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I haven't written anything since the end of October so I thought I would give some snipits of information that I remember from the past few weeks. I encourage you to give me some points that you remember too. First, in Matthews account of Jesus and the "wise men" called Magi, did you know they were probably priest from Babylonian or Jews from Yemen that studied the stars and had a reputation for the occult, a pagan cult. These were not known to be Christian men but they had listened to the teachings of Daniel and they had heard about the "king of the Jews". They were called to a meeting by Herod, an evil ruler with many enemies, he pretended to want to find the "king of the Jews" so he could worship Him. Very likely it was not just three men but a large group of men along with a small cavalry to protect them as they traveled from Jerusalem to Bethlehem. When they left the meeting they again saw the very bright light that was leading them to Jesus. Not everyone saw this light, only the men that God was leading to the location of Jesus. Upon finding Mary and Jesus the "wise men" were convinced and was converted as believers and they fell down to worship Jesus, this indicates the great respect and they knew they were in the presence of a King. They brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh and they did not return to Herod to betray the location of Jesus. Joseph also moved to Egypt for the safety of his family. God's purpose for His Son required Joseph to listen and obey to his instruction many times during Jesus' life. Next, we find Matthews account of John the Baptist, the herald, the messenger, that came ahead of Jesus. John the Baptist was preaching a simple message saying" Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." When the people came " confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River." John told the believers that " I baptize you with water for repentance." "He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire".
The Holy Spirit referred to the believers identification with the Body of Christ. The baptism with fire signifies the judgment and purifying process to come when Christ returns. Do you know repent means to turn around, to change direction. When we repent we are filled with the Holy Spirit to guide , to teach and comfort us. Baptism is an outward expression of our commitment, a symbol that we belong to Jesus, it signifies the death of our old nature and new birth as we identify with Jesus. When Matthew tells of Jesus being baptized, we see the divine Trinity. The heavens opened and God spoke, the Holy Spirit came upon Jesus and empowered Him for His ministry. The Father spoke, Jesus, the Son was filled with the Holy Spirit. With love and prayer, Ann I am so blessed.