Jesus: the Risen King we need
Daily Scripture
Matthew 2:1-2, Acts 2:22-24, 32-36
Matthew 2
1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in the territory of Judea during the rule of King Herod, magi came from the east to Jerusalem. 2 They asked, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We’ve seen his star in the east, and we’ve come to honor him.”
Acts 2
22 “Fellow Israelites, listen to these words! Jesus the Nazarene was a man whose credentials God proved to you through miracles, wonders, and signs, which God performed through him among you. You yourselves know this. 23 In accordance with God’s established plan and foreknowledge, he was betrayed. You, with the help of wicked men, had Jesus killed by nailing him to a cross. 24 God raised him up! God freed him from death’s dreadful grip, since it was impossible for death to hang on to him.
32 This Jesus God raised up. We are all witnesses to that fact. 33 He was exalted to God’s right side and received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit. He poured out this Spirit, and you are seeing and hearing the results of his having done so. 34 David didn’t ascend into heaven. Yet he says,
The Lord said to my Lord, ‘Sit at my right side,
35 until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet’ [Psalm 110:1]
36 “Therefore, let all Israel know beyond question that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”
Daily Reflection & Prayer
These passages show Jesus as the promised king who drew seekers from afar and the risen Lord whose resurrection proved his divine authority. The magi realized even the infant Jesus’ royal status. To Pentecost crowds in Jerusalem (just 50 days after Passover, when Jesus died on the cross), the apostle Peter starkly laid out the facts: “You had Jesus killed… God raised him up!” Peter’s sermon also invites you to recognize and respond to Jesus as the divine king who defeated even death.
- The Greek word magoi usually meant students of the stars. They were likely from modern Iran, though “from the east” was not specific. Israel was a minor Roman province. No one would expect non-Hebrews to travel far to see, much less worship, a “king of the Jews.” But the magi traveled a great distance hoping to find someone worth honoring. What steps are you willing to take to draw closer to Jesus? What “stars” (signs or guidance) might God use to direct your spiritual journey?
- Some of those in Jerusalem on Pentecost (not all) had likely screamed “Crucify him!” as soldiers beat and bloodied Jesus. They couldn’t go back 50 days and undo those scenes. But if they faced the truth of what they had done, they could choose a different life direction. How does Peter’s call speak to you about ways, aware or unaware, in which your attitudes or actions have hurt others? How does Jesus’ resurrection give you the confidence to lovingly call others to change?
Prayer
King Jesus, I need you to open my eyes, my mind and my heart. Help me see the ways in which division and hatred wound your heart and blight the lives of your children, including mine. Amen.
GPS Insights
Brandon Gregory
Brandon Gregory is a volunteer for the worship and missions teams at Church of the Resurrection. He helps lead worship at Leawood's modern worship services, as well as at the West and Downtown services, and is involved with the Malawi missions team at home.
We do irrational things for many reasons. One of the saddest is a cognitive bias called “sunk cost fallacy” where someone continues to spend time and effort on something not because it’s right but because they’ve already spent so much time and effort on it. Admitting they were wrong becomes increasingly harder as they go further down that path. It’s easier to think of ourselves as martyrs than fools. It’s easier to take one more step than to admit we’ve been walking in the wrong direction for several miles.
Peter’s message to fellow Israelites addresses this problem. We rarely draw inspiration from the people who crucified Jesus, but their courage in admitting they were wrong is how the gospel took root. Peter doesn’t ignore the problem or absolve them of their part in it—he asks them to change. And they do. Many of the early Christians were people who had called for Christ’s death, but they didn’t let guilt stop them from doing the right thing.
The other side of this is Peter’s response to those people. His invitation to Passover worshippers, including some who had hurt him, was full of grace and love—unlike how many of us respond to those we know have stubbornly made wrong decisions. Peter’s message was that no matter what others had done and how they had worked against his cause, there was a spot for them if they wanted it.
The dichotomy of this relationship and invitation shows up in our lives constantly if we look for it. Sometimes we’re the Israelites who made the wrong choice and find it hard to admit we were wrong; sometimes we’re Peter and have to extend the invitation to the people who were wrong. And sometimes the other party, playing either the Israelites or Peter, doesn’t respond in the way they should. Rifts like this can be hard to mend. Jesus bridged this seemingly impossible gap and invited both sides to respond with grace and love.
The nature of cognitive biases makes them hard for us to spot—they develop because it’s easier for us to think about them than the truth. We all want to think of ourselves as basically good people and it can feel cathartic to think of our opponents as bad people. Where there are hurt people in our lives–family, friends, or casual acquaintances—a disagreement like the one Peter addressed may be at the root. Sometimes we need to be an Israelite and sometimes we need to be a Peter. Sometimes we need to be both. But being willing to make the first step, even if the other party isn’t, is the beginning of healing and unity.
