Opening Illustration: Christmas List and Retailer Magazines: A couple of years ago, I noticed a lot of retail stores started sending Christmas toy catalogs. It’s brilliant. They even have a place where you can write down your Christmas gift wish list. My kids devour those magazines when they come in mail. They start going to town and circling every possible gift they might want. Each year, my kids sit me down and go page by page showing me what they want. I’ll give feedback along the way. This year, we were going through the same exercise and there was one item that was circled that was so cool for a young kid. I started looking at it and talking about how fun of a gift that would be. I then noticed something…There wasn’t a price listed. In fact, one retailer removed all the prices in the magazine and made you go look up the price online. I discovered the problem with that this year. The things you don’t expect to be expensive are ridiculously expensive. That one item I was looking at with my kid would have been all of their Christmas and birthday gifts combined! I then had to have a conversation with my kid about proper  expectations for Christmas. This week, God did the same for me. Now, I wasn’t going through my Christmas gift wish list with God during my prayer time. But I was taken back about what my priorities and expectations around Christmas should be.

Today, we start a new sermon series about our priorities.  In typically TCSH fashion, the series is called…Christmas List: Reordering Our Priorities.  We are going to spend 4 weeks looking at different passages of Jesus’ birth narrative. We’re narrowing in how God reordered people’s priorities for His purpose. My hope is that we will pause throughout this month to self-examine if our priorities are in a place where God wants them to be. Here’s where we start today: Be expectant for God to move in your life. We are going to be in Matthew 2 and Luke 2, but let’s start by reading Matthew 2.  Read Matthew 2:1-12. Pray. 

As I read the passage this week, I kept having these diagnostic questions pop in my mind. I felt like God was asking me, “Are you ready for Me to move?” “Would you see Me moving in your life?” “Would you let me change your priorities?” So, I want us to enter into Jesus’ birth narrative with that kind of mindset. I want you ask yourself, “If I was alive when Jesus was born, would I have been caught up in His birth or would I have been so focused on what I was doing that I missed it?” And then, I want us to ask the same of our lives today. So, we have 3 diagnostic questions to ask. Here’s the first one: Are you prepared for God to move in your life right now?

1) Are you expectant for God to move in your life right now? (vs. Matthew 2:1-2) At first glance, there doesn’t seem to be much going on in the first two verses of Matthew 2. But when we dig a little deeper, there is surprising scene that takes place. Take a look at verse 1: ¹Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, In Matthew’s account of Jesus’ birth, we don’t get as many details as we do in Luke. Here’s what Matthew tells us in verse 1: Jesus is born. King Herod is ruling. Some wise men from the east arrive. This is exactly how I love to communicate to my wife. She wants all the details, and I’m like, “I just gave them to you.” She would have asked me a thousand questions… In verse 1, Matthew mentions two different locations: Bethlehem and Jerusalem.

Here is where we need to dig a little deeper. Bethlehem was located about 5 miles south of Jerusalem. Jerusalem and the surrounding area, Judea, should have been aware of the birth of the Messiah. This region should have been buzzing. There was much expectancy throughout the known world about coming of a great king. Roman and Jewish Historians wrote about this time period. his would have been a known topic of conversation. But what do we see? The people in Jerusalem had no idea what was going on! We get the sense that the arrival of these wise men was unexpected. This shouldn’t be the case! Of all the geographical regions, Jerusalem should have been the most expectant and the least surprised about the birth of the Messiah. Christ’s birth had been revealed to the wise men, so they came. From their perspective, they had been expecting and anticipating the birth of Jesus. Put yourself in the shoes of the wise men for a minute. They had been looking and waiting for this king. Now the sign of his arrival had come. I imagine as they pulled up to Jerusalem, they were getting excited – expecting to see this party happening, but there’s nothing going on!

Look at their response in verse 2: ² “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.”     Imagine how confusing this was for them. Person after person they asked had no idea what they were talking about. “Have you seen the king? No? What about you? Not you either?” They checked their GPS app to make sure they are in the right place. They checked their notes to makes sure they really saw the star. And they realize, “Yes, this is the right spot and right time.” What does this say about the people in Jerusalem? They were completely unexpectant of the moment of history that was happening in their midst. They were just going about their business, unaware of what was unfolding before their eyes. Even though we are 2,000 years removed from these verses, we can’t make the same mistake. We are called to live our lives with expectancy. Every day of your life is a day that God may move in an unexpected way.  

The greatest way to be prepared for God to move in your life is to be expectant of God to move in your life.  It’s a disposition of the heart that maintains a constant expectation that God is going to do something.

What do we see throughout Scripture?

• What did Abraham say when God called? “Here I am, Lord.”
• What did Jacob say when God called? “Here I am, Lord.” 
• What did Moses say when God called? “Here I am, Lord.”
• What did Samuel say when God called? “Here I am, Lord.”
• What did Isaiah say when God called? “Here I am, Lord.”
• What did Ananias say when God called? “Here I am, Lord.”

Would you say that each of these men were expectant of God?

Do you know what scares me? Being outside the will of God. I am scared to miss God calling my name. I am fearful of missing God saying to me, “Jess. Jess. Hey, over here.” When we look at the birth of Jesus, it should us into expectancy. It should draw us into a place where we are waiting for God to call and to move. So, that our first diagnostic question, “Are you expectant for God to move in your life right now?” Here’s our second question: Are you willing to let God change your priorities?

 2) Are you willing to let God change your priorities? (vs. Matthew 2:3-12) Starting in verse 3, Matthew highlights how three different groups responded to the news that the Messiah was here. All three groups of people had to make a decision about Jesus. They all had to decide if they were going to let the news about the Messiah change what they were living for. Matthew starts with Herod. Take a look at verse 3: ³ King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem. Herod was a ruthless leader. He would kill family members because of his paranoia. He was so consumed with power that he would do anything to keep it. Even before his death, he captured beloved Jerusalem citizens and ordered them to be killed the moment he died – so there would be mourning in Jerusalem when he died. That’s how messed up Herod was. This news of a birth of a king sent Herod into a frenzy. Herod feared his thrown was going to be taken away by this “King”. Look at the second part of verse 3: Why was everyone in Jerusalem deeply disturbed? The people of Jerusalem knew that Herod’s fear meant more bloodshed. Herod was a ruler so consumed with his own power, that the thought of Jesus disrupting his power, caused Herod to become irate. Herod refused to let Jesus change his priorities. Herod, in his anger, is going to trying to figure out a way to get rid of Jesus.

That brings in a second group that was forced to respond to Jesus. Look at verses 4-6: ⁴ He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, “Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?” ⁵ “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they said, “for this is what the prophet wrote: ⁶ ‘And you, O Bethlehem in the land of Judah, are not least among the ruling cities of Judah, for a ruler will come from you who will be the shepherd for my people Israel.’” These priests knew the Bible well. They knew the answer to Herod’s question when they quote Micah 5:2. They also knew Herod well. They knew he was out for blood. These men spent their lives studying Scripture and carrying out the religious law. These men were waiting on Jesus to come. If Jesus came in a way they weren’t expecting (which was the case), they would still have had enough knowledge to recognize Jesus when He did arrive. So why would they knowingly give away Jesus’ location if they knew Herod wanted to kill Jesus? They didn’t believe Jesus was really the Messiah. They absolutely missed Jesus because their priorities made them think that Jesus had to come in the way they were expecting.

But there is a third group that got it right. Look at verses 7-12: ⁷ Then Herod called for a private meeting with the wise men, and he learned from them the time when the star first appeared. ⁸ Then he told them, “Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. And when you find him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship him, too!” ⁹ After this interview the wise men went their way. And the star they had seen in the east guided them to Bethlehem. It went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the child was. ¹⁰ When they saw the star, they were filled with joy! ¹¹ They entered the house and saw the child with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. ¹² When it was time to leave, they returned to their own country by another route, for God had warned them in a dream not to return to Herod. When they came into town originally, it probably wasn’t just 3 men on camels. The reason we often depict them in a group of 3 is because the Bible tells us they brought 3 gifts. Because if you put a bunch of wise men in your nativity set at home, it wouldn’t all fit…And I know that the wise men shouldn’t be in your nativity set. By the time they saw Jesus, he was probably 6 months old or so. If you are one who puts the wise men on top of your fridge instead of in the living room next to the manger, let me know! More than likely, the wise men were a large caravan. This group could have been up to 12 astrologers. Add in their wives, kids, donkeys, and servants, it quite a big party.

These wise men began as a pagan priestly class in Persia, looked at stars for signs and omens (mixing astronomy and astrology). Rose to power to become “consultants” to the kings and royalty. Very powerful, “kingmakers” – To be king, had to have their support. In Old Testament, when the Jewish people were taken into captivity, they mix with Persians. Magi exposed to Jewish culture, prophecies (especially concerning a “Messiah”). Daniel 4:7 The “magi” can’t interpret Neb’s dream. Daniel 5:11 Daniel appointed head of the magi and consults Belshazzar. God’s sovereign hand begins way back: Magi were prepared during Daniel’s time to show up at Jesus’ house…In Matthew, they are probably true seekers of the Messiah. Which is why they fall down in worship in verse 11.

I want you to think about this.  At some point in history, there was magi (a wise man) who became expectant of Jesus and it changes their life and their priorities. Someone along the way, truly began to live for Jesus. And we know that family tree was changed forever. These wisemen would have never shown up as true believers if someone along the way didn’t let God reorder their life. Let me remind you of something this Christmas season: God can use you to change the course of your family. God wants to use you to change the course of your family! The question you need to ask yourself is “are you willing to let God use you to change history?” Herod couldn’t see Jesus. The priests could only see past Jesus. But the wise men could only see Jesus. Because the wise men could only see Jesus, they let Jesus change their priorities. There’s one final diagnostic question we need to ask: How quickly will you act?

3) What excuses are overpowering your expectancy? (vs. Luke 2:8-20) I want us to jump over to Luke 2. We come to a familiar passage starting in verse 8:  ⁸ That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. ⁹ Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, ¹⁰ but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. ¹¹ The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! ¹² And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.” ¹³ Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying,¹⁴ “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”  

What we read as familiar in this passage would have been completely foreign at the time of Jesus’ birth. Shepherds occupied the lowest class in Jewish society. The nature of their role prohibited them from being a part of the religious ceremonies, so they were looked down upon. They were known for calling things that belonged to others, their own possessions. And typically, shepherds were quite unreliable. Which meant, their testimony was not even received in court. There weren’t even supposed to be close to people. They were supposed to be in the wilderness. The reason that these shepherds were close it because it is thought that their flock were to be used for religious ceremonies. Now, for these particular shepherds, we don’t know if all that was the case, but do we do know they came from a despised class. One of the cool things is that God chose to use the unlikely for His plan. But I also see the shepherds response to God using them. They could have easily started making up the excuses. “I think the angels made a wrong turn and didn’t mean to give us this message. So, I’m not going to do anything because they clearly meant it for someone else.” “No one is going to believe us.” “No one is going to listen to us.” “I’m not going to risk being ridiculed, so I’ll just sit tight here.” They could have come up with excuse after excuse. But what did they do?!

Look at verses 15-20: ¹⁵ When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” ¹⁶ They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. ¹⁷ After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. ¹⁸ All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, ¹⁹ but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. ²⁰ The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them. Did you catch what verse 18 said? “All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished” If those shepherds never got out of those fields, they never would have experienced the full movement of God in their lives. They never would have seen God turn their status into something for God’s glory. Jesus didn’t enter into humanity so that you can stay where you are. Jesus entered into humanity to move you.  What excuses are you hanging onto right now? You may be saying, “I’m expectant and I’m willing, but…” You may be unknowingly throwing something on at the end of the sentence that doesn’t need to be there. Something that you are holding onto that is holding you back from God’s next move. Change your sentence: “I’m expecting and I’m willing, so God, start moving.” 

Here’s your challenge as we enter the Christmas season…What are the top priorities on your Christmas list? When December 26^th rolls around and the dust begins to settle, what will you reflect on? What it a season of expectancy? What it a season of willingness? Let’s all begin this Christmas season with the end in mind. Let’s all be willing to make God’s priorities our priorities. Let’s all be expectant that God will move in our lives. Let’s pray.

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