This is the season when we come together to celebrate the birth of our wonderful Saviour, but this is also the age of His second coming when we can see great changes within a short span of time — and thus it is more the case that we need to come forward and serve, to spread the gospel especially to the younger generation, and share with them God’s plan for His children who are created in His own image, and His promise of eternal life to all who believe in Him. Because of our rebellious nature and sins, no one can say he is not a sinner, thus the more we, who have received the glorious salvation, should sing praises unto Him in this age of unbelief and apostasy. 

Matthew 2:1-11 is set in the reign of King Herod the Great, a tyrant who killed many people including his own wife as well as babies. It was troubled times but it was also in this context that we see the birth of Jesus. 

We see two different sets of people here, one being King Herod and his followers; and the other, the three wise men. The three wise men had studied the stars and saw that our Saviour was born in Judea and they followed all the way to Bethlehem. From here, we can see the power of God descending on them and also upon us — once we have believed, our hearts and minds get transformed, leading us to His kingdom. 

It saddens us to hear people saying that every religion is the same. Which religion tells us that God sent his Son to be crucified, died and on the third day rose again? Which religion calls on all people of the world to come unto God and promises them eternal life?  There is only one God. 

What the wise men saw was more than a star — it was the glory of God that shone brightly in the form of a star, and the good news is God is everywhere. On every Lord’s Day, we should come and worship Him and offer Him our best — our heartfelt adoration, knowing that Jesus is the King of kings and the Lord of lords, the author and finisher of our faith, and asking Him to grant us the grace to trust Him and serve Him. This is a great challenge especially to our young people. Instead of being moved by worldly things, we should be moved by the spirit of God and the power of His Word. 

He fully understands us, and in difficult times we can also experience the peace of God. May we from this day feel God’s mighty hand in our lives and pray for the grace of God to help us adore and praise Him and to bring us closer to Him so that we can lead godly lives, experiencing Him everyday in great joy. We do at times face trials and chastisement but do be assured that God always loves us. Even in periods of darkness in human history like that of Herod, we can see how God works and also see how man needs to be reconciled with God. 

At times when we find ourselves losing our desire for God, pray and ask for His grace to transform us — our salvation is not the result of even one ounce of our human strength, but through the substitutionary death of Christ and through God’s grace which saves us from eternal condemnation and grants us eternal life. 

We are given a soul unlike the animals; the beauty of nature tells us of the grace of our Creator; we are wonderfully designed in His image. Let us renew our strength and experience the wonderful grace of God. Let us live each day in great joy, shining to our neighbours and everywhere we go, for every day is a day of grace. Amen.