Christmas Devotional 12: How Much of Christ’s Light do you Need?

Matthew 2:1-9; Matthew 4:16

A typical attitude when a person is diagnosed with cancer is, “I’m not going to let cancer get in the way of my life.” It might sound like this… “If what I usually do is wake up and make breakfast for my kids and drive them to school, do you know what I’m doing tomorrow? I’m making breakfast for my kids and driving them to school!”

As a counselor, I have to tell you that’s a pretty good attitude to have, and it works- right up until it doesn’t. Somewhere on your cancer walk- maybe after a procedure, or chemo number three or four- there’s a morning you can’t make breakfast for your kids or drive them to school. Or maybe it’s a day when as hard as you try, you cannot push thoughts of your next scan out of your head. There are days you understand why people say cancer is a battle.

We’re human, so there are days when the darkness can creep in, making Christ harder to see- even at Christmas time. Did you know that there was a BIG GLOB of darkness at the first Christmas? It’s true. It’s name was King Herod.

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi[a] from the east came to Jerusalem 2 and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” 3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: 6 “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’[b]” 7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.” 9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.. Matthew 2:1-9

Using the verses above, complete these questions:

1. Who did the wise men say they were looking for? vs 2 “the one who was born ________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________.”

2. King Herod was disturbed. Who else was disturbed? vs 3 ____________ _________________________________________________________________

3. Why did Herod say that he wanted to go see the child? “…come back and tell me so that I can go and ____________________________________ _____________________________________________________________, too!”

At first reading, Herod doesn’t look too dark, but here’s a little of his backstory:

• Jesus was not the only person in His time to be known as the King of the Jews. Herod was, too, but Herod was not legit. He was a puppet-king appointed by Caesar in Rome. Caesar happened to have an army occupying and ruling Israel.

• You see in the verses that “everyone in Jerusalem” was disturbed. With good reason- you might say that “If Herod ain’t happy, ain’t nobody’s happy.” Herod was wildly paranoid. Tormented by fears of assassination, he killed many family members, including three sons and one of his wives.

So, when the wise men start asking around about where is this king of the Jews, crazy paranoid King Herod must have flipped. “He’s not the King of the Jews. I’m the king of the Jews!!!”

This is where the star led the wise men. They followed the star to worship the Messiah, and along the way the star made a pit stop at a crazy guy’s palace.

Did the star get it wrong? Did God lead them to the wrong place?

Let’s look at another verse. Seven hundred years before Jesus was born, the prophet Isaiah said this of the coming Messiah:

the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.” Matthew 4:16

Do you think that by meeting Herod, the wise men saw Jesus in a new way? Does darkness help us see the light? If you light a candle outside on a sunny day, then take the same candle inside a closed closet, where does it shine brighter?

Each of us prefer to gaze at Jesus from a place of blessings, joy and light, but perhaps we see His vibrance most clearly when we are sitting in the darkness. Cancer journeys seem to always have some amount of darkness.

A temptation as Christians can be to deny the darkness of cancer.

• Deny the days of frustration when you can’t do what you used to be able to do.

• Deny the loneliness of those around you not understanding.

• Deny the worries, stress and fears that come with prolonged illness.

The question becomes: how much of Christ’s light do you need? In the midst of the darkness of your cancer, you can kneel at the feet of Jesus and say, “I’m good. Thanks.” Or, you can say, “The darkness is pushing on me and bringing frustrations, loneliness, stress, and fear. Please Christ, I know you have conquered this darkness, so please shine your light on all this and bring me relief.” In this prayer, you have acknowledged the darkness, so you may watch His light push back the darkness- even the darkness of cancer. How much of Christ’s light does each of us need? As much as we can soak up! Why? Answered prayers build faith. And these answered prayers, when we place the darkness at Christ’s feet- these are the prayers that leave us with more than renewed faith. They leave us in awe.

Lord you are so good, You shower us with blessings and light and love and you call us to come to you. Let us overcome our hesitancy to humble ourselves before you and acknowledge the hard things that are pressing on our lives. You do not ask us to use our own strength on this cancer journey but to use your strength. Continue to push back the darkness and flood our lives on each new day with your light. In your Son’s name I pray, AMEN.

1. The First Christmas: A True and Unfamiliar Story Paul L. Maier p. 62-66

2. The First Christmas: A True and Unfamiliar Story Paul L. Maier p. 62-66

3. https://biblehub.com/timeline