Following a Star but Finding a Shack

The tree is still up, but it looks mighty empty underneath. There may be some leftovers still lurking in refrigerator but they probably need to get thrown away now. Those family members that you only see through the holidays are gone back home, not to be seen for another year.

All of the excitement that had built in the weeks leading up to Christmas and now it’s over.

Life has gone back to normal or as normal as it can be for some of us. And many of us suffer from the post-Christmas blues – a kind of depressions after all the anticipation, waiting and buildup for the big day.

Have you ever noticed how life doesn’t always turn out the way we plan it? We look at our lives, we make our plans, and we chart the course we want our life to take. Yet, there are times when life just doesn’t play fair.

I made plans for the future when I was younger. I was going to be a lawyer. I was going to be a rock star. I was going to write a best-selling book. I was going to change the world.

And the next thing you know, you find yourself working at a meaningless, monotonous job, in a pointless career where your only hope is somehow making it to a point where you can retire and just sit back and relax.

There are times when life refuses to follow our plans. There are times it seems that life is nothing more than a series of shattered and broken dreams. But, listen to me, that is just how life appears.

One of the lessons that presents itself in our passage for this morning is the truth that life is a divine adventure. The story of the wise men teaches us the profound truth that God’s hand is always on the steering wheel of our lives. That isn’t just some cute or clever saying; that is the clear truth from the word of God.

David writes in:

Psalm 37:23 ESV

The steps of a man are established by the Lord, when he delights in his way;

The men who are mentioned in this passage, who have become known as the Wise Men, had spent about two years following a star. This is made clear by verses 7 and 16. We normally say that there were three of them but that’s just an assumption based on the number of gifts. The only thing we do know is that there was more than one.

In order to follow this star, these men had left their homes, families, and professions behind. They had left their home country and were living as pilgrims. Along the way, these men would have faced perils, obstacles, hardships and deprivations. Their path even led them into the presence of wicked King Herod.

When they finally arrive at their destination, they found that the star they had been following had stopped over a humble little house. No doubt these men probably dreamed of finding the King of the Jews in a palace. This probably explains why they went to see King Herod first!

They expected luxury, all the trappings of royalty and a very nice home. What they found certainly did not match their dreams.

They found the King of Kings living in the home of a peasant. The house they found that night was probably nothing more than what we would think of as a shack! No doubt all their lofty dreams shattered before them and crumbled at their feet like so much dust.

Yet, amid the rubble of their torn and twisted dreams, these wise men encountered something in that humble setting that changed their lives.

Sometimes life has a way of shattering our dreams and destroying our hopes and plans.

This morning, I want us to see how these wise men responded when they were following a star but found a shack.

Let’s pray and we’ll read our text for today.

Pray!

Matthew 2:1–12 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, 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.” When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet: “ ‘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.’ ” Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. 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.” 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. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. 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. And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.

There are three characteristics displayed by the wise men that that can help us when life refuses to play by our rules.

The first is:

Wise men see God in the shacks of life

The setting was nothing like they imagined, but they had traveled all that way to worship the Messiah and worship Him they did! When those powerful, wealthy, educated, worldly-wise men entered that house, they were expecting to see a King. What they saw instead was a small child. Still, they humbled themselves and bowed before that child in a shack. Those men saw something that others around them had failed to see. Those men saw God in that shack! When those men looked at that child named Jesus, they saw God.

You need to understand the truth that there will be times when your star leads you to a shack. When life shatters your dreams, the first order of business should be finding the Lord. If you are His, then nothing happens in your life that He has not allowed.

And when it happens (and it will) when your star leads you into a shack, remember that God is doing one of three things:

correction

There are times when we find ourselves in shacks and it’s the result of our sins. We fail the Lord and there is a price to pay when we do not repent of our sin. When we are in that condition, the Lord sends us into a storm of correction. He uses the rod to teach us discipline and obedience. This is not His anger on display. It is His abundant love for His children in action!

instruction

There are times when the Lord allows us to go into a shack situation because He is trying to reveal Himself to us in a new way. No matter how things look to us, God controls all the circumstances of our lives,

Romans 8:28 ESV

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

God uses various teaching tools to help us grow. In one chapter alone, the Lord used three separate classrooms to teach His disciples. In the sixth chapter of John’s gospel, he used

Hunger

– when He fed the five thousand

Storms

– when He walked on water during a storm

Fear

– His disciples were frightened when they saw Him

God has many more tools that He uses to teach us at His disposal. He uses loneliness, weakness, grief, suffering, pain, emotional hurts, persecution, anger, and a thousand other things to train His children.

Think about Israel and all the trials they faced: threats from the Egyptians, the Red Sea, thirst, hunger, invaders and enemies. And they survived. If they had never faced all the things that had, they would have never known the truth that God could see them through it all.

He did the same thing with the disciples. He will do the same thing with us. He sends us into the shacks of life to teach us that He is an all-sufficient; all-powerful; all-knowing, Sovereign God!

In John chapter 4, the men of Samaria didn’t just believe because of the testimony of the woman that Jesus spoke to at the well. They believed because they had experienced it themselves.

Think of all the lessons God has taught you during your own times of difficulties, disappointment and pain.

perfection

He is in the process of molding you and reshaping you into His image. God desires that every one of His children be a vessel that He can use. He has chosen you to be a vessel and He is constantly in the process of getting you ready for greater and greater service to Him!

Think about Moses. He couldn’t have ever led the Israelites until he had first led and tended those sheep in the desert.

Someone has said, “What doesn’t kill you can only make you stronger!”

There is a lot of truth in that statement. God uses all the hurts, setbacks, and disappointments of life to develop us into the servants He wants us to be. I can tell you for a fact that my faith is deeper and that my determination is stronger than ever because of the valleys the Lord has led me through.

When your star leads to a shack, look for God; He will be there because He is there! When you find Him, you will find His purpose in your predicament.

Wise men see God in the shacks of life.

Wise men give gifts in the shacks of life

Think about it for a minute.

It would have been so easy for these men to just turn around, pack up everything they had and go home. We must have made a wrong turn somewhere. Sorry to have bothered you. Who would blame them? I sure wouldn’t. It hadn’t turned out like they had planned. They had gone on this long journey to find a king living in a palace; instead they found a young child living in a shack.

But they didn’t turn around! They gave to the child Jesus the worship was rightfully His.

Let’s spend a minute unwrapping the gifts that they gave Him and how necessary that they were.

gold

The gold reminds us that Jesus is our King.

In some countries, no one could approach a king without a gift. Gold is a gift that would be presented to a king because it was the most precious and valuable metal of their day. These men had come in search of the king of the Jews.

When they found the child, they didn’t cuddle him. They didn’t play games with him. These wise men bent the knee and worshipped because they recognized the truth that this child was the king. He is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. They understood that this small child deserved their submission.

The question for us then is this: are we ready to offer Him the submission that is due Him?

They brought gold and:

frankincense

The frankincense shows us that Jesus is our High Priest. Frankincense is substance that comes from making cuts in a certain kind of tree and has a sweet smell. It was used to make incense for worship at the temple. Incense was offered to God. It was a fragrance that rose to God. Exodus 30 tells us, “the incense is for God, not the people” and in Ezekiel 16:18 God says, it’s my incense. Frankincense reminds us that He is God.

The brought gold, frankincense and:

myrrh

The myrrh reminds us that Jesus is our sacrifice. Myrrh comes from a little tiny tree in Arabia and is used to make a really nice perfume. In Esther 2, when Esther was getting all beautified for six months to go before the king, she used myrrh to smell nice. Myrrh was also used to in preparing a body for burial. Jesus was our sacrifice and this child had been born into this world only to give His life on a Roman cross. Myrrh reminds us that He was also a man.

When your star leads you to a shack, that is the time to give back to the Lord! When most people find themselves in those shack times of life, they start holding on to what they have and that is the wrong response.

Now, I’m not just talking about giving your money. It is important that we continue to give of our treasures to the Lord’s work. But it’s just as important that we give of our time and talents as well. We are meant to give Him all the things that He deserves because of who He is and because of what He has done for us

These wise men received back far more than they gave away and that is always the way it is with God. No one can ever out give Him. Now, not many people try to do it but those who do find Him to overabundant in His supply.

The surest way to get a blessing is to be a blessing!

When you find yourself in a time of mystery, pain or hardship; when it seems like you have gone so far off course that there is no turning back; when you went looking for a palace and find yourself in a shack, the last thing you need to do is to turn into yourself.

That’s what most people do. The become self-centered and do everything that they can to insulate and protect themselves from experiencing further pain and loss.

The proper response to the curveballs of life is not to turn in; it is to turn out! It is to look for ways to give back to the Lord Who has given us everything. Even when your star leads you to a shack, it doesn’t signal the end of God’s blessings on your life. It signals the opportunity for service. God brought you to that low place so that He can display His grace through you, and get glory from you, as you continue to faithfully serve Him, even in a time of disappointment!

Wise men see God in the shacks of life. Wise men give gifts in the shacks of life and:

Wise men find grace in the shacks of life

When you think about what happened, these wise men experienced grace when they were in the presence of Christ. God saved them and redirected their lives. He led them down a different path than the one that they were on. Grace led them away from certain death at the hands of evil king Herod.

They found grace in the shacks of life.

And when our star leads us to a shack, we can expect to find God’s grace in our hour of need.

Let’s face the truth. Life isn’t always fair. Life doesn’t always turn out the way that we think it should. But even when life let’s us down, you need to remember that God never will. You can be sure of that!

When our star leads to a shack, we can be sure that God will provide grace sufficient for that setback that we are experiencing.

When the apostle Paul was suffering from a thorn in his flesh that prayed repeatedly to be taken away from him, how did the Lord respond?

2 Corinthians 12:9 ESV

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

His grace is more than enough to get you through the shacks of life. His grace is more than enough to get your through whatever life throws your way. If you are surrendered to His leadership and guidance, you can trust Him to reveal the next steps that we should take. He will guide us in His perfect path, day by day and step by step.

As God’s children, we are never alone and we are never without His direction. He will always make a way for us and support us through all the shacks of life!

Have you ever been following a star, expecting to arrive at a fine palace, but instead, you wound up in a shack, surrounded by the debris of your shattered hopes and dreams? Maybe you are there right now. If you are, let me tell you that Jesus is at work in your shack. He has a plan, and He is concerned about your need.

Why don’t you do what the wise men did?

· Just fall down before Him and worship Him.

· Just keep on giving to Him and others, even when it seems that all your resources are gone.

· Just keep holding to His hand, leaning on His grace and walking the path He sets before you day by day.