We all need to pray, “Lord, give me a heart for You. I want to see the vision and I want to know the Bible. But even more, I want to have a heart that seeks You.”
After the magi saw the star again, the star led them to the place where Christ was (vv. 9-10). The star led them not only to the city of Bethlehem, but to the exact spot where Jesus was.
Christians often say that to know the Lord it is sufficient to have only the Bible. In a sense, I agree with this. However, in another sense — I say this carefully — I do not agree fully. Although we have the Bible, we still need a living vision. The Bible does say that Christ will be born in Bethlehem, but it does not say where, on what street, or in which house. The living star led the wise men to the city of Bethlehem and also to the exact street and the house where the child was. At that place, the star stopped (v. 9). The magi did not need to knock on any doors; they knew where Jesus was. This proves that we all need a clear, up-to-date vision that leads us directly to the place where Jesus is.
The magi not only found Christ; they also worshipped Him (v. 11). Among the Israelites, no one was allowed to receive worship from others. That was considered an insult to God, a blasphemy against Him. According to them, only God was worthy of people’s worship. But the wise men worshipped a child, and that child was God. Isaiah 9:6 says, “Unto us a child is born...and his name shall be called...The mighty God.” The child found by the magi was called the mighty God. The wise men worshipped Him and they offered to Him gold, frankincense, and myrrh (v. 11).
We need to know the meaning of the gold, the frankincense, and the myrrh. In the typology of the Bible, gold signifies the divine nature. This indicates that the child Jesus had the divine nature. He was divine. Frankincense signifies the fragrance of resurrection. According to our naturally religious mentality, the resurrection of Jesus came only after His death. However, before He died, Jesus told Mary and Martha that He was the resurrection and the life (John 11:25). Thus, even before He died, He was the resurrection. The life Christ lived on this earth was a life of resurrection. Luke 2:52 tells us that even in His childhood He found favor with God and man. That was not something natural; it was the life of resurrection. The record in Luke 2 reveals that the child was an extraordinary child. He was a unique child because He was a child in resurrection. In His entire human life and living there was the fragrance, the sweetness of resurrection. Death could not hold Him or even touch Him. Not only was He the life — He was resurrection.
Myrrh signifies death and also the fragrance of death. Among the human race, death has no fragrance; however, with Jesus there was the fragrance of death.
When the wise men presented the gold, the frankincense, and the myrrh, I do not believe they knew the meaning of the gifts they offered. They surely offered their gifts under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. They presented gold, frankincense, and myrrh, signifying that the child Jesus had the divine nature; that His life would be a life of resurrection, full of the fragrance of frankincense; and that His life would be full of the fragrance of death.
When Jesus was twelve years old, He went to Jerusalem with His parents (Luke 2:42). Because He was burdened to see what people were doing in His Father’s house, the temple, He stayed in Jerusalem after the feast (Luke 2:43). Mary and Joseph did not understand Him. They looked for Him and eventually found Him in the temple (vv. 44-48). In a sense, Mary rebuked Him. If I had been Jesus, I would have rebuked her. I would have fought back and said, “Don’t you know what I’m doing here? Why do you come to bother Me?” If we read Luke’s account, we shall see that Jesus did say something to them. He said, “Did you not know that I must be in the things of My Father?” (v. 49). After He said this, He went along with them and returned with them to Nazareth. That was a real killing to Him. His intention was killed, and in that killing we can smell myrrh. That was not the fragrance of frankincense; it was the sweet aroma of myrrh.
If we read the four Gospels, the biographies of Jesus, we shall see that in the life of Jesus the gold, the frankincense, and the myrrh were very prevalent. He was always living the resurrection life, and He was constantly under the killing of the cross. He did not wait until thirty-three and a half years had passed before He went to the cross to be crucified. Throughout His whole life He was continually being crucified on the cross. Thus, He had not only the fragrance of resurrection, but also the sweet myrrh of the cross.
The wise men found the kingly child Jesus in Bethlehem, which Micah 5:2 tells us is “little among the thousands of Judah.” He was born in such a humble town in such lowly circumstances. However, due to the vision that came through the star, the wise men paid their full respect to the kingly child, not caring about the place. Therefore, they offered to Him the three precious items. Each of these items signifies some precious element of the Lord Jesus’ nature and life. In nearly every page of the four Gospels, we see the preciousness of the Lord’s humanity, the fragrance of His resurrection life, and the sweet aroma of His sacrificial death. Even in the early days, soon after the Lord’s birth, the wise men did such an appropriate thing. It exactly suited the Lord’s nature and life. Their offering was certainly presented under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
It may be that these precious treasures offered by the magi provided for the Lord’s trip from Judea to Egypt and from Egypt to Nazareth. The worship and offering of the wise men truly accomplished something.
After the wise men had found Christ, had worshipped Him, and had offered Him these precious treasures, they were warned by God to return another way (v. 12). This other way, not the original way, was the right way. Whenever we find Christ and meet Him, we are always told not to return to the original way. Finding Christ and meeting Him always turns us to another way.
The situation today is exactly the same. We have the Bible, and Christ is coming, but how shall we find Him? The basic principle is not with the Bible. Although the Bible helps, the basic principle is with the living star, the heavenly vision.
Now we must see how we can have this star, how we can have this heavenly vision. The Bible tells us that the living star is Christ. It was prophesied that Christ would be the star (Num. 24:17), He came as the star (Matt. 2), and He remains as the star (Rev. 22:16). He is shining. How can we have Christ as the star? According to 2 Peter 1:19, the star is associated with the Bible. Peter tells us to take heed to the “prophetic word made more firm.” If we take heed to this sure word, something within us will dawn, and the daystar will arise in our hearts. To take heed to the sure word is to pay attention to the living Word. It is not just to read the Word; it is to enter into the Word until something arises within us. We may call this the dawn or the daystar. In 2 Peter 1:19 the daystar is actually the morning star. The word in Greek is phosphoros, a light-bearing substance. A piece of phosphorus can shine in darkness. Christ is the real phosphorus shining in today’s darkness. However, the Word cannot shine over you unless you take heed to it. You must take heed until something begins to shine within you. That shining will become the phosphorus in your heart. Then you will have the daystar. You will be like the wise men, and something from the heavens will shine over you.
Christ is the star. The Bible says that the followers of Christ are stars also. Revelation 1:20 tells us that all the leading ones in the proper church life are stars. They are stars because they are the shining ones. Daniel 12:3 says that the righteous will shine like stars. Those who turn others to righteousness, who turn them from the wrong way to the right way, will shine like stars.
Today there are only two ways to have the star shining over you. According to the first way, you must come to the sure Word and open up your whole being to the Word — your mouth, your eyes, your mind, your spirit, and your heart — until something rises up in you and shines over you. That is Christ. The second way is to come to the shining saints, the followers of Christ. If you come to them, you will receive light. You also will receive some leading, for they will lead you to the place where Christ is.
Both ways of having the star are linked to the Spirit and the church. Immediately after Revelation 22:16, which says that the Lord Jesus is the morning star, the following verse says, “And the Spirit and the bride say....” This proves that, as the morning star, the Lord Jesus is linked to the Spirit and to the church, which is the Bride. Revelation 3:1 says that the Lord Jesus has the seven Spirits and the seven stars, and Revelation 1:20 says that the seven stars are the angels of the churches. These verses show that the stars are linked not only to the Spirit, but also to the churches. If we would have the living star or the living stars, we need the Spirit and the church. By the Spirit and through the church, it will be easy to have the heavenly vision so that we may find Christ and render our appreciation to Him.
Christ was found in Bethlehem. This discovery of Christ created trouble. God used this trouble to bring the young child out of Bethlehem to Egypt (Matt. 2:13-18). Hosea 11:1 prophesied that Jesus would be called out of Egypt. Without the trouble that occurred after Jesus was found in Bethlehem, there would have been no occasion for Him to flee to Egypt.
This is very meaningful. The wise men made a great mistake, but their mistake offered God the opportunity to fulfill His prophecy. But do not make mistakes purposely. That will not work. Try your best to do things right. Nevertheless, no matter how hard you try to be right, eventually you will make as big a mistake as the wise men did. Never say, “Let us do evil, that good may come.” If you do evil, good will not come. However, if you try to be right but still make a mistake, that mistake will offer God a chance to fulfill His purpose.
Because Joseph fled with Mary and Jesus into Egypt, the young child Jesus escaped the first martyrdom, the martyrdom caused by the mistake of the wise men. Satan is always busy, waiting for an opportunity to cause martyrdom. However, God is sovereign over all, even over Satan, to preserve His dear ones from the enemy’s wiles. By God’s sovereignty the young Jesus was preserved.
At this point I need to present a little history. Although you know the story, you may still need more light. Mary conceived a child in Nazareth (Luke 1:26-27, 31). According to the prophecy in Micah 5:2, however, Christ had to be born in Bethlehem. Under God’s sovereign arrangement, Caesar Augustus ordered the first census of the Roman Empire (Luke 2:1-7). This forced all the people to return to their native places. Mary and Joseph were forced to return to Bethlehem, their home town. Immediately after they arrived in Bethlehem, the child Jesus was born. The mistake of the magi aroused the hatred and jealousy of King Herod, who was angered that a kingly child had been born. Then Joseph received guidance in a dream to take the child to Egypt (Matt. 2:13-15). This enabled God to fulfill the prophecy of Hosea 11:1. After Herod had died, Joseph received word in another dream to return to the Holy Land (vv. 19-20). When Joseph had returned and had learned that Archelaus, the son of Herod, was in power, he was afraid to remain in the territory around Bethlehem. Therefore, he went to Nazareth, where Jesus was raised (vv. 21-23). For this reason Jesus was called Jesus of Nazareth.
What does all this mean? It means that when Jesus was born into the human race, He appeared in a way that was somewhat hidden, in a way that was not open or evident. Sometimes I have even used the word “sneaky” to describe it. Everyone called Him Jesus of Nazareth, for He was a Nazarene. But the Bible said that Christ would be born in Bethlehem. The hidden way of Christ’s birth bothered all the religious people. When Philip met Jesus, he realized that Jesus was the Messiah. Then Philip went to Nathanael and told him that he had met the Messiah and that He was the son of Joseph, a man of Nazareth. Immediately Nathanael said, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” (John 1:45-46). Did Philip give Nathanael the wrong information? It is difficult to say. Philip only knew that Jesus was the son of Joseph and that He was a Nazarene. Although Jesus was from Nazareth and was a Nazarene, He had not been born in Nazareth, but in Bethlehem. Nathanael was troubled. However, Philip did not argue with him; he simply said, “Come and see” (John 1:46).
On another occasion, Nicodemus, who had come to know Jesus, tried to argue with the Pharisees concerning Him. The Pharisees asked him, “Are you also from Galilee?” (John 7:52). Galilee was a Gentile region, and the Bible says “Galilee of the nations” (Matt. 4:15). The Pharisees seemed to say to Nicodemus, “Are you from Galilee? We know that Jesus came out of Galilee. But out of Galilee there comes no prophet.” Apparently, Jesus was from Galilee, from Nazareth; actually, He was born in Bethlehem. That was His somewhat hidden and secret way of appearing to people.
The principle is the same today. I refer you to the type of the tabernacle. The tabernacle was covered with rough, tough badgers’ skin; outside, it did not appear to be very attractive. Inside, however, was fine linen, gold, and precious stones. The spiritual principle of the church is the same. Do not look at the church from the outside. You need to come inside the church. I am sure that if the Apostle Paul would come to visit you, you would be surprised. You would ask, “Are you Brother Paul? I thought that the Apostle Paul would be like a shining angel. But what are you? You are just a small man without a comely appearance.”
We should never make a display of ourselves; neither should we ever know others according to the outward appearance. We must know them according to the inward spirit. In appearance, Jesus was a Nazarene, but within Him there was gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Within Him there was the glory of God. Second Corinthians 5:16 says that we should not know Christ or any man after the outward appearance. Rather, we must discern the inward reality of Christ.
We must keep this principle today. In order to find Christ, we must have the shining star. We must not go according to the outward appearance, but according to what is within. If you would know the church or the saints, do not be bothered by the outward appearance. Do not give any value to outward things, such as huge cathedrals, large church buildings, or pipe organs. Forget all that. Jesus had nothing outstanding outwardly. He was a little Nazarene, One who grew up in a province that was called “Galilee of the nations” and who was raised in a city despised by people — “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” But if you “come and see” and get into Him, you will appreciate Him and be caught by Him. Likewise, you need to come into the church and stay with the church for some time. If you do, you will find something precious. The same is true with the seeking saints. The more they seek the Lord, the more they hide their experiences of spiritual things. You need to go to them and stay with them. Then you will get into them and find the riches that are within them. You will see the frankincense, the myrrh, and many other precious treasures. Then you will be attracted and caught. This is the way to find Christ and to appreciate all He is and all His precious items, the gold, the frankincense, and the myrrh.
Matthew 2:23 says, “He shall be called a Nazarene.” Some have guessed this word Nazarene refers to “Nazarite” in Numbers 6:2. Others have guessed that it refers to the Hebrew word for branch, netzer, in Isaiah 11:1. But I do not think that we have to guess that much. We know that in appearance Jesus was a Nazarene. This was spoken by the prophets.
