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Then Herod sent for the wise men [astrologers] secretly, and accurately to the last point ascertained from them the time of the appearing of the star [that is, how long the star had made itself visible since its rising in the east].
Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, Go and search for the Child carefully and diligently, and when you have found Him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship Him.
When they had listened to the king, they went their way, and behold, the star which had been seen in the east in its rising went before them until it came and stood over the place where the young Child was.
When they saw the star, they were thrilled with ecstatic joy.
And on going into the house, they saw the Child with Mary His mother, and they fell down and worshiped Him. Then opening their treasure bags, they presented to Him gifts–gold and frankincense and myrrh.
And receiving an answer to their asking, they were divinely instructed and warned in a dream not to go back to Herod; so they departed to their own country by a different way.
Now after they had gone, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, Get up! [Tenderly] take unto you the young Child and His mother and flee to Egypt; and remain there till I tell you [otherwise], for Herod intends to search for the Child in order to destroy Him.
And having risen, he took the Child and His mother by night and withdrew to Egypt
And remained there until Herod’s death. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, Out of Egypt have I called My Son.
Then Herod, when he realized that he had been misled by the wise men, was furiously enraged, and he sent and put to death all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that territory who were two years old and under, reckoning according to the date which he had investigated diligently and had learned exactly from the wise men.
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The wise men asked King Herod “Where is the one born King of the Jews?” I read it like this “Where is the one born to take your place?” and then again “Where is the One born to dethrone you?”
This angered Herod because he faced the reality that his time was up. When he called the chief scribes together to search the scriptures, they indeed found it to be true.
But none knew WHO or WHERE He was. King Herod had to kill ALL those two years old and under.
It is written in the heavens when we are born into the Kingdom of God, who we are, and some who are wise are able to see the plan of God for us.
But our enemy cannot see what it is. He makes diligent search in order to take out the one who now has the Spirit of Christ within.
In my case, the Lord was going to fill my heart with stories; real life stories of the Kingdom, of healings, of raising the dead, of resting upon His chest; I would tell of the King, the Prince of Peace, and I would share that I am His Princess. He would fill my heart with stories and psalms and songs of redemption, and deliverance and that when others heard these stories, they would get a glimpse of their own role within them and meet the Author of these stories.
But who would believe one who had a 13-year hallucinogenic history? My enemy was set on turning these stories into nothing more than fairy tales.
And if I believed the lie, I would not tell them.
Hebrews 12: 1, 2 Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
He revealed Himself as “Author and Perfector of My Faith.” He wrote my story in the heavens. Some who were wise saw this and prophesied this into my life. I caught it. As an Author writes a story, He already knows the beginning and the end. He creates the characters, the drama, the comedy, the mystery. He has created me after His heart because even though this is a story about me, it isn’t really. For every book that is written, the Author is the one studied.
People want to know what was on the heart of the Author. What is on the heart of the main character is secondary.
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If we question why our hardships, rather than question why the specific manner the enemy had chosen when he targeted us, then we will be unable to see the fullness of our purpose in Him, and our High call, and miss many opportunities to dethrone the adversary in our lives and those we pray for.
But, if you can see Jesus in your story, and re-read it now from beginning to end, you will come face to face with the Author and Perfector of your faith. And you will see clearly why the devil chose the way he chose to take you out. He had a well-crafted strategy.
Christ came was to destroy the works of satan and you and I have parts to play in the sequel to The Greatest Story Ever Told.
King Herod was jealous of King Jesus (even though he was two years old) and he knew his time was short.
Storyteller
Sitting alone in a cluttered room
Endlessly searching for words
To grace the pages
Of an unforgiving past
An unsure present
And a hopeful future
Shhhhhhh! Soul! Be quiet!
I am a story so beautifully written
And Love is my Storyteller
I started this poem in the kingdom of darkness and ended it in the Kingdom of Light.
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