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Can you hear the HISS?  (Session #5 / Pg. #1)

— Today we look at Satan’s efforts to stop the Savior of the world by trying to slay Him.

(I invite you to a self-examination, to see if you can discern the spirit manipulating this attack.)

Our Bible account comes from Matthew 2:1-15 (ESV) 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,  (2)  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.”  (3)  When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him;  (4)  and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.  (5)  They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet:  (6)  “‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’”  (7)  Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared.  (8)  And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.”  (9)  After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was.  (10)  When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.  (11)  And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.  (12)  And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.  (13)  Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.”  (14)  And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt  (15)  and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

 

Your spiritual hearing test begins in…

Matthew 2:1-3… 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,  (2)  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.”  (3)  When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him;

— Why do you think the people, as well as king Herod, would be upset at the news of an unknown child being born there as a future King of the Jews? (From Vs.3)

The faint troubling sound of the HISS of a serpent is to be heard in the background here.

— Mankind, including Herod, his supporters, and the like, are already being motivated by a spirit of Satan to object to anyone who would upset their comfort zone. Which is that they had authority and power over the Jewish people, given to them here by their Roman conquerors.

— Can you hear the serpent awakening?

 Can you hear the HISS?  (Session #5 / Pg. #2)

 If you are listening, the snake’s rattle becomes louder in…

Matthew 2:4-8… and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.  (5)  They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet:  (6)  “‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’”  (7)  Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared.  (8)  And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.”

— Even if you were unaware of the life and actions of king Herod, a truly terrible legacy of cruelty… You should be sensing that his promise to go and worship this unknown future crown-taker is a blatant lie.

— What does your discernment tell you he would be looking to do to this authority usurper?

— Is Satan’s HISS growing louder?

We find out who is the one who always warns us of the snake’s attack, if we are listening, in…

Matthew 2:9-12… After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. (10) When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.  (11)  And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.  (12)  And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.

I have a couple of interesting thoughts to examine from this text…

1/ I look right past any debate about what that ‘STAR’ was, for a God who set the universe expanding into space can surely place a bright light in the sky, by any means He sees fit, to move, reappear, stop, or move on at His will.
— Forces that wish to distract us from God’s intended message will draw us to such meaningless arguments.

2/ I do like to ponder at how these ‘wise men’ found the proper address of the baby Jesus…
For we can rightly assume, Joseph, Mary and the baby, had moved from the stable into a house, as a proper reading of scripture maintains that a span of time had elapsed since the birth in the manger. (This could have been up to two years later.)
— A reasonable answer to how to find the right child, recently born in Bethlehem, would be that the townsfolk would have heard about the incredible rumors started by those excited shepherds, that angels had appeared to them and told that the baby, named Jesus, was to be a future ruler in Israel.
— If asked, they may well have said where this rumored child now lived, with his parents.

3/ However, the important point here is, that after finding Jesus and giving their spiritually significant gifts in worship to this newborn King, these wise men were warned by God to sneak out of the country, purposely avoiding fulfilling Herod’s request of reporting to him who this newborn King was.

— If we are listening we pick up the sound of the serpent rustling through the tall grass, seeking his infant victim.

Can you hear the HISS?  (Session #5 / Pg. #3)

 Continuing in Matthew 2:13-15… Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.”  (14)  And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt  (15)  and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

— Just as when that serpent of old set out to destroy Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, here we find him again seeking to destroy God’s plan for the salvation of their descendants.

— The eternal Good News is that God had a plan for the redemption of man/womankind before their fall, and He is always at least one step ahead of Satan. (We should take heart in the knowledge that God remains the superior and the defeater of Satan today.)

— Yes, Satan still moves through the evil intentions of his deceived servants, like Herod, but God always has an escape for those who belong to Him. (This may be through taking them home in death, as many martyrs testify, but God’s eternal plan can never be changed by Satan’s attacks.)

SEE Vs. (14-15)  And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

— Are you facing threats from that serpent Satan?

— What is your response going to be?

If we give into a frozen fear, he will be able to overcome and defeat us, like a snake will swallow it’s victim. However, if we listen to the Holy Spirit which indwells every born again believer, God will show us the way to defeat Satan’s lies. If you turn to follow God’s instructions (as Joseph did) God will show you the path to victory.

If you are reading this and have not yet chosen to be a follower of Jesus, you should take His advice that He gave to Nicodemus, and choose to become a born-again believer (Find a Bible and read John 3:1-21.)

— This is how God gives us spiritual ears to hear and understand both Satan’s attacks and the way to defeat him.

As you read this, did you hear his HISS?
SEE Ephesians 6:12 Our fight is not against people on earth. We are fighting against the rulers and authorities and the powers of this world’s darkness. We are fighting against the spiritual powers of evil in the heavenly places.

If you heard the HISS, that is excellent… For you have the power given by God Himself, through His Holy Spirit, to defeat every attack. – And may I pray God’s blessings and protection for you and yours in the New Year? (If you wish us to pray for you, fill out our comments form. I will keep it very private, and it will not go any further than my wife and myself in our prayer times.)

If you desire to know more about being ‘born-again’, you should also use the comments form adding a contact (email or other contact service) so I can give you further information on how we receive this spiritual New Birth. (I will not pursue you or ask anything of you, unless you specifically ask to be added to our contact lists.)

May God bless you and continue to quicken our spiritual hearing… (KRK)