The Daily Fountain Devotional of the Church Of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) 3 January 2021 – April Fool!
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Topic: April Fool!
Read: Matthew 2:1-23 (NKJV)
- 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 have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”
- When Herod the king heard [this,] he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
- And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
- So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:
- ‘But you, Bethlehem, [in] the land of Judah, Are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.’ “
- Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared.
- And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found [Him,] bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also.”
- When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.
- When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.
- And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
- Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.
- Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him.”
- When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt,
- and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”
- Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.
- Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:
- “A voice was heard in Ramah, Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping [for] her children, Refusing to be comforted, Because they are no more.”
- But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt,
- saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child’s life are dead.”
- Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.
- But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee.
- And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”
THE MESSAGE:
When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, Herod was greatly disturbed. He was afraid that the new born king would one day take his throne. This is a clear misunderstanding about the reason Christ came into the world. Jesus came into the world to save sinners, and not to take the throne of Herod! Herod falsely told the wise men to not to take search diligently for Christ and tell him so that he would go and worship Him (v.8). However, God having warned them, the wise men did not return to Herod. God therefore made April fool of Herod to protect Jesus. In this New Year, God will give us the revelation and wisdom to escape harms and untimely death.
An angel of God told Joseph in a dream to take the child to Egypt, a country outside the territory of Herod (v.13). Not knowing Jesus had escaped, Herod killed all the boys under 2 years in a bid to kill Jesus. God will protect you at all costs and no weapon formed against you will prosper (Isa. 54:17). But for this to happen, you must remain outside the territory of the enemy. A Christian who lives in sin lives inside the dangerous territory of the enemy! This year, when trouble, diseases and demonic attacks come, God will keep you out of their territory.
PRAYER: Great and awesome God, please keep me under your banner and help me to overcome sin in Jesus’ Name. Amen.
