Ruler, King, Shepherd

To “behold” something is different than to merely just “see” it. It goes beyond the mere collection of facts or the observation of an event and speaks into the soul, prompting a response as a catalyst to action. To put it another way, it is an invitational moment established by God where the seeing and implication of what’s being seen, go hand in hand. In the story of the Magi or wise men, we see two behold moments happen, but with different responses to them. The Magi not only observed the moment, but understood the implication of the observation as Jesus as King, Ruler, Shepherd and were willing to make the journey because of it. Herod was presented with his own behold moment, a moment loaded with the same implications, but was unwilling to make the journey, refusing to be ruled by any other King and seeking instead to kill the Behold of God. In the end he fails, but the challenge is there for us to observe today. Will we just be mere stargazers unwilling to do anything else but observe? Will we be like Herod and try to kill the story in our hearts? Or will we be like the wise men who embraced the behold moment, full of all its implications, and respond with worship. Thanks for joining us today! For more information and resources, visit www.crosstownechurch.com or download our free app! Search "Crosstowne" in your app store.