Series: Christmas 2023

The story of Jesus’ birth is not just a story of joy, peace, wise men, shepherds and a romanticized picture of an animal stable. Jesus’ birth is actually shrouded in evil. There is such a thing as EVIL in this world and many of us have seen it. Immediately upon Jesus’ birth – an evil man named King Herod the Great tried to kill Jesus. As the true and rightful King of Jerusalem – King Herod saw Jesus as A THREAT. Herod himself perceived that there was something true about Jesus.

If Jesus was A NOBODY, he is a threat to no one. But even Herod saw something rang true about Jesus. But instead of coming to worship Jesus, he conspired to kill Jesus. There are no EXTERNAL HISTORICAL RECORDS of this event. But we know Herods evil conduct is in keeping with his character. Herod had already killed several family members – to preserve his title King of the Jews. So instead of A) worshiping Jesus, B) he uses his authority to order the killing of all the babies under two years of age in and around Bethlehem.

You can imagine the great SADNESS that must have accompanied many families at this first Christmas. King Herod’s order to kill all the babies was Satan’s final roll of the dice to prevent Jesus actually saving the world. (As we saw in yesterdays sermon – Satan had been working for 2000 years to prevent the birth of Jesus – because God told Satan in the garden of Eden – that a promised child would one day crush his head). But Satan failed to prevent Jesus’ birth. So in a great, grotesque act of INJUSTICE the order was given – kill all the babies. Sadly, Jesus came into the world facing A GREAT ACT OF INJUSTICE and he left the world because of A GREAT ACT OF INJUSTICE.

Genesis 3:15 says, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” This is known as the protoevangelium—the first gospel.
From the moment God has promised a Saviour will come to redeem mankind, Satan has been trying to prevent the coming of the Messiah by perverting Jesus’ ancestors and disrupt His bloodline. The gospel on Jesus’ genealogy traces back his ancestors and the events that nearly stopped the prophecy.

In the end, God’s sovereignty and Word prevails, the Messiah who ‘crushed the head of the serpent’ and redeem mankind from sin was born.