An Invitation to Worship
“What are you seeking after? What is your heart devoted to? If it is only you and your plans for your life, you’re going to have a heart like Herod’s. But if you will seek after Christ and choose to worship Him as your King, you will become like the wise men.” – Tony Walliser
Read Matthew 2:1-12d
An Invitation to Worship
Invitations. We all get them. But there are invitations – and then there are INVITATIONS.
You’ve probably gotten at least one invitation in the mail offering a free meal at a local restaurant in exchange for listening to some kind of sales presentation, maybe a financial advisor or retirement planner. Perhaps some charitable organization invites you to a dinner where testimonials are given, hoping to motivate you to support their mission. Those may or may not pique your interest.
Then there are other kinds of invitations. Such as to participate in the wedding of a beloved family member. Or to attend a good friend’s milestone surprise birthday party, or another happy celebration. Those are certainly more appealing.
But imagine being personally invited to attend a special gathering at the White House. Or to go backstage after a concert to meet someone like Reba McEntire or George Strait (if you’re a country music fan), or members of a popular Christian band like for King & Country or Casting Crowns. Or your favorite actor or actress was in town to film some scenes for a movie and you received an invitation for a private dinner with him or her. Wouldn’t that be cool?
In the second chapter of the gospel of Matthew, we read about wise men – often referred to as the Magi – receiving such an invitation. It was from King Herod of Judea. Can you imagine what they were thinking? They’d just arrived in Jerusalem after a very long journey, determined to locate and worship the prophesied “king of the Jews.” Suddenly, for no apparent reason, the king wanted to meet with them. Talk about a royal welcome!
The problem was, Herod didn’t extend the invitation hoping to draw from their wisdom or enjoy the company of out-of-town visitors. He’d also heard about a baby to born in the town of Bethlehem who was to be the king of the Jews. His advisors had suggested the Magi might know exactly where the infant could be found – and he definitely needed to know. In Herod’s kingdom there was room for only one king.
Herod’s encounter with the Magi conjures up images of conniving TV villains. After hearing from them, he slyly said, “Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.” But worship was the last thing on his mind. He perceived a threat to his power and position, and that threat needed to be eliminated.
The wise men did find the baby Jesus and were overjoyed. Their travels had been more than worth the time, effort, and expense. Worship they did, offering lavish gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. However, in a dream they were warned of Herod’s scheming, so they left via a different route. The uninvited king’s evil plans were thwarted.
As we read this biblical account and see the strikingly different responses to the arrival of Jesus, we’re reminded that this Christmas season we’re receiving an invitation – the most wondrous, most special invitation of all time.
We might not be “wise men.” Our resumes and obituaries won’t identify us as Magi. But Jesus offers us an invitation just the same. How we respond makes all the difference in time and eternity.
In Revelation 3:20 we see Jesus standing outside a door. It represents the door to our hearts. He declares, “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with Me.” The tables are turned here: Jesus is inviting Himself in – are we willing to open the door and let Him enter?
For some, this “inside-out” invitation is to ask Jesus to come into their life for the first time, repenting of sin and receiving the gift of salvation and eternal life, as described in John 1:12 and Romans 6:23. For others among us, the invitation is different. Jesus has been invited in, but He only has access to some of the rooms. Some places in our hearts are off limits to Him. Our devotion to the Lord is half-hearted.
Jesus doesn’t want part of us, some of the time. He wants all of us, all of the time – 24/7, 365.
We don’t know what happened to the Magi after they had seen and worshiped the Christ Child. But they must have been deeply, profoundly, and permanently changed – even transformed. As another Christmas rapidly approaches, this would be the perfect time for the same thing to happen to you if it hasn’t already.
When the lowly shepherds in the fields were blessed by the appearance of angels informing them, “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord,” they jumped at the invitation. They said, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened…” (Luke 2:11-15).
Jesus is knocking at the door of each of our hearts today. To some He’s saying, ‘Receive Me.’ To others His invitation is, “Go deeper with Me.” Will you accept His invitation today?