In the Name of Jesus, King David’s Son, our Lord and Master who has won, our hearts to serve Him only.
Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star when it rose and have come to worship Him.”
How has Jesus won your hearts to serve Him?
It doesn’t take much thinking to know a few people in our lives and in this world that demand we serve them, do it their way, give them what they want. They don’t care about winning hearts, but they demand we them.
King Herod is this way.
Herod works with fear and with force. He works this way because he is fearful and angry and jealous.
These are powerful motivators and emotions that our Lord brings the Light of His Word to you today – the Light of Light, true God of God, brings the Light of His Word to your fear, anger, and jealousy.
It is fear, anger and jealousy that moves Herod to want to find the child born King of the Jews and kill him.
Matthew’s story continues with Herod realizing he’s been deceived by the wise men and then deciding the only way he alone can rule as king of the Jews is by killing all the children under the age of 2 in the Bethlehem area.
That’s what drives Herod.
The people know that, and that’s why Matthew’s text says that when Herod is troubled, all Jerusalem is troubled with him.
When Herod ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.
Herod doesn’t care about winning hearts.
Herod cares about being Lord and Master – yes. He’s got that part of the hymn we just sang.
Herod cares about people serving him only – yes.
Herod cares about being great and glorious, all victorious – yes.
but being rich in blessing, winning hearts to serve him only – that’s not King Herod.
Fear, anger, and jealousy – that’s King Herod.
We know that’s often how the world works.
We know that’s often how politics works and how the workplace works and how so many other parts of our lives works.
Fear, anger, and jealousy.
And if you have somebody in mind, then hear Jesus’ warning about taking the log out of your own eye to see clearly how best to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.
The flesh is weak. The temptation is real – to instill fear in others, and there’s multiple ways we can do that.
Or to think your anger is how things are going to get done.
To be motivated by jealousy of what people have that you don’t or who people that you aren’t.
And to think the only way to work is to work by face.
But today, you are here seeking the same King of the Jews the wise men were seeking because He has won your heart.
He doesn’t win you by fear, anger, or force, but He has won and is continuing to win your heart.
By showing how much He loves you, you begin to love Him.
By showing you that He has purchased and redeemed you by His holy precious blood, so that you may be His own, you begin to serve Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence and blessedness.
He has won your heart by opening wide His heart.
And when you see the heart of God, you don’t see Him mad at you and demanding justice from you. You don’t see wrath pouring out of His heart – wrath that we justly deserve.
Wrath that would cause us great fear to even begin to know what we rightly deserve.
The resurrected Jesus says in John’s Gospel, Look at my hands, look at my side, and Christian pastors from ancient to modern have preached that His side was opened with the spear, with the blood and water pouring forth, so that we can look at the heart of God.
We know what He thinks of us.
We know what He has done for us.
We know that He is kindly disposed toward us, looks with favor upon us, gives us His peace.
With that, we say with Thomas, My Lord, My God, David’s Son, my Master who has won, my heart to serve Him only.
Our hymn helps us begin again to see how He has won our hearts by putting two words together that we would not naturally put together.
Lowly, holy.
Jesus is a king deserving of the gift of gold, yet He chose to become poor, to be born and wrapped in rags, swaddling clothes, to a mother and adopted father who had to offer two turtledoves for a sacrifice, something God’s law allowed for those who couldn’t afford to sacrifice a lamb.
This King had no place to lay His head in His later years – lowly,
so that you can lay your head down and sleep in heavenly when you die – holy in Him.
Jesus is a high priest deserving the gift of frankincense, yet He doesn’t walk around flaunting His goodness and treating others as if He is better than them. This man receives sinners and eats with them.
He came to bear the sin of the world, pray for forgiveness for those who did not know what they were doing, be rejected by the Father as He became a curse for us – lowly,
so that you are righteous, so that you are treated as sons and daughters and not as slaves, so that you can have access to receive His gifts that make you holy.
So holy ones, saints in Christ, where is He who is born King of the Jews?
Where are the gifts that make you holy?
It’s in the lowly water and Word of Holy Baptism.
It’s in the Holy Communion meal that is Christ’s body and blood, in, with, and under the lowly bread and wine.
It’s in this Word preached by a lowly pastor and read and prayed and sung by Christ’s lowly people.
St. Paul says not many of us are wise according to worldly standards, not many are powerful, not many are of noble birth. But God chose what foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world…so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. (1 Cor. 1:26-28).
That’s how the one born King of the Jews works for us, where does He work in us?
It is the lowly. He works in the lowly. He calls us to be lowly, humble, servants.
Give generously, but don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.
Pray, but not to make a show. Your Father who sees in secret, rewards in secret.
Care for those who can’t care for themselves.
Love your enemies.
Speak well of those who drag your name through the mud.
Rejoice in your sufferings.
Mourn with hope.
Turn the other cheek.
Walk the extra mile.
Say, “yes,” to your wife, especially if you don’t want to.
Say, “yes,” to your husband, especially if you don’t want to.
Receive the kingdom of God like a God, and receive children just like you would receive your Lord Jesus Christ.
Be ready to give a defense for those who ask, but with gentleness and respect.
The Holy Spirit works through you and He works through by clearly, not by force, but by love.
Not often in grand fashion, but in lowly serving.
Not so often with the big, but with the little and constant.
Not with the one day or the one act or the one speech, but over time.
Doing all things in the faith that God sanctifies all things, makes holy all things through the Word of God and prayer.
He has won our hearts.
We serve Him only – our lowly, holy, great glorious, all victorious King.
We are His holy people, made holy by His holy things, and in His holy Spirit, we are sent off again to do His lowly, holy work.