When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.
Matthew 2:3-6
In this last post from the Christmas story in the book of Matthew, we will look at a mistake that the people in the time of Jesus made and a mistake that the people in our time make. When Herod asked the chief priests and scribes where Christ would be born, they immediately told him. He would be born in Bethlehem. They were even able to quote the exact passage of Scripture.
But they weren’t looking for Him.
They knew the stories. They knew the prophecies. They knew all of the things about the Saviour, but they were not looking for Him. They were even the chief priests and the scribes. They were the ones who should have been looking for Him and preparing the way for Him. They should have been telling everyone else about Him and His coming.
But they weren’t even paying attention.
How descriptive of our society is that? Everyone knows all about Christmas. Everyone knows the story of the baby Jesus and has seen dozens of manger scenes. Everyone knows the words to “Silent Night” and “Away in the Manger.” Many people might even be able to say a few of the famous Christmas verses. But are they really paying attention? Do they really care?
We have Christmas in our heads, but do we have it in our hearts?
Justified Freely 
Posted by Debbie on December 24, 2014 at 11:45 pm
I really appreciate this, Ben! Thank you. Praying to always be looking for Jesus! God bless and Merry Christmas!
Posted by justifiedfreely on December 26, 2014 at 7:50 am
And a (belated) Merry Christmas to you and yours!