Jesus | a 4-Day Skate Church Movement Devotionalনমুনা

The birth and life of Jesus

“Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. And when you find Him, come back and tell me so I can go and worship Him, too!” Matthew 2:8

Picture yourself at the skatepark with some homies when someone you haven’t met rolls up. They seem to be cool until you notice they have the same trick selection you have, but their style is better and they can do it bigger. Has this happened to anyone else? You want to be stoked on their tricks, yet at the same time, it’s almost as if you resent them for being like you–or even better than you. They may even seem like a nice guy, but their skill irks you for no good reason! It’s common to feel challenged when we are faced with anything that poses a threat, but how do you respond?

Herod, this governor in the Bible who was considered “King of the Jews,” was known for how great he was because he was willing to showcase his power at every turn and would do anything to maintain that power. One day, some well-off travelers stopped at his place for directions to find the one to be “born King of the Jews.” (Matthew 2:2) This threw him off because he had no clue who they were talking about, since he technically was the king of the Jews. Just like our jealousy went up at the sight of the better skater, Herod’s defenses went up immediately. Herod sought his chief priests to see if they knew anything about this. They told him that there were prophecies that a ruler–the Messiah–would come out of Bethlehem. Herod took this information to the travelers, trying to appear helpful, asking for them to return when they found this child so that he, too, may worship him. What they didn’t know was that he actually planned to murder this child. Thankfully, God came to the travelers in a dream telling them NOT to go back to Herod. Furious at the realization they weren’t coming back, he gave orders to kill every boy who was two years old or younger that lived within the vicinity of Bethlehem. So, who was this child rumored to become king that the current “king” would be willing to ruthlessly murder every young boy just to keep his title?

Jesus was the baby who was on death row for being prophesied as King of the Jews. We know what Herod did with this title, but what did Jesus do? It’s hard to tell you everything He did because of how much He did. One very important thing He did with his God-given power was live in utter humility. Jesus found 12 guys to teach them everything He knew and showed love to each and every one of them. He brought them alongside Him as He spoke the truth of God and performed unbelievable acts like healing the sick, miraculously feeding the hungry, and driving out demons. Jesus even sends these 12 to do the same thing He did. He put all of this time, effort, and love into these guys even though He knew one of them was going to be the reason He died. His disciple, Judas Iscariot, learned under Jesus, ate with Jesus, performed miracles because of Jesus, and then betrayed Jesus. Matthew 26:49-50 says that “Judas came straight to Jesus. ‘Greetings, Rabbi!’ he exclaimed and gave Him the kiss. Jesus said, ‘My friend, go ahead and do what you have come for.”

Herod could not live with the fact that someone else would have his own title, believing that they would replace and possibly kill him, so he did everything in his power to kill them first. But when Jesus met the person He knew would kill Him, He said, “Follow me.” Jesus led him down a path to truth, and when Judas betrayed Him, Jesus still accepted his kiss. I’m not telling you to go kiss your enemies or that guy at the park who is insanely good. But are you able to live in complete humility? Are you going to wait for that skater to fall so you can try to surpass them, or are you willing to ask them to show you how you can improve?

pushing further

1. What is humility?
2. How would your life look if it were lived humbly?
3. Are there areas where you struggle with being humble?