All righty.
We're going to have the Bible reading now.
Although the passage that David's going to be taking us through
is only the second half of chapter 2,
we're going to read the whole chapter so that we've got that context.
So please open your Bibles, turn on your devices,
and turn to Matthew chapter 2.
All right.
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 saw his star when it rose, and have come to worship him.
When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled,
and all Jerusalem with him.
And assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people,
he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
They told him, In Bethlehem of Judea,
for so it is written by the prophet,
And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah.
For from you shall come a ruler,
who will shepherd my people Israel.
Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly,
and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared.
And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying,
Go and search diligently for the child,
and when you have found him, bring me word,
that I too may come and worship him.
After listening to the king, they went on their way.
And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose
went before them, until it came to rest
over the place where the child was.
When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.
And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother,
and they fell down and worshipped him.
Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts,
gold and frankincense and myrrh.
And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod,
they departed to their own country by another way.
Now when they had departed, behold,
an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said,
Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt,
and remain there until I tell you,
for Herod is about to search for the child to destroy him.
And he rose and took the child and his mother by night
and departed to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod.
This was to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet,
Out of Egypt I called my son.
Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men,
became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem
and in all that region, who were two years old or under,
according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men.
Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah.
A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and loud lamentation.
Rachel weeping for her children.
She refused to be comforted, because they are no more.
But when Herod died, behold,
an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt,
saying, Rise, take the child and his mother,
and go to the land of Israel,
for those who sought the child's life are dead.
And he rose and took the child and his mother
and went to the land of Israel.
But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea
in place of his father Herod,
he was afraid to go there.
And being warned in a dream,
he withdrew to the district of Galilee.
And he went and lived in a city called Nazareth,
so that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled,
that he would be called a Nazarene.
We're going to be looking at the second half
of Matthew chapter 2 this afternoon
in the series that we've been continuing in Matthew's Gospel.
And I just want to introduce by saying this,
that there's no doubt at all
that the story of the birth of Jesus
still has immediate appeal for all kinds of people.
Just as it did when Matthew first wrote down
his biography of the life of Jesus.
Christmas in Australia is a massive annual celebration.
But you'll have noticed as much as I have
that each year, what we celebrate at Christmas
and how we celebrate
seems to just get more and more removed
from that which the Bible says.
more disconnected from the Bible's record of events.
And I think it's because sentimentality
rather than truth
shapes how we celebrate the birth of Jesus.
And most sad of all, I think, in that
is that increasingly it seems to be true of Christians as well.
Sentimentality has now shaped
the Christmas story to that
which is warm and fuzzy
convenient
acceptable
Sentimentality drives marketing and advertising
and that in turn has reformatted Christmas
into just another classic
harmless children's story
children's fairy tale
where Jesus himself
is increasingly written out of the script
and you can see that in front yard displays
where you get all sorts of
fairy tales and lights and stuff like that
but often no reference at all to Jesus.
The problem is, you see,
that as a society at a whole
and even as Christians sometimes
we've stopped reading out
from the scriptures
that which the
authors of scripture intended us to hear
and we've started reading into scripture
that which we want to hear
or that which we think we should hear
that which is convenient to hear
and we just ignore
the bits that are inconvenient to us
and the story of Christmas
is just one of those classic places
where that happens.
But to understand properly
the birth of Jesus
we need to cut through sentiment
because the Bible itself
pushes us
beyond sentiment
especially in this
situation of the birth of Christ
the context of the birth of Christ
the Bible pushes us
beyond sentiment
to supernatural reality.
Now, if you read
or when you read
Matthew's
story of the birth of Christ
in the early years of Jesus
as we're working through here
in these chapters of Matthew
one thing is really clear
it is not sentimental.
It is not sentimental.
But it's the context
of confronting
supernatural interventions
that really hit us
when you read these early chapters.
God's miraculous involvement
in and around
the birth of Jesus
that's what dominates
that's what we either
have to trip over
or come to terms with
because it's just so pervasive.
So we start with
as Bo took us through
a couple of weeks ago
there's this supernatural
conception of Jesus
through the action
of God's Holy Spirit.
Now, how confronting is that?
This girl gets pregnant
without having sex.
We're told
by the action
of the Holy Spirit.
Joseph then
is given a dream
and he's told
to marry Mary
when naturally
he was just going to
quietly move her
to one side
to avoid the scandal.
And not only is he told
to go ahead and marry her
but he's actually told
that this child
will be God
will be the saviour
of the world.
Completely God
and completely human.
It gets harder.
Then there's the appearance
of the mysterious star
that Dave took us through
that section
that Dave took us through
last week
which the Magi
and remember these Magi
for the East
wise men
these guys
were not sentimental.
These were hard-headed
scholars of the day.
They probably came
from the royal court
of Persia
or somewhere over
in the Mesopotamian region
and these hard-headed
intellectual guys
they concluded
that what was happening
before their eyes
was supernatural.
Some sort of
cosmic event.
They couldn't understand
but they couldn't avoid.
And remember
these guys were experts
in science
and mathematics
and history
astronomy.
There were no Dunnies.
and yet
they were convinced
that all the signs
pointed to
an event
of cosmic
significance.
Indeed
the birth
of a great king.
And so accordingly
responding accordingly
they set out
as Dave said last week
a couple of thousand
kilometers or more
a couple of months
worth of travel
they set out
to give their worship
and allegiance
to this
totally unknown
infant.
You want to come
and join?
Yeah.
He might do a better job.
Can he read you it
or not?
You can have my script.
Sorry I shouldn't
embarrass him.
Isn't that lovely?
I always think it's lovely
when that sort of thing
happens.
But I'm usually more
generous to other
people's children
than I was when
my children did it
when they were young.
But anyway
that's a different story.
Yeah so
these guys
came all that way
to give their worship
and allegiance
to this totally
unknown infant king.
Now it was a big problem
for a couple of reasons.
One
in the violent age
of the day
you really didn't
acknowledge a king
until he was
well and truly
in control of his throne.
So many people
didn't even survive
childhood years
because of diseases
let alone
coup d'etat
when they were still young.
But these guys
knowledgeable
intellectual guys
and maybe girls
who knows
most likely guys
came to worship
maybe Jesus.
But there's another
aspect of that
that these guys
were in the employ
of the court
the royal court
of Persia.
So essentially
what they were doing
by coming to worship
a foreign king
could have been seen
as treasonous.
There was a lot
at stake for these guys
and yet
that was their
single point
of reference
from the time
the sign.
Then there's
multiple interventions
of divine guidance
in chapter 2.
Brought the Magi
to Jerusalem
warned them
not to report
back to Herod
as agreed
and in our passage
this morning
three more dreams
three more supernatural
acts of divine guidance
all of which
are just focused
to protect
what is now
the divine toddler.
and all these events
in turn
are linked
back to Old Testament
prophecy
so Matthew
wants us to see
that hey
all this stuff
well hard enough
is to believe
now that all this
was foretold
by prophets
you know
five, six, seven
hundred years ago.
So there's another
incredible link
that people
could have seen
this coming
seven hundred years earlier.
That has to be
a supernatural thing.
Now why
is Matthew
doing all this?
Well
a couple of reasons
I think.
Firstly
Matthew's
primary target
audience
is Jewish
and Matthew
wants
his Jewish readers
to remember
that all
of their
national history
was full
of God's
supernatural activity.
he wants them
to understand
therefore
that they
shouldn't trip
over Jesus
and the context
of his birth
because
this is just
more of the same.
This is God
doing what God
has been doing
for his people
for generations
and more than that
this is God
doing what the
prophets
what the Lord
told the prophets
he would do
at some point
in the future
when he would
send Messiah
to deliver his
people from
their sin.
So Matthew
wants his readers
to realize
that Jesus
can only
be understood
can only
be understood
in the context
of God's
supernatural
intervention
in history
and again
that the only
way to read
the Bible
correctly
is through
Christ-centered
lenses
that is
all the stuff
in the Old Testament
is primarily
about preparing
us for the
arrival of Jesus
and then all the
stuff in the New Testament
is really telling us
about the significance
of what that
arrival means.
So Matthew's
appeal to his
readers 2,000 years
ago and to you
and me today
2,000 years later
is simply
to confront
Jesus.
Not through
the sentiment
of a cute
little baby
in a manger
with a big cow
with big staring
eyes
fawning at him
or a sheep
you know
bleating at him.
Not like that
at all
but to confront
Jesus
by applying
your mind
to wrestle
with supernatural
interventions
in this world.
Fulfillment
of prophecies
long term
promises
coming to reality
real history.
That is
the context
the Bible
pushes us to
well beyond
sentimentality
supernatural reality.
And so
the challenge
for us
today is the same
as we read
these verses.
And the question
then is
will you accept
the challenge?
Will you seek
Jesus by asking
the question
who is this
Jesus?
What sort of
king is he?
What sort of
kingdom
does he intend
to establish?
and perhaps
most important
of all
will I bring
my life
under the
authority
of this
king Jesus
as one
who is
completely
human
and completely
God?
The Bible
also pushes us
beyond sentimentality
to recognize
the desperate
need
for a better
king.
Now we're
moving into
the text here
in chapter 2
first 12 verses
the story seems
to go really
well
it's really
quite exciting
every man
and his dog
wants a piece
of Jesus
they all
want to
apparently
want to
be where
Jesus is
to worship
him
it's
such a
light and
airy
sort of
section
of the
passage
but then
when you
turn to
verse 13
it suddenly
becomes
very dark
and the
question I want
to ask now
to try and
make a passage
that's very
familiar to us
fresh again
reminds
I want to
ask you now
is what
do you think
this literature
is?
Do you think
it's tragedy
or is it
farce
comedy?
Well
at first
reading
the story
seems to be
appears to be
throbbing
with uncertainty
threat
defeat
things are
so bad
that
Egypt
is now
the place
of safety
and you
remember
Egypt
had such
bad
associations
in the
history
of God's
people
it was a
place of
bondage
a place
of death
and destruction
it was a
place that
God told
us people
do not
go back
to Egypt
do not
have any
association
with Egypt
and here
things are
so bad
that God
sends
his
people
Joseph
and Mary
and Jesus
back to
Egypt
wow
that bad
fleeing
by night
hiding
then we
have the
absolute
brutality
of
Herod's
murderous
rage
taken out
on these
innocents
and then
at the end
of the
story
the Lord
tells him
to come
back
but even
then
it seems
like
Herod's
now dead
but his
son
Archelaus
takes over
the throne
and there's
another layer
of uncertainty
another layer
of threat
more secretive
moving around
more uncertainty
more danger
more hiding
but then
at the same
time when you
read these
verses
it soon
becomes clear
that the
story is
running
perfectly
according to
God's plan
and in line
with all the
ancient prophecies
even the
murder of
these innocent
children is
put in the
context of
hope through
the reference
to Jeremiah
in verse
18
so let's
have a look
at that
a voice
was heard
in Ramah
weeping
and loud
lamentation
Rachel's
weeping
for her
children
she refused
to be
consoled
because
there are
no more
children
what's it
all about
well
Rachel
was the
wife
of the
patriarch
Jacob
who
of all
the
patriarchs
was the
one who
was most
closely
associated
with God's
covenant
promise
Jacob's
name was
actually
changed
to Israel
so in a
sense
this is
the defining
point of
Israel's
history
and Rachel
was buried
at Ramah
which just
happens to
be up the
road a bit
from Bethlehem
and in this
prophecy
by Jeremiah
she's pictured
as weeping
because God's
covenant people
were going to
disappear into
exile
and likely
death
and the
backstory
of that
is
that when
the Babylonian
overlords
were mastering
the Israelite
exiles
to take them
away into
captivity
they did
it here
at this
particular place
this is where
they were
mastered
this is where
they were
shackled
together
and this is
where they're
finally
marched off
into
potential
oblivion
and almost
certain
death
and so
Rachel's
pictured
as crying
for the
loss of
God's
covenant
promise
crying in
the context
of death
how can
anything good
come out
of this
God's
promises
have fallen
over
perhaps even
God's
promises
have been
thwarted
by the evil
of other
people
when you go
back and read
the context
in Jeremiah
the Lord
speaks to
Jeremiah
and says
to him
there is hope
I will
bring my
people back
from exile
this is not
the end of
the story
this is a
story happening
as I planned
it to happen
and so
here
in spite of
the brutality
of Herod
and the very
real tears
of multiple
mothers and
fathers in
this region
I think
we've been
told here
there is
hope
because
Messiah
is safe
from Herod
Herod's
sin is
incredibly
iniquitous
and this
prophecy
doesn't answer
all the
questions we
might like
answered
but it's
cast in
the context
of hope
in the
fulfillment
and the
outworking
of God's
plan
it's
happening
as God
intended it
to happen
in spite
of the
awful
sinfulness
of Herod
Messiah
is safe
from Herod
and ultimately
will fulfill
God's
salvation
promise
now when I
put all that
together
what I want
to suggest
to you
is that
in the
end
this story
that looks
so dark
is actually
farcical
notwithstanding
the awful
brutality
that's built
into it
it's farcical
because here
we have a
picture of
Herod
huffing
and puffing
against God
and his
anointed one
very much
in the line
of Psalm
2
but as
he huffs
and puffs
and the
story develops
he just
looks increasingly
pathetic
for all his
efforts
for all his
resources
being deployed
to get rid
of this child
that's a big
threat to
Herod
the story's
just happening
all about him
it's farcical
and as the
story goes
out of the
blue
Herod ends
up dead
so much
for Herod
and his
son
Archelaus
comes into
the story
but again
he's of no
great consequence
to the way
the story's
going to unfold
and he just
gets a
passing mention
that's all
he's
worth
as it were
but woven
into this
particle story
is a huge
contrast
between the
two kings
which I think
Matthew wants
to highlight
for us
on the one
hand you've
got Herod
the so-called
great
that sort of
diminishes the
title a little bit
when you find out
in history
that he actually
took that title
and made it up
for himself
not too many
other people
thought he was
great
unless he thought
he was a
great idiot
but there he
was
Herod the
Great
now
what do we
know of this
Herod the
Great
from these
verses here
well
first thing
is in sharp
contrast
to the
receiving
accepting
attitude
of the
Magi
Herod
shows himself
to have a
rejecting
rebellious
attitude
towards God's
plan and
purpose
and the
God
child
and when
you think
about that
the contrast
just opens
up
the Magi
had very
little detail
and almost
no understanding
of what was
behind this
side
and no
backstory
to give them
detail
and yet
they set out
from their place
some thousands
of kilometres
away
already in the
frame of mind
to come
as vassals
as subject
people
to bow
down
and worship
this infant
king
as a great
cosmic king
for these
Magi
moving towards
Jesus
to worship
was their
single priority
once they saw
a sign
in great
contrast to
Herod
who in
verses
3, 4, 5
and 6
there
had enough
personal
knowledge
or personal
awareness
of what
Jewish history
was
because Herod
himself
wasn't a Jew
he was a Syrian
but he had
enough personal
knowledge
of the Jewish
tradition
and culture
to be able
to call
this baby
in verse 4
the Christ
the Messiah
then he had
the affirmation
and the
reinforcement
of the scribes
and the Pharisees
these were
the Jewish
religious
professors
these were
the guys
who knew
their history
inside out
and they said
yeah you got it
right
this is
the Messiah
and then
they had
the affirmation
of these
Magi
these intellectual
guys coming
from the Far East
all coming to
the same
conclusion
and what
does Herod do
he goes
a totally
different direction
he sets
himself
to destroy
this child
why
well Dave
talked about
it a bit
last week
I'm just
going to
repeat
what he
said
well
his
political
sovereignty
is threatened
in this
baby
because
Herod's
not even
in the
line of
David
Messiah
would be
so this
the arrival
of this
child
highlights
that in
the end
Herod was
a usurper
of the
throne
of Israel
so his
political
sovereignty
was being
threatened
but his
personal
sovereignty
was being
threatened
as well
Herod
was the
top
of the
pile
and he
had
accumulated
a lavish
lifestyle
by being
number one
and he
was not
about to
hand that
over to
anybody
else
he was
not about
to bow
the knee
to any
other king
and certainly
not an
infant king
he wasn't
going to
give it
all up
his personal
sovereignty
was being
threatened
and so
for Herod
in contrast
to the
Magi
moving away
from
Jesus
and getting
rid of
Jesus
was Herod's
single
priority
once he
saw the
sign
and so
there you
got a
comparison
and a
contrast
everybody
both groups
were seeking
Jesus
but one
was seeking
to worship
the other
was seeking
to destroy
and the
picture gets
worse
when we
consider
that
we
measure
Herod
as a
representative
of God's
special
people
Israel
now
throughout
the history
of Israel
God's
king
the king
of Israel
was to
reflect
God's
character
and lead
God's
people
as God
himself
would
but
Herod
he was
hated
by many
in Israel
why
because
of his
violent
repression
his
ruthlessness
and his
corruption
this man
had blood
all over
him
he had
already
killed
his wife
and all
her known
relatives
he had
already killed
at least
two of his
sons
why
because
he considered
them a threat
to his
position
as king
he exploited
his people
mercilessly
see he was
appointed by
the Romans
and as long
as he kept
peace
in Palestine
the Romans
didn't really
care what
he did
so he could
butcher his
own people
exploit them
to the
nth degree
as long
as he kept
the peace
the Romans
were happy
with him
and Herod
went to town
on that
little window
of opportunity
so
this man
no doubt
murdering
twenty
thirty
forty
infants
Bethlehem
wasn't a
large town
the region
we don't
know how
big the
region
are
but
possibly
no more
than
fifty
infants
now that
seems a lot
to us
and I don't
want to
minimize that
but for
Herod
who's already
killed his
own family
that's
probably
only the
price of
staying in
business
as the
king
it's a
nasty
business
but
you know
it's worth
the cost
and in
that we
see how
far
Herod
had moved
Herod the
so called
great
had moved
from God's
ideal for
kings
Herod was
the king
of greed
the king
of self
interest
murder
exploitation
the king
of repression
the king
of misery
the king
of death
God's
people
desperately
needed
a better
king
and
enter
King
Jesus
the truly
great
king
who
runs
the whole
world
as the
forever
king
in his
forever
kingdom
Matthew
doesn't
give us
any
details
as to
how
the
magi
came to
their
conclusion
just
that
they were
convinced
that the
birth of
Jesus
was an
event of
cosmic
significance
the birth
of a
king
to whom
they owed
a greater
allegiance
than they did
even to
their Persian
overlord
in whose
employ
they were
and look
at verse
six
it's just
one of
those
countless
prophecies
that speak
of the
nature
of
Jesus
the
great
king
from
you
shall
come
a
ruler
a
king
who
will
shepherd
my
people
Israel
you
can
feel
the
contrast
already
with
Herod
can't
you
a
butcher
and a
shepherd
Messiah
or
King
Jesus
would
fulfill
the
ideal
of
kingship
which
God
had
set
before
David
King
David
in
2
Samuel
7
a
king
who
would
shepherd
God's
people
into
truth
and
righteousness
and
safety
a
king
who
would
care
for
them
as a
shepherd
and
lead
them
into
the
good
life
of
security
a
good
life
lived
under
obedience
to the
Lord
rather than
be a
wolf
that would
attack
and destroy
them
King
Jesus
would be
a king
whose rule
would
never
end
in
contrast
to
Herod
who
huffed
and puffed
and did
his
darndest
and then
was dead
and gone
forever
for all
his efforts
was only a
blip
on the
history
of God's
dealings
with his
people
and
this
new
king
Jesus
the truly
great
king
comes
with God's
total
backing
as already
stated
this story
is running
perfectly
according
to God's
plan
Jesus
has God's
backing
and protection
at every
stage
and again
Jesus
is the
king who
would rule
by right
of character
and by
God's
approval
and he
would rule
for God's
glory
rather than
the usurper
king like
Herod
ruling
by
violent
suppression
and ruling
by the
authority
derived
authority
from other
men
such as
the Roman
authorities
and that
was Herod
he only
ruled
by Roman
authority
by Roman
permission
click the
fingers
and Herod
would be
gone
and Jesus
would be
the great
king
perfectly
suited to
ruling
and subduing
unruly
hearts
this might
be the key
difference
really
because
Herod
you see
wasn't
the least
bit
interested
in the
real
needs
of his
people
he was
filled
with his
own
interests
and as
a result
of that
filled
the hearts
of his
people
with fear
and despair
and grief
as he
chased
his own
desires
contrast
that
with what
we know
to come
for Jesus
not only
focused on
his
people's
needs
the need
for light
and life
joy
and satisfaction
but a
king who
actually has
the authority
to see
their hearts
to see
their needs
and the
power to
deliver on
those needs
Jesus
actually
deserves
the title
great
and friends
we need
a strong
capable
king
because our
hearts are
unruly
we're inclined
to sin
king me
as Steve
Farrar
used the
terminology
king me
makes an
absolute
mess of
our lives
we like to
think as Dave
said last week
we like to
think we're
pretty
good
at running
our lives
pretty good
at being
king
in our
own
little
demand
but I
think most
of us
deep down
would know
that we've
stuffed it up
majorly
when we
tried to
be king
in our
own
lives
we need
a strong
capable
king
who will
deliver us
into the
truly godly
life
who will
shepherd us
into
obedience
and righteousness
and safety
Herod
therefore
was part
of the
problem
he killed
his little
ones
to protect
his own
interests
he destroyed
without exception
or mercy
but Jesus
allowed himself
to be killed
to protect
his little
ones
he gave up
everything
so that he
could treat
his undeserving
little ones
with mercy
and without
distinction
and the
final thing
about this
great king
Jesus
that comes
out of
these
verses
here
is that
initially
he doesn't
even look
like a
king
at all
he's
despised
and rejected
to pick up
the language
from Isaiah
53
here we have
the defenseless
baby on the run
this so called
king
God himself
hidden by his
parents
going from
here to
there
doesn't look
like a
great king
and in
verses 22
and 23
the anti-climax
not the
climax
but the
anti-climax
of this
story
is that
Jesus
by circumstance
is forced
to grow up
in Nazareth
he doesn't
have the
association
of Bethlehem
or Jerusalem
which would
associate him
with the
great king
David
which would
give him
some sort
of status
and standing
and connectivity
into history
no
he's in
Nazareth
in Galilee
and upright
Jews
despised
the area
of Galilee
and anything
that came
out of Galilee
you might
say
no place
for a king
and as
with every
other part
of the story
of Jesus
thus far
nothing
is as
expected
nothing
is normal
but
everything
is perfectly
according
to God's
plan
and purpose
and in
line
with
prophecy
Jesus
had no
religious
credentials
to commend
them
he had
no
political
power base
or army
to impress
or frighten
he had
no
society
status
to draw
people
to him
yet go
back to
these
magic
these wise
men
they were
convinced
in spite
of all
of that
in spite
of the
scandal
in the
context
of Jesus
birth
they were
convinced
they should
find this
baby
this king
and bow
in worship
as king
of the world
and so I
finish up
with just
moving that
challenge
2000 years
down the
track
right into
our
auditorium
here today
wise men
still seek
Jesus
is the
cliche
that we
hear around
today
and so
the question
then is
Jesus
your king
and again
think about
it in terms
of contrast
we have
two kings
so the
question then
becomes what
type of
king
will you
have ruling
in your
life
will it
be king
me
using your
own resources
to build
the good
life
as you
see it
as you
desire it
as you
think it
should be
it's
possible
even as
Christians
still to
do that
or will
it be
king
Jesus
gladly
surrendering
my own
sovereignty
and seeking
the good
life of
God
through
obedience
and serving
Jesus
now here's
the rub
for us
whatever
decision
you make
you need
to understand
that it's
an all
indecision
receiving
Jesus
is not
about
sharing
sovereignty
this is
I think
where we
get caught
particularly
as Christians
I don't
think
non-Christians
would consider
this
they just
want to
reject
Jesus
but I
think
for us
as
Christians
we're
in a bit
of a bind
because
sometimes
we think
it's about
sharing
sovereignty
so I'll
have
sovereignty
here in
my life
I'll run
my affairs
here
but I
really want
Jesus to
have
sovereignty
in my
life
as well
so
I'll
Jesus can
have this
area of
sovereignty
I'll have
this area
of sovereignty
but it
doesn't
work like
that
to bow
and worship
the king
is to
give up
total
personal
sovereignty
not just
to raise
Jesus on
your agenda
your own
personal
agenda
but to
allow
Jesus
to set
a whole
new
agenda
for you
in every
aspect
of your
life
it's
about
giving up
all
claim
to
personal
sovereignty
in order
to gain
real life
and security
under the
truly great
king
just pray
with me
and we're
done
Lord we
thank you
for your
word
for the
confrontation
that it
brings to
us
for the
way that
immediately
challenges
our
understanding
of how
the world
works
and asks
us
to believe
and live
in the light
of the fact
there's much
more to this
world than
what we can
see
and Lord
you know
that's the
message we're
taught in
Australia
that what we
see is what
there is
and no more
Lord help
us to
have a
truly
honest
supernatural
reality
and help
us Lord
to place
in the
center of
that the
Lord Jesus
Christ
and help
us Lord
then
to want
to live
under
King
Jesus
exposed
to us Lord
where we
would share
our sovereignty
as though
somehow that
was possible
and I pray
in Jesus
name
Amen
more
and I think
some
more
d over