PREPARATION. > Determine which discussion points and questions will work best with your group.

NO ROOM DESPICABLE ME MATTHEW 2 DECEMBER 4, 2016

MATTHEW 2 DECEMBER 4, 2016 TEACHING PLAN PREPARATION > Spend the week reading through and studying Matthew 2. Consult the commentary provided and any additional study tools (such as a concordance or Bible dictionary) to enhance your preparation. > Determine which discussion points and questions will work best with your group. > Pray for our pastors, the upcoming group meeting, your teaching, your group members, and their receptivity to the study. HIGHLIGHTS BIBLICAL EMPHASIS: Jesus, the long-awaited Messiah, is identified through His lineage, birth, and childhood. TEACHING AIM: The circumstances and events surrounding Jesus birth had proven Him to be the Savior of the world. Despite Herod s plan to kill Jesus, God s plan would not be thwarted. 2 No Room: Despicable Me Brentwood Baptist Church

TEACHING PLAN DECEMBER 4, 2016 INTRODUCTION As your group time begins, use this section to help get the conversation going. 1 Whom are you most looking forward to spending time with this Christmas? Why? 2 If that person was in a desperate situation and needed your help, do you think it would be better to call or visit? Why? 3 Why do we go out of our way to spend time with our loved ones during the holidays? What do we gain by spending time with people face to face that we lose through other forms of communication? 4 Have your Christmas plans always gone the way you expected? Tell about a time when they didn t. The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas is the busiest travel time of the year. According to AAA, Thanksgiving weekend is the busiest travel weekend of the year, followed by Christmas. People travel during the holidays because they understand the value of spending time with people they love. Likewise, the wise men traveled to Bethlehem, guided by the star in the east, to spend time with Jesus. The circumstances and events surrounding Jesus birth had proven Him to be the promised Savior of the world. After visiting, the wise men were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, who intended on harming the child. No one could thwart God s plans, not even the politically powerful Herod. UNDERSTANDING Unpack the biblical text to discover what Scripture says or means about a particular topic. > Have a volunteer read Matthew 2:1-11. 3 No Room: Despicable Me Brentwood Baptist Church

TEACHING PLAN DECEMBER 4, 2016 Why do you think Matthew took special care to name Jesus birthplace? According to verse 3, how did Herod react to the news of Jesus birth? Why do you think he responded the way he did? The fact that Matthew immediately mentions Jesus birthplace, Bethlehem of Judea, is significant because the location of Jesus birth illustrates a fulfilled prophecy (Micah 5:2; John 7:42). Jesus is the fulfillment of all the prophetic intentions of the long-awaited Jewish Messiah. The Herod in this passage (one of many Herod s), is Herod the Great. His father was Antipater II, a Jew of Idumaean descent, an Edomite related to Esau and Jacob. Herod s father was influential to his own rise to power, in a succession of positions over Galilee and ultimately Judea, where Herold ruled from 37-4 B.C. During this time, Herod was given the title, king of the Jews by the Roman Senate. This partly explains the fear and murderous actions when Herod received word another King of the Jews had been born. Bethlehem Ephrathah, you are small among the clans of Judah; One will come from you to be ruler over Israel for Me. His origin is from antiquity, from eternity. -Micah 5:2 In your experience, how do people often act when they perceive a threat to their power? Have you ever witnessed someone who is preoccupied with a lofty title? Without dishonoring anyone, explain your experience. Glance back at verse 11. How did the wise men respond when they saw Jesus? What did they do after they worshiped Him? When the wise men found Jesus and His parents, they were overcome with joy. Their destination had not simply been a location; it was a person Jesus. At the first sight of Jesus, they responded with worship. The gifts they gave to Him were gold, frankincense, and 4 No Room: Despicable Me Brentwood Baptist Church

TEACHING PLAN DECEMBER 4, 2016 myrrh, and were the most common methods of exchange for the day. In fact, the gold and two forms of incense had made it possible for the wise men to travel through multiple lands on their way to Bethlehem, much like people today use Master Cards or Visas when they are traveling abroad. These gifts would be helpful for Jesus family when they traveled. > Have a volunteer read Matthew 2:12-15. According to these verses, how did God warn the wise men and Joseph about Herod s plan? Nazareth- Nazareth was a small town 55 miles north of Jerusalem and a place of lowly reputation. In your experience, have you ever seen God s provision in keeping His people safe? If so, what happened? According to verse 15, why did Jesus and His parents stay in Egypt? After being warned in a dream, the wise men chose not to return to Herod, despite the king s instructions. Instead, they went a different route. It was risky for foreigners to disobey a king, but they acted in faith and heeded the warning they d been given in the dream. Clearly, their awe of God exceeded their fear of Herod. God had also warned Joseph in a dream to take his family and escape to Egypt. In doing so, they would fulfill the prophecy of Hos. 11:1: Out of Egypt I called My son. > Have a volunteer read Matthew 2:16-23. What heinous lengths did Herod go to when he learned he d been outwitted by the wise men? Why will some people go to any length to protect their interests, even to the point of killing innocent children? 5 No Room: Despicable Me Brentwood Baptist Church

TEACHING PLAN DECEMBER 4, 2016 Jesus was likely around age 12 to 18 months at the time Herod issued his order to slaughter infant boys. In his paranoia, Herod preferred a margin of error in his estimation of the child s age, ordering that the age range of those murdered be high enough to ensure this king of the Jews. According to demographics of the region, there would ve been approximately two dozen boys under the age of 2 in that area who were murdered due to Herod s despicable order. Herod s arrogance ignited the slaughtering of children. He was observant enough to recognize the truth of the Old Testament prophecies about God s plan, but arrogant enough to think that he could thwart God s plan. Glance back at verse 17-18. Who was the prophet that had prophesied this encounter? There I will give her vineyards back to her and make the Valley of Achor into a gateway of hope. There she will respond as she did in the days of her youth, as in the day she came out of the land of Egypt. -Hosea 2:15 How did God go to extraordinary lengths to protect the newborn Savior? What does this tell you about God s character? The Bible demonstrates a long history of God protecting His people in dangerous circumstances. His purposes cannot be thwarted. As Matthew began to make his case for Jesus as the promised King- Messiah, he illustrated Christ s unique pedigree and put Jesus birth into its historical context proving him to be the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies promising a Messiah. 6 No Room: Despicable Me Brentwood Baptist Church

TEACHING PLAN DECEMBER 4, 2016 APPLICATION Help your group identify how the truths from the Scripture passage apply directly to their lives. 1 When is the last time you experienced the awestruck wonder of God as the wise men did when they met the Christ child? 2 What situations and things motivate you to worship? What steps can you take to regularly place yourself in a posture of worship? 3 How does knowing God s purposes cannot be thwarted by evil strengthen your faith? P R A Y Give thanks to God for the birth of Christ and His plan of salvation. Praise God for His good and perfect plans that cannot be thwarted. 7 No Room: Despicable Me Brentwood Baptist Church

TEACHING PLAN DECEMBER 4, 2016 FOLLOW UP Midway through this week, send a follow-up email to your group with some or all of the following information: > Questions to consider as they continue to reflect on what they learned this week: As you contemplate the birth story of Christ, what motivated you to praise God? > A note of encouragement, following up on any specific prayer requests mentioned during your group gathering. > The challenge to memorize Micah 5:2. 8 No Room: Despicable Me Brentwood Baptist Church

COMMENTARY DECEMBER 4, 2016 MATTHEW 2 2:1-6. The mention of Jesus birthplace, Bethlehem of Judea, is significant in this passage especially because of the prophecy it fulfilled (see 2:4-6). Matthew is building his case. Jesus is the fulfillment of all the prophetic intentions of the long-awaited Jewish Messiah. All the details apply, including his birthplace. The King Herod in this passage, one of many Herods, is Herod the Great, mentioned here and in Luke 1:5. His father, Antipater II, was a Jew of Idumaean descent (Edomite, related through Esau to Jacob) who gained influence under the Roman Empire. He was influential in his son Herod s rise to power, in a succession of positions over Galilee and ultimately Judea, where Herod ruled from 37 4 b.c. (Herod s death in 4 b.c. is one of the main reasons we know Jesus was born somewhat earlier than the traditional a.d. 1; cf. 2:19.) During this time Herod was given the title king of the Jews by the Roman senate. This in part explains his fear and aggressive murderous actions when he heard from the Magi that another king of the Jews had been born (2:2). These Magi from the east (2:1) were likely from Babylon and were culturally influential students of the stars, not evil magicians of some sort. Their interest must have been aroused by the unusual star they observed. We do not know their number, but their entourage was probably substantial to make such a lengthy cross-continent trip and to cause such a noticeable stir in Jerusalem (2:3). How they came to connect the birth of the king of the Jews with the strange star is a matter of conjecture. Some scholars believe they may have been responding, in an amazing display of faith, to a scrap of Scripture brought to their people centuries before through Balaam (Num. 24:17), who was a Mesopotamian himself. The important point here is that God brought the birth of the king to the attention of these Gentiles, who probably journeyed many months (possibly one to two years) from Mesopotamia to Jerusalem. Matthew included this information to alert his Jewish readers to several realities: (1) the event of Jesus birth had worldwide impact; (2) the Messiah was coming through Israel as a gift from God to all nations of the world, not just to the Jews; and (3) in contrast to the indifference of Jewish chief 9 No Room: Despicable Me Brentwood Baptist Church

COMMENTARY DECEMBER 4, 2016 priests and scribes who should have anticipated the king s birth (2:4), these Gentiles were over-whelmed with joy! The quote in 2:6 comes from Micah 5:2. Micah prophesied around the time of the Northern Kingdom s fall in 722 b.c. Through this man, the Lord used the lesson of the Northern Kingdom s fall to confront Judah s own covenant disobedience. He warned of Judah s future judgment, but he also gave cause for hope, foretelling his restoration of the remnant. It is in this context of hope that the words quoted by Matthew are written in Micah. 2:7-12. Herod called the Magi into his chambers alone to try to determine when this new king, Jesus, was born. Because both the Magi and Herod seemed to identify the appearance of the star with the birthdate of the Messiah, Jesus must have been at least a year old when the Magi arrived. (This fact changes the traditional image of the Magi visiting the young family in the stable where Jesus was born. Certainly the shepherds found him there, but Joseph would have found his family a home to live in by the time the Magi arrived.) Herod wanted to use the Magi to determine the exact location of this new king. This was a selfserving strategy, not a generous desire to aid the Magi in their quest. Herod had no desire to worship the new king. His goal was to locate him and eliminate this bud of growing messianic hope which he viewed as potential competition. The Magi likely followed this star very much as a sailor follows the stars to get to his destination. The text does, however, give every indication that this star was a supernatural phenomena. When the Magi found where Jesus and his family were living, they were overjoyed. Their destination was not just a place but a person Jesus. Their response was the same response that Matthew wanted for his readers; they worshiped him. The gifts they gave to Jesus gold, frankincense, and myrrh were the most common mediums of exchange in that day. The gold and two forms of incense made it possible for the Magi to cross through many different lands on their way to Bethlehem, much like people today use travelers checks when they are traveling. These gifts would come in handy later for Jesus family as they traveled themselves (2:13-15). 10 No Room: Despicable Me Brentwood Baptist Church

COMMENTARY DECEMBER 4, 2016 The Magi chose not to go back to Herod as he had instructed. Instead they went a different way. For foreigners to disobey a king in that day was risky. But the Magi, by faith, followed the warning they had received in a dream. They clearly were more awed by God than by Herod. 2:13-15. When the Magi finally left to go back to their own land, an angel appeared to Joseph in a dream. The angel told Joseph to gather his family and move to a country that was the archenemy of Israel. Why Egypt and not some other location? Simple prophetic fulfillment of Hosea 11:1. We see in both Hosea 11:1 and Numbers 24:8 an allusion to the future, when God would call him out of Egypt. The scene was being set for those prophecies to be fulfilled by Jesus when He returned from Egypt. It must have been frightening to move to enemy territory. God gave Joseph the reason for this drastic move. Herod was planning to find Jesus to kill Him. Joseph recognized the dream as God speaking to him. He gathered his family and left immediately for Egypt, once again trusting and obeying. The family stayed in that country until Herod the Great died. 2:16-18. Herod would do anything to protect his own interests, including murdering children. Even though Herod the Great accomplished some wonderful achievements (such as major construction) during his reign, he is best known for his extreme paranoia and the bloodshed that ensued. The story of his slaughter of young boys in and around Bethlehem is consistent with the pattern of his life. At the time of Herod s slaughter of infant boys, Jesus must have been around one and one-half to two years old. Herod, in his paranoia, would have allowed for a margin of error in the estimate of the child s age, ordering that the age range of those killed be high enough to include this king of the Jews (2:16). Demographers tell us there would have been perhaps two dozen boys two years old and under who were killed because of Herod s obscene order. The weeping would have filled the night from Bethlehem to Ramah. Consider the arrogance of this man. He was observant enough to recognize the truth of Old Testament prophecies about God s plan, but arrogant enough to think that he could thwart it. No created being, not even Lucifer, can thwart 11 No Room: Despicable Me Brentwood Baptist Church

COMMENTARY DECEMBER 4, 2016 the plan of God. In this situation, God the Father intervened to protect His Son and to preserve our salvation. The quote in 2:18 is from Jeremiah 31:15. Jeremiah prophesied during the decades leading up to and immediately following Judah s fall to Babylon in 586 B.C. His ministry was one of proclaiming doom and judgment. However, he, like most Old Testament prophets, included a message of hope of forgiveness and restoration. Jeremiah 30 31 gives us a lengthy oracle focused on the future restoration of Judah. Even in this oracle of hope, Jeremiah occasionally mentions the sorrow and devastation of Judah, by way of contrast with the joy that would follow. Jeremiah s specific prophecy relates to the captivity in Babylon and the killing of children during Babylon s conquest of Judea. Its parallel here is striking. The verse Matthew quoted regarding the children slaughtered by Herod is one of these sorrowful notes common in Jeremiah s ministry. But in its original context it is immediately followed by, This is what the Lord says: Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for your work will be rewarded, declares the Lord. They will return from the land of the enemy. So there is hope for your future, declares the Lord (Jer. 31:16-17). Perhaps a number of bereaved parents in and around Bethlehem found comfort in the Lord s promise, trusting, without understanding, that there was some kind of meaning behind their tragedy. Matthew probably intended his readers, familiar as they were with the Old Testament, to understand the context of hope in which this tragic verse was originally planted, and so to be led one step closer to finding hope in the Messiah. 2:19-23. The threat to the young king did not end with his return to Israel after Herod s death. The Lord confirmed Joseph s fears of Herod s cruel son (2:22), and so Joseph took his family farther north to his and Mary s hometown, Nazareth in Galilee (see Luke 1:26-27; 2:39). At this time Galilee was an out-of-the way province, far from the centers of religious and political power in Jerusalem. The Father wanted the King s beginnings to be quiet and unnoticed, where He would grow to maturity among the common people whom He had come to save. 12 No Room: Despicable Me Brentwood Baptist Church

COMMENTARY DECEMBER 4, 2016 Nazareth was a neighborhood with a dubious reputation (see John 1:46). It was a Roman military post with all the attendant and disreputable trappings. While Jesus grew up with strong convictions, keeping Himself from giving in to the temptations that surrounded Him, He learned in this setting to understand and have compassion on the sick and sinful people around him (see Luke 2:40). His ability to dine with the outcasts (Matt. 9:10-13) did not develop overnight. Although the turn of events in Joseph s return with his family to Israel may seem haphazard, God had a purpose in every detail. Matthew uses the formula in order to fulfill thirteen times in his Gospel. Among them, Matthew 2:23 is unique. It refers to the prophets. This plural usage is helpful in explaining that this statement is not found verbatim in any one prophet in the Old Testament. Rather, it seems to be an indirect quotation summarizing the tenor of more than one prophet. What Matthew intended to communicate was not a word-for-word quote found in a specific location, but a theme supported in multiple locations in the Old Testament. Why did Matthew highlight this negative anticipation of Messiah s ministry? A couple of reasons are likely. First, by the time Matthew wrote his account, the word Nazarene had become a household adjective describing anything despised and scorned. When Christ s followers were called members of the Nazarene sect by their enemies (Acts 24:5), the term was intended as an insult. 13 No Room: Despicable Me Brentwood Baptist Church