STORIES
As you probably know, the Bible is a book filled with stories, fascinating stories. Perhaps you had your first contact with the Bible the way I did, through the Bible Story Books that we had as children. And we remember those times when Mom or Dad would read our Bible Story to us. Some of those stories are so inspiring and they energize us — my favorite was David and Goliath!
And some of those stories are warm and enticing — I always loved the one about Jesus taking little children on his knee and blessing them.
Other Bible stories are informative and they teach us so much — like God’s work of opening up the Red Sea to lead the Israelites out of Egypt’s slavery.
Still others seem rather disturbing and confront us with things that need to be changed — I feel that way about the story of Jonah, the one we looked at a couple of weeks ago on this broadcast.
But this story about what happened in Bethlehem, which we heard a few minutes ago, is a downright ugly and frightening story. I am a parent and a grandparent. I have three children and ten grandchildren. And I have to tell you that this is a very hard story for me to read. There is more violence in it than I care to hear about; there are murders of little children at the hand of an evil man. And frankly I can’t imagine how something as terrible as this could happen. It’s so hard to fathom how Christmas could evoke such a bloody conflict!
But it’s there…as part of the Christmas story. And we can’t ignore it. It reminds us that the whole nice story of Christmas, and the birth of the Christ—child, had another side to it. Yes, I think that’s how we ought to think of this story. It’s about the "other side of Christmas". It tells us that the events of the first Christmas precipitated a violent conflict.
Let’s take a look at this dark story.
BETHLEHEM
First of all, you need to know something about the King who was in power at that time. Herod was his name. Herod was not a Jew; but he was the ruler over the Jews. He was probably about 70 years old at this time, and had been ruler for nearly 40 years. He was talented; brilliant; but vicious. He had developed quite a reputation for violent acts. Stories have circulated that he appointed his brother Aristobulus to be the High Priest, but when he became too popular Herod invited him over for a swimming party, hired some thugs to drown him, and then had a big funeral and wept many public tears over his tragic death. We’re also told that he murdered his wife’s uncle and his brother—in—law. And when his wife Mariame expressed her displeasure over that, he had her executed. And later his mother, too. Imagine all that!! And later on when he got suspicious that his two sons were plotting against him, he had them murdered. Caesar Augustus was reported to have once said that it’s safer to be Herod’s pig than his son!
Well, that’s the Herod who figures so prominently in this story that we read. That’s the Herod that the three Magi from the East came to, without realizing who he was. There was, of course, no way for them to know all of that. They were from another land, far to the East, they were students of the stars, led by another star, and they came with a very innocent inquiry and a very honest search.
So here are these three Magi from the East, who come into town following a star, and in all their innocence and sincerity, asking the very question this insecure, evil and jealous king couldn’t handle. "Where is the one who is born King of the Jews?"
Matthew is careful to give us keen insights into Herod’s behavior. There are four stages of Herod’s response to the Wise Men and their question. These four stages show us much of what was going on inside Herod.
The first reaction we find is that he was "disturbed". You’ll find that in verse 3. It was really a very innocent question they had directed to him, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the East and have come to worship him." That’s a fair—enough question, isn’t it?! But not to Herod. To him it was an affront, for HE was the king of the Jews; and it was a threat, for this would point to a competitor to deal with. And so, it says, he was "disturbed." The word that Matthew uses there gives us the picture of waters that are agitated…churning. It is the way you and I would feel if we got a letter in the mail telling us our insurance is suddenly going to be cut off; or if you learned your company is planning big cutbacks and you are called in to a meeting with your boss; or if you receive a letter in the mail that announces a lawsuit has been filed against you. He was disturbed; that’s the first response.
Then he began plotting. That was his second reaction. You can just sense how the gears of his evil mind began to grind ever so slowly until he finally called the Magi in and said to them (in very polite terms), "Oh, so you are looking for the child who will be the King of the Jews? My, how nice of you to make a big trip for that! I wish you success. Our records indicate that you just might find him in Bethlehem. So, I’ll tell you what…you go looking for him, and when you find him please come back and tell me, because, you know, I’d really love to go and worship him too." But, it was a lie, and a plot.
But then there was some intervening action by God himself. They did indeed go to Bethlehem, and they found the Christ child, and they worshiped him, giving him the gifts they had brought along. But God, in a dream, tipped them off to this terrible plot Herod had laid out and warned them to go home by another route and never go back to Herod.
Well, here was this disturbed King, waiting and waiting in Jerusalem for these Magi to return with the key information he needed. But they never came…
And that’s when the third stage of his response shows up. You’ll find it in verse 16, "When Herod realized his had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious…. Now, that’s an even stronger word. It means he flew into a fit of rage. And you know people who fly into a fit of rage are very dangerous people, capable of just about any kind of evil.
And soon the fourth stage of his response shows up — he erupts. It says that "he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity that were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi." (verse16) Like an angry animal, backed into a corner and feeling very threatened, he erupted in evil!
Just try to imagine the grief and pain in Bethlehem! I can hardly get my mind around it. I think that just about one of the most painful things I could experience would be the death of a young grandchild; and that pain would be compounded many times if it happened at the hands of an angry man like this. Folks who have lost children and grandchildren as the victim of crimes have felt some of the deepest pain there is. And so Matthew talks about "weeping and great mourning…Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted because they are no more." (verse18)
Now we don’t really know how many children might have been involved in this massacre. Bethlehem was not a big place. And some historians have indicated it may have been about 35 children. But imagine — 35 families, 35 mothers, 35 fathers! And add to that all the brothers, sisters, grandparents, neighbors….! And, really, it doesn’t matter how many; one child would be too many. The pain here is virtually impossible for us to imagine from this vantage point.
THE OTHER SIDE
What an awful side of Christmas this portrays. Can you imagine this bloody story being a part of the Christmas story? Sure, we like to put the Wise Men into our Christmas stories, but do you realize that it involves all this??
How can we explain this? Where does this violence come from?
I suppose from our vantage point we might make an attempt at explaining it by saying, "well, that’s just what some very despotic rulers are capable of…..!" And then point to a Stalin, a Hitler, or Pinochet, or the ethnic cleansing in Bosnia, the killing fields of Cambodia, or Saddam Hussein, or any number of others down through history. Or we may even say, look at all the horrible stories we’ve heard of what happens in certain cases of child abuse, or domestic violence. Yes, we might say, every once in a while you get a glimpse of the degree of evil human beings can inflict. That’s one answer.
But there is another explanation. It’s this. The war that broke out against these little boys was one part of a much bigger war. It’s a bigger war that broke out when the Messiah entered this world; a bigger war that has been waging ever since; a war that’s going on today; and a war that will continue until the last day of world history.
You see, it’s not so much the war between Herod and those who threaten him, or the war between the Romans and the Jews. It’s the war between good and evil; between right and wrong; the war between heaven and hell. That’s the war that is going on just beneath the surface of everything in this world, and at critical junctures erupts violently.
And the birth of Jesus Christ, as the Messiah to bring God’s salvation, is exactly the event that precipitated this violent confrontation. Bethlehem may have been a small town, but right now it was on the center of the world’s stage.
THE DEEPER WAR
At the beginning of this broadcast we read a second Scripture passage from the book of Revelation which will give us the explanation that we need. In this marvelous but mysterious book of Revelation, John is writing to the church which is persecuted by the world, churches that are feeling the pain and suffering that all of the conflict has brought. He encourages those churches to hold fast to their faith, and to be courageous when it’s necessary to suffer for doing what is right.
And now in chapter 12 of Revelation he begins the last half of the book in which he describes in symbolic terms the deeper spiritual background of all the conflicts we see. He describes it by portraying this drama, a rather violent drama.
There are three participants in this drama. First, there is a woman who is pregnant and about to give birth (verse 1—2). Secondly, there is her child who is born, a son, a male child. And notice, it says he "will rule all the nations with an iron scepter" (verse 5). And, thirdly, there is this dragon, enormous, powerful, ugly, and vicious.
And we find that there are three actions in this drama. The one action is that of the woman who is in labor and gives birth to a son. And the second action is that of the dragon who positions himself in front of the woman so that he might devour this child the moment he is born. And the third action is God’s action of providing protection for this child.
Well, what do you make of that?
I guess, in this Christmas season yet, it’s not so hard to identify what’s happening in this revelation. We might find it rather natural to say that this is a story about Mary ready to give birth, about Jesus who is born, and about Herod who is determined to destroy Jesus. It’s just like we read in Matthew 2, isn’t it? Yes, it surely is.
But there is also a much bigger picture involved here and I want you to see that. The woman is not only Mary, but she represents what Genesis 3:15 calls the "seed of the woman". She is the righteous line through history, the people of God, the church, out of whom the Messiah will come. The son is none other than the Messiah himself who came into the world as the son of God to be the king and ruler over all the nations and bring the salvation of God to all people. And the dragon? Well, he is Satan himself who fell from heaven, and, in falling, took others with him. And they are now bent on revenge, determined to do all they can to sabotage and destroy the work of God in bringing his salvation.
Now, if we are able to understand this deeper war that this passage in Revelation 12 is talking about, then we are in a position to understand this terrible scene in Bethlehem. This event of the massacre of little boy babies in Bethlehem is not a stand—alone event. It is not the one—time action of a demented and despotic king. All of that would be tragic and serious enough. But this even has significance far beyond itself. It is an expression, at a certain point in history, of a spiritual form of warfare that is going on behind the scenes between the forces of evil and the forces of good, between God and Satan. And Jesus Christ is the central focus in this warfare.
When God brings his son Jesus Christ into this world, born of a virgin, born to be a Savior, he was the center of God’s whole salvation plan. Everything in his plan to save sinners rested on the presence and work of Jesus Christ. If Jesus Christ succeeded in the work the Father had given him to do, then there would be salvation for sinners and the kingdom of God would be established. However….if anything or anyone could successfully interfere with this work of Jesus, if anything could prevent his birth, or his life, or his ministry, or if anything could block his journey to the cross, then salvation would be impossible and it would be a victory for the kingdom of evil. That’s why the dragon was so eager to devour the child of the woman as soon as he was born.
It also helps us to understand why the parents of Jesus, Joseph and Mary, had to make the hurried trip to Egypt while he was still just an infant. Our Scripture passage says that an angel of the Lord came to them and told them to take the child and rush to Egypt to find sanctuary from Herod’s attempts to kill the child. Sure, the child must be protected at all costs! The whole plan of salvation depends on him.
And it also gives us some insight into why there were efforts along the way during Christ’s ministry to dissuade him from his work of going to the cross for sinners. Even his friend Peter tried to talk him out of it. When Jesus was trying to explain his assignment to die on the cross, Peter said, "No, Lord, surely this will never happen to you!" (Matthew 16:22) And why were there people who actually said to him, "Come down from the cross!" (Matthew 27:40 and Mark 15:30). It’s not only that they didn’t understand it, but they were actually speaking for this dragon who wanted nothing more than to sabotage God’s saving plan by keeping Jesus from the cross.
And, for that matter, it helps us to understand why the real story of Christmas can have such a hard time in our day. Perhaps you have noticed that there are a variety of different kinds of Christmases around. There is the Christmas of the Christian Gospel in which Jesus Christ was born to be the Savior of the world; in which we welcome him as the son of God.
But there are some counterfeit Christmases, too. There is the universal Christmas of good will among human beings, with no reference at all to any relationship with God. It’s just a time for all people to lay down their arms, join together in loving and helping one another. Now that’s a very good thing, and our world needs it badly, but that surely doesn’t do justice to what Christmas is all about.
And then there’s the sentimental Christmas of a nice little baby, cozy in a manger, so meek and so mild, the kind of thing that songs and lullabys are made of. It’s just a nice story, and that’s about it. No significance beyond that.
And there is the commercial Christmas about buying and sales and department store specials. It’s the Christmas of gifts and giving that hopefully will give the economy a healthy shot in the arm. But after you get past the gift—buying and giving, there’s not much more.
Now, those are the kinds of Christmases that we can celebrate, and then easily pack away again until the same time next year.
Well, who do you suppose is behind these counterfeit Christmases? Who is it that is intent on sabotaging the real Christmas of a saving Christ? This story from Revelation 12 explains that. There is a kingdom of evil intent on sabotaging the kingdom of good, of light.
And, as a matter of fact, this goes a long way to explain some other things in the story of the Christian Church too. Why did Jesus have to endure such opposition during his ministry? Why did so many folks actually call him a devil? Why have so many Christians down through the ages suffered persecution for their faith, in one way or another? Why did Jesus say to his followers that just as the world hated him so it would hate them too? Why did he have to warn his followers they could likely suffer for their faith? Why, why have there been so many obstacles through history to the Christian faith; why have there been so many efforts to undermine the Christian faith and to discredit Jesus Christ.
Could it be…could it be that there is a dragon behind it all?
And then shouldn’t we understand that to celebrate a Christmas in which Jesus Christ, the son of God and Savior of the world, is right in the center of it…shouldn’t we understand that having such a Christmas is a very courageous stand to take, and an act of defiance against all those forces that would rather sabotage the redeeming work of God through Christ. So I should warn you, be careful, it could be pretty dangerous to have a Biblical Christmas like that, because there is a kingdom of evil that will do its best to sabotage it.
CONCLUSION
Let’s go back to this Herod again for a moment. He was an evil, jealous, and revenge—filled man. He lied, he corrupted, and he killed. But in one very important thing we must admit that Herod was right, absolutely right. He correctly analyzed and understood Christ and who he was. He accurately saw the significance of Christ. And he knew that he and Christ could not exist side by side. Evil and good never can; they are at war; they are enemies. It’s one or the other. Either you accept Christ as the son of God who brings salvation and is the Lord of all, or you must reject him all the way. It’s one or the other. You cannot have both worlds!
Sad to say, so many today just don’t get that—many people; many churches; many nations. They want both, both kingdoms, both the woman’s son and the dragon, side by side. And no one can do that for long.
We must either accept Jesus Christ as Savior and King, or we must reject him.
There is no in—between.
So while this Christmas is still fresh in your mind, I pray that you will see the issues clearly. A genuine and eternal conflict reached a whole new stage once the son of God entered this world. It’s the conflict between good and evil, light and darkness, Christ and the dragon, God and Satan. I pray you see those issues clearly and that you will claim this Jesus as your Lord, your King, forever.
Prayer
Almighty God, God of love and grace,
What a momentous thing that you should enter the history of our world with your son. What an act of grace that you would send him to become our Savior.
How it must grieve you that we pay so little attention to his real purpose for coming. How it must grieve you that we so easily find ways to sidestep his claims on our lives.
Lord, today, in this season, will you break down our resistance, expose our compromises, open our hearts to see him as our eternal Savior and commit ourselves to him.
May we and all your children this day stand courageously and faithfully for him.
We pray in the name of Jesus Christ who with you and the Holy lives and reigns forever, one God, be glory now and forever. Amen.
Howard Vanderwell
Howard Vanderwell was ordained in the Christian Reformed Church in 1962. He received his M.Div. and Th.M. degree from Calvin Theological Seminary and his D.Min. at Westminster Theological Seminary in California. He has served as pastor to four congregations over 40 years in Iowa, Illinois and Michigan. After leaving the pastorate in 2002 he began a new ministry at Calvin College and Calvin Theological Seminary. He is currently a staff member at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, MI and Adjunct Professor of Worship at Calvin Theological Seminary. He consults with local congregations, provides worship materials, leads conferences and workshops, and teaches courses on worship at Calvin Seminary. Howard’‘s interests include planning, leading and evaluating worship, preaching, and worship renewal throughout the evangelical church. “My life-long prayer, from my days as a child, was that I might be honored to serve as a Christian Reformed pastor preaching the Word of God to encourage and challenge his people. I consider the forty years of my pastoral ministry to have been the most valuable way in which I could have invested those years! When I consult with pastors, teach and mentor students, hold conferences for worship leaders, or write worship planning materials, my aim is to equip and inspire others to serve their Lord and Savior by making a whole-hearted investment in his church and his people. Such ministry is certainly not without its stresses and discouragements, and those of us who have found such joy in a life-time of ministry are uniquely fitted to encourage others.” Howard lives in Hudsonville, MI with his wife Eleanor. They have three married sons and ten grandchildren ages 5 through 19. His hobbies are yard-gardening, walking, photography and model railroading.
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