you
ok let's continue with our study of the
life of Jesus Christ working
chronologically through the New
Testament were now back again in Matthew
chapter two looking at the flight to
Egypt Matthew chapter two and verse
number 14 Jesus remain there in Egypt
until the death of Herod this was fifty
fulfill would have been spoken by the
Lord through the Prophet out of Egypt I
called my son then when Herod saw that
he had been tricked by the Magi he
became very enraged and he sent and slew
all the male children who were in
Bethlehem and all its vicinity from two
years old and under according to the
time which he had determined from the
Magi and so this gives us again a little
bit of insight as to how old Jesus was
when the Magi visited him or perhaps how
long it took for the Magi to travel
Herod used that what they told him as a
reference point let's see if I'm going
to eliminate this King of the Jews who's
the threat to me I'm going to be safe
I'm going to have to kill every child in
Bethlehem and all around there under two
years of age and that's exactly what he
did now a question could be asked at
this point in time and I've certainly
asked this question at times you know
God was able to warn Joseph and Mary to
get out of town before Herod soldiers
got there to kill all the children god
obviously knew what was going to happen
he warned Jesus so why weren't the other
mothers and fathers warned why didn't
God prevent the deaths of all those
little precious children I mean that it
was a horrible horrible thing the little
sentences that we read in passing here
don't do it justice the terror of that
day when the soldiers rode into
bethlehem and other places around there
snatching up children little children
you know toddlers and babies and ripping
them from their mother's arms and
killing them I mean this is a horrible
Holocaust and so God could have
prevented it why didn't he well we could
ask that question couldn't we about any
tragedy and I just have to say there
there's no Pat answers there you know
you can say well they all deserve to die
what little babies deserve to die you
know come on that's hard to swallow so
the only thing that I can bring that I
am sure of out of this passage that
raises so many questions is simply this
this indicates to us that Jesus was very
special okay his value was greater than
the value of all those other children
who died in the slaughter of Herod in
fact if you took the value of all
children around the world and through in
all the adults together the entire
population of the earth and put them in
a scale and put Jesus over here here to
value him and put all those other people
the world's population on this side of
scale it was a scale that measured value
it would tip to Jesus aside in fact it
would that that's an understatement it
it would in a micro second tip to the
other side and those people would fly
off in out into infinity in space
because the value of Christ as God as
the Son of God is of no comparison to
the value of those of us who are just
human beings okay you say well what
difference does that make well it makes
some difference it helps us understand
why Jesus was uniquely preserved but
also helps us to understand how one
person's death and suffering on the
cross can atone for the sins of hundreds
of millions and potentially billions of
people you know if I was to be the one
who was going if I was sinless first of
all and I was to be chosen to die or I
voluntarily gave my life to die to save
to be as to be a savior I could only
potentially save one person because I'm
just one person
you give a life for a life that's only
fair but can you see how the Lord Jesus
Christ being of infinite value by his
relatively short sufferings and I'm not
downplaying his sufferings at all but
you know cuz he suffered horribly he
bought upon him our sin in his body on
the cross he suffered the wrath of God
he was separated from God the Father he
cried out my god my god why estelle
forsaken me you see so he did suffer he
did die but not suffering now he came
back it's a life and so forth he seated
at the right hand of God the Father for
the joy set before him he endured the
cross you see so how can that act by one
person for a limited amount of time
somehow pay the penalty to to to release
potentially billions of people from you
know their rightful place in hell it's
who who it was it was Jesus okay so a
little gospel message thrown in there as
we look at this tragic event and so
Matthew goes on in verse number 17 to
say that what then what had been spoken
through Jeremiah the Prophet was
fulfilled or me quotes from Jeremiah and
verse 18 the voice was heard in Ramah
weeping and great morning Rachel weeping
for her children and she refused to be
comforted because they were no more now
that's a little bit of a cryptic
prophecy and you say well what does that
got to do with the fulfillment of the
slaughter of all these innocents there
in Bethlehem and the surrounding regions
well if you know the story of Rachel
course she's a wife of Jacob renamed
Israel as they were making a journey
right in that same area when Rachel was
giving birth to the son who was
ultimately named Benjamin she had tuft
labor and she died in labor and it was
right in Bethlehem Ephrata and it that's
the course contained in Scripture and so
you know is somehow symbolically by her
death and her morning and so forth right
in that area
she's identified with with the city of
the town of Bethlehem and that's what
has happened and all these mothers are
crying for their children okay so yeah
it's cryptic it's vague but it's
explained to us now Jeremiah nailed it
ok but when Herod died behold and aims
of the Lord appeared in the dream to
Joseph and Egypt and said get up take
the child and his mother and go into the
land of visual for those who sought the
child's life or dead and so here's some
verbal guides which you want to talk
about a little bit more next time ok see
you next time
you