Two Ways, Two Kings

Chapters

• 0:00 Choice Overload Sets The Stage
• 4:28 Two Ways: The Biblical Lens
• 8:45 Psalm 1: The Way Of The Righteous
• 12:15 Psalm 2: Kings Versus Messiah
• 17:00 Caesar And Herod Meet The Manger
• 22:10 Hope, Peace, Joy, Love Reframed
• 26:20 Modern Power And Misplaced Allegiance
• 30:10 Practicing The Way Of Jesus

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:01

Well, good morning and Merry Christmas. It's great to be with you. My name is Mac. I'm one of the pastors on our team. I know there's a number of people who are at home right now with sickness and illness, and so they're tuning in. I want to welcome you, wish you a Merry Christmas as well. Thanks for tuning in. So one of the things that I seriously loathe, like I absolutely cannot stand, is going to the grocery store. The main reason why is because I can never find what it is that I'm looking for. Um so I'm the guy who has to do like multiple laps around the perimeter hunting for the right aisle, and I'm always in a hurry, so I look like one of those people who works out at the mall speedwalking, you know, it's just so embarrassing. And then when I finally find the aisle that I'm uh looking for and I get to the section, um, it's so overwhelming because there's so many choices. You guys know what I'm talking about? Let me give you just one example uh toothpaste. Okay, the average grocery store carries 75 different kinds of toothpaste. You guys, that's overwhelmingly unnecessary. That is overload. There's of course different brands. There's Colgate and Crest, you know, Sensodyne Tons. There's all these different brands. Who knows which one is best? There's different functions. There's whitening toothpaste, enamel protecting toothpaste, cavity-fighting toothpaste, toothpaste if you have sensitive teeth. There's all these different functions. There's different ingredients. There's fluoride, toothpaste, non-fluoride, there's even toothpaste with charcoal in it. There's different flavors and sizes, some for kids, some for adults. I mean, look at that picture and tell me it's not overwhelming. You guys know, right? I mean, in my opinion, the toothpaste aisle at the grocery store is less about dental care and it's become like a personality assessment type thing that could lead to an identity crisis. Patty, you know what I'm talking about. Like, I thought I was a fluoride person, but now I'm not sure who am I, right? And here's the worst part is I stand in the aisle and like none of these appeal to me. That's the worst part. There's 75 options, and I don't need glacier Arctic blast with, you know, charcoal-infused crystals harvested from a Hawaiian volcano. Like you're just trying too hard. Just keep it simple. This is just one example. Okay? Every aisle in the grocery store is like this. You're bombarded with choices. The average growth grocery store carries 150 different kinds of breakfast cereal. Same thing, different brands, different ingredients, some for kids, some for adults. It's overwhelming. Uh 70 different kinds of granola bars, somewhere between 25 and 40 different kinds of milk. When I first thought of it, I was like, that can't be right. And I was like, oh, yep, there it is. You got soy milk and almond milk, oat milk, uh skim milk, 1%, 2%, 8%. Like, it just keeps going, right? My point is that we live in a world that multiplies options endlessly. Right now, if you were to go if you were to go to Starbucks and order a drink, guess how many combinations there are for you to choose from? This number will blow your mind. The answer is 170,000. When you think about all the different kinds of syrups, all the different types of milk, the difference, all of it, you could literally, a hundred and seventy thousand different possible combinations you can choose from. And it's not just the grocery store and coffee, this is every area of life. So, you know, what what music platform are you gonna stream from? Is it Spotify or is it Apple Music? Where do you get your TV from? Is it Hulu or Peacock or Netflix? Right? What what do you do for your diet? Is it the zone diet, a carnivore, paleo? Like what kind of exercise do you do? This is why you have to be careful when you go on Amazon, because you can lose yourself for like three hours just looking at reviews of all the different options. We live in a world that multiplies options endlessly. And I'm convinced this isn't making our lives easier, it's making our lives way more complicated. We experience choice overload and decision paralysis. We don't know which choice to choose, and we don't know which direction to go. We have too many options. Now here's the good news, at least it's good news to me, is that the the Bible has a way of cutting through all the clutter. We live in a world that multiplies options endlessly. It's not helpful, it's unhelpful. We often feel uh paralyzed not knowing which direction to go. But see, the Bible has a way of cutting through all the options, cutting through all the noise. And it says that underneath all the options that we're bombarded with, there's really just two. There's really just two choices, two ways to live, two trajectories, two paths. There's ultimately only two. If you were part of our community over this last, well, probably 70 years, we did a deep dive into the Sermon on the Mount, it took forever. Um, but you might remember that we uh talked about the two-ways tradition, right? Because this is how Jesus closes the Sermon on the Mount by drawing on this two-way tradition, and what he's doing is he boils all the options down to two choices, to emphasize the choice before us. And so you'll remember he talks about two different ways: one that's broad, one that's narrow, two different types of trees, one that bears good fruit, one that bears bad fruit, two different types of houses, one that is built on the rock, another one that is built on the sand, all to emphasize, choose the right way. At the center of the New Testament is an invitation to make Jesus' way your way, to make Jesus the Lord of your life, and the way you live that out is by taking on Jesus' way in the world. This is why Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. This is why the very first followers of Jesus, before they were even called Christians, were called followers of the way, six times in the book of Acts. It's why out in our foyer we have a statement on the wall, we're a community of people living on mission in the way of Jesus. We're seeking to live out the way of Jesus together. While most of the choices we're presented with don't really matter. They're sort of superficial, not important in terms of the big picture. On Christmas Eve, we're invited to consider the one choice that really does. And it has nothing to do with fluoride or non-fluoride or you know, Spotify or Apple music. Here's the choice before us. It's which king will you follow? Which king will you follow, and how you answer that question will then shape your way in the world. Um, here's how Rich Velotis put it in an article recently. He said, Advent presents us with two ways of being in the world. Christmas presents us with two different ways of being in the world. And it hangs on this question: which king will you follow? And how you answer that question will then set the trajectory of your life, whether you move closer to God by way of surrender to God and love, or whether you move away from God trying to live life on your own terms. I want to do something different for Christmas Eve this year. Um, it gets a little annoying to preach on the same day every year, so here I am. I'm doing something a little bit different. I want to back into uh the Christmas story by the way of the Psalms, which I've never done before. And I want to look specifically at Psalm 1 and 2. So here's what you need to know is that Psalm 1 and 2, they go together. They're supposed to be read together. And together they form the introduction to the entire book of Psalms. All 150 of them, which are actually arranged into five books to mirror the Torah, but you have 150 Psalms, that's the book of Psalms, and Psalm 1 and 2 are the introduction to the entire thing. To be read together. Not only do they form the introduction to the book of Psalms, but they form the backdrop to the Christmas story. Because they bring together the two themes I've been hovering on so far, which is that there are two ways, just two, two ways connected to two kings. Two ways connected to two kings. So I'm going to start by reading Psalm 1 with you. Here's what Psalm 1 says Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked, or stand in the way that sinners take, or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season, and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever they do prospers. Not so the wicked. They are like chaff that the wind blows away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous, for the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to destruction. So remember that a way does not refer to an individual choice. Your way is not just one choice, it's the sum total of all of your choices. It's the trajectory or direction of your life. It's the orienting center of your life through which you filter all of your thoughts, all of your words, all of your actions. That's what the Bible means by a way. And here in Psalm 1, two different ways are being compared and contrasted. You have the way of the righteous on the one hand and the way of the wicked on the other. And with both of these ways, also there's two different images associated with them. So the way of the righteous, the symbol there or the image is a tree, a fruitful tree that's planted by water. And for the wicked, it is chaff that is blowing around directionless. Two different ways. Now the primary difference between these two ways is how they relate to God. This is the difference between these two ways, is how they relate to God. The verb that dominates Psalm 1 and characterizes the way of the righteous, in Hebrew it's hagar, and it means to meditate. So the righteous, they meditate on God's law, on God's word, on Torah, on God's instruction. Eugene Peterson, when he comments on these Psalms, he says that the noun for Torah, referring to God's word or God's instruction, comes from the verb, the Hebrew verb yarah. And this is interesting because that word literally means to throw something like a javelin in order to hit its target. And so Peterson makes the point that God's instruction is designed to be thrown at our hearts, to hit the target of our hearts, and then set or change the trajectory of our lives. This is what happens for the righteous. They meditate, they attend to God's word, and what ends up happening is it hits the target of their heart, penetrates their heart, transforms them, and then sets them on a new trajectory. But the wicked, uh, they they don't operate that way. Their hearts aren't soft, they're calloused and hard, they're calcified, and so God's word sort of bounces off as they seek to live on their own terms and in their own way. This is Psalm 1 in a nutshell. You've got two ways, God's way or your own way, and every single human being ultimately has to wrestle with this choice. Which of these ways will you follow? You guys tracking so far? Okay. You gotta keep all that I just said in mind as we transition to Psalm 2. Because whereas Psalm 1 puts the choice between us as individuals, individual human beings, Psalm 2 zooms out and sort of focuses on the corporate, the world stage. It's no longer just about us as individuals, it's about, well, nations and countries and kings. And it asks the question: which way will they go? Where will they give their allegiance? So, Psalm 1, you have a contrast, the way of the righteous versus the way of the wicked, but in Psalm 2 you have a different contrast, and the contrast is between the kings of the earth on the one hand and God's Messiah on the other. So here's what Psalm 2 says. We're going to kind of pick our way through it. Starting in verse 1, it says, Why do the nations conspire, and the people plot in vain? The kings of the earth rise up, and the rulers band together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their chains and throw off their shackles. The one enthroned in heaven laughs. The Lord scoffs at them. He rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain. Let's pause for a moment. If you look at verse one, notice the word conspire. Right? It says, Why do the nations conspire? There's a bit of a wordplay here because that word in Hebrew is Hagar, which is the same word used in Psalm 1 for meditate. But there's a difference. Whereas the way of the righteous meditate on God's word, on God's instruction, the nations are meditating, conspiring, and plotting how to make themselves great apart from God. You see that difference? And what happens in verse 4? Um, God's response to this plotting, this conspiring among the nations is he laughs. The Lord scoffs at them. In other words, he's not nervous or anxious about kings and countries trying to make themselves great, plotting and planning to build little kingdoms for themselves. Why? Because he's God. And because he's going to take action in the world, which we see in verse 6. Here's what it says I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain. This is referring to God's Messiah. You are my son. Today I have become your father. Those words sound familiar? Yes, they do. Way to go. Remember Jesus' baptism, right? He comes out of the water, and then a voice says from heaven, You are my son, whom I love and am well pleased. This is an echo back to this psalm. Ask me, and I will make the nations of your your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession. You will break them with a rod of iron, and you will dash them to pieces like pottery. So God responds to kings and countries, grasping for power, not with panic, not by fretting, but by sending the Messiah. God sends a king, and this king is the king over all these other kings, the lord over all these other lords. And so, in light of this, Psalm 2 ends with a warning to kings and countries, but also underneath it is an invitation. It says this, Therefore, you kings, be wise. Be warned, you rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and celebrate his rule with trembling. In other words, the Psalm ends speaking to rulers and leaders with a warning but an invitation. Bring your authority underneath the Messiah. This is Psalm 2. You've got a different contrast going on between the kings of the earth and God's Messiah, earthly kings trying to build their own little kingdoms apart from God, grasping for power, grasping for control, seeking. They don't see God's way as life-giving, but rather chains that enslave them. So they try to break free and establish their own life in the world. And let's be honest, for a while it appears impressive. You think about all that nations have done, they've established empires. It appears impressive what some people can do, but God uh uh looks right through it. He says, appearances are deceiving. Instead, I'm setting up my Messiah, my king, and he will rule over all. God's Messiah is no match for these kings of the earth who are doing their own thing. Now, even though this was written hundreds of years prior to the time of Jesus, this describes perfectly the world that Jesus was born into. At the time that Jesus was born, the kings of the earth were doing what kings of the earth always do, which is grasp for power and try to gain control, build an empire for themselves. And there's actually two of these kings of the earth that play a prominent role in the Christmas story. They are Caesar and Herod. So Caesar was the head of the Roman Empire. So Caesar in the Christmas story, he represents empire, power, and plotting, conspiring on a global scale. And I've filled this out in previous Christmas Eve messages, but he was ruthless. He ruled with uh military might, he exploited people, he taxed the snot out of people, he spread his propaganda everywhere. And this is the context. The Christmas story starts with Caesar. Here's what it says in Luke 2, verse 1. It says, In those days, Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. The Christmas story starts with this king of the earth, Caesar, exercising his power and authority for selfish reasons. He's issuing a census, and that census is to be taken of the entire Roman Empire, not to serve people, not to care for people, but to better tax people and tighten his grip. That's what's going on. So that's Caesar, and then you have Herod. And Herod is underneath Caesar, so he has to kind of placate Caesar and stay in line, but he is the self-appointed king of the Jews and is sort of in the territory where Jesus is born. And they are cut from the same cloth. He also is a violent man. He ruled with violence. He was power hungry, also totally paranoid. He had several of his own family members killed because he thought that they were a threat to him. He overtaxed the Jewish people quite a bit to sort of finance his building projects. He was a miserable human being. This is Psalm 2 playing out in real time when Jesus is born. The kings of the earth are doing what they always do. And it's into this world of Caesar's empire and Herod's paranoia that Jesus is born. Here's what it says in Luke 2, verse 4. Joseph also went up from Nazareth to Galilee, to Judea, to Bethlehem, the town of David, because he belonged to the house in the line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him, and was expecting a child. So Mary is found to be pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit before being officially married to Joseph. And we get some of these details from Matthew. Matthew's version, when Joseph finds out he seeks to divorce her quietly, but an angel shows up and tells Joseph, no, she's telling the truth. And so Joseph, out of faithfulness to God and Mary, stands by her side. And the two of them then have to travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem in obedience to the census, which was about an 80-mile journey. So, by the way, this is how power works. When people have power, say jump, everybody else has to say, like, okay, but how high? And that jump here involved an 80-mile trek late in Mary's pregnancy, all for the purpose of being taxed more. That's what's happening here. While they were there in Bethlehem, the time came for the baby to be born. She gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger because there was no guest room available for them. So this is where the contrasts start to come into play that we need to notice. Caesar is located in Rome in a huge palace with more than enough space. Herod had several fortresses with different mansions, more than enough space. But when God takes on flesh, there's not room to welcome God. There's no space available. Herod and Caesar are dressed in royal garments, but when God takes on flesh, he's wrapped in swaddling claws. The clothing of a peasant. And three times Luke mentions that the bed for this king was a manger, a feeding trough that animals would eat out of. And this is to communicate to us who God is. That God expresses God's power in vulnerability. That God exercises his authority in humility. And it continues: there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. Again, this is shocking, you guys. Who hears this good news for the first time at shepherds? Shepherds were at the bottom of the social hierarchy, not the top. They were despised. And yet these are the ones that hear this good news for the first time. This is intentional. It's as if God is making it plain as day that the good news of my kingdom is for all people. Nobody is overlooked, nobody is passed over. In fact, my kingdom starts on the margins. And then in verse 10, the angels say to them, Do not be afraid to these shepherds. I bring you good news that will cause great joy. Notice this for all the people, for everybody. Today, in the town of David, a Savior has been born to you. He is the Messiah, the Lord. Notice this phrase, good news. This is also subversive because when Caesar would send out announcements across the Roman Empire, the phrase they would use is the same as this one, good news. And so the angels and the gospel writers are actually subverting Caesar's language to announce something different. It's not coming from Caesar, it's coming from God, and it's not about Caesar, it's about someone else. It's about this baby born in Bethlehem. And notice the titles that are given to this baby. They're titles like, well, Savior, Messiah, and Lord. Those are titles that Caesar would have used to describe himself. Caesar was considered Savior at that time. He proclaimed himself to be Lord. King Herod would refer to himself as the anointed one, because kings were anointed. He would have been the Messiah. But all of these labels are now being applied to this infant in a feeding trough. What's more is that all the promises that Caesar and Herod made, promises that center, by the way, on the very themes of Advent, hope, peace, joy, and love, are now being exposed by this infant as totally counterfeit. So think about hope for a moment. Caesar wanted everybody to put their hope in the stability of the Roman Empire. Put your hope in me and what I'm building. But that was a horrible place to put their hope because, as you know, Rome eventually fell, didn't it? But see, God is fulfilling God's promises in this infant. A place where you can truly put your hope is in this Messiah who has arrived on the scene. Peace. Caesar tried to produce peace through violence, which never works. He reigned with military might, forcing people to cower in submission, and then called it peace, but it was pseudo-peace. But see, God, through Jesus, brings real peace, peace with God, peace with one another. And it's not by wielding a sword, it was by going to a cross. The exact opposite. Caesar and Herod, their joy was self-serving and circumstantial. They actually took from other people to enhance their own joy. But that's not the way God works. God gives us a joy that isn't circumstantial. It actually bubbles up within us. And it's not based on taking from others, it's based on God's self-giving to us. And of course, the way that Caesar and Herod loved was selective, transactional, and conditional. God loves the exact opposite way. He loves everybody, it's universal. It's not transactional, it's covenantal, and you can't earn it. It's not even based on who you are or what you've done, it's based on who he is, and he's a God of love. At every turn, you guys, God is undoing the kings of the earth. And he's inviting us into something better, a kingdom characterized by genuine hope, a hope that doesn't disappoint. A true peace that withstands the test of stress and the potential conflict around the corner. A true joy that takes up residence in us and then bubbles up outside of us, a genuine love that you can't earn, but you can open up your hearts and receive. Two ways connected to two kings. Now, I want you to follow this because it seems to me, this is my opinion, that these same dynamics are still at work today. Exact same ones. Psalm 2 describes how the kings of the earth operate. They grasp for power and control. They try to build their own kingdom of greatness on their own apart from God. The same thing then is happening when Jesus arrives on the scene. You've got Herod and Caesar grasping for power and control, trying to make themselves great in the world, right? And here we are, you guys. It seems to me that kings and countries, politicians, presidents are doing the exact same thing, grasping for power, securing control, shaping narratives and calling it good news. And just like in Caesar's day, those powers, these rulers, these countries, often look impressive. I mean, they're motivated, so they can do impressive things. But remember that God sees through appearances. My concern, you guys, is that many Christians can't. They don't see the dynamic of Psalm 2. They can't discern what it is that I'm and so what ends up happening is they get pulled into the vortex. They begin to place their hope in political power. They end up defending certain leaders as if the kingdom of God depends on that human leader. They align themselves with earthly kings in the hope that that king's success will pave the way for their own success. And see, without realizing it, they end up giving their best energy, their primary passion to the agenda of kings of the earth rather than to actually embodying the way of God's Messiah in the world. There's something seriously wrong. And I'll just name part of it I get because the way of the Messiah looks like foolishness. I mean, power feels way better than the manger. Control feels way better than going to the cross. You know what I mean? This is why so many people are pulled away from God's way in the world. But I want to invite us this Christmas to recenter ourselves. Here's our bottom line: is that the way the Messiah enters the world is to be our way in the world. The way Jesus enters the world, you guys, is to be our way in the world as followers of Jesus. How did Jesus enter the world? He entered in humility, in vulnerability. He entered in simplicity and generosity. Right? He entered with self-giving love. And it starts here, but then it continues through the gospels. This is the way Jesus lived his entire life, one of self-sacrificial love for other people, for all people. And this, you guys, is to be our way in the world. What's more is that this is the way of the righteous that Psalm 1 outlines. The way of Jesus is the way of the righteous. And when you live into the way of Jesus, the way that Jesus lived his life, you will live a fruitful life. Full of passion, full of direction, full of God's blessing. Two ways connected to two kings. Which king will you choose to follow? That will set the trajectory of your life. Now, here at Cross Point, we do not believe that sermons change people, at least not by themselves. You can listen to sermons all day long, you can podcast people way better than me, but it won't change you. The way that we experience change in our lives is by responding to God's work in our lives, God's grace in our lives. And so we can listen to a message, but then we have to respond to it. And that's what I want to invite you to do today. So every sermon we end with some action steps, some next steps, and I want to give you a few suggestions. You may know exactly how God's inviting you to respond to this message, then do that. But otherwise, here's some suggestions. First, some questions for you to pray through. So create some space with Jesus this week just to pray through these questions. Which king am I following? Which king am I following? And which way am I walking in right now? And I'll just say this maybe you're here today and you're not a follower of Jesus, but you sense God stirring in your life. I encourage you, don't ignore that. Now is the time to give that serious consideration. Talk to the people you came with. Come up afterwards. I'd love to talk to you and share with you what it looks like to begin following Jesus with and alongside other people. And here's some practices for you as you leave this week. Practice the way of Jesus with concrete specific steps. So here's some things you can do. I was thinking about you guys, and I'm like, okay, a lot of you are going to be spending um copious amounts of time with family over the next few days. Some of you are already in it, right? Your hair is turning gray as we speak. Like you're, okay, here's some things that will help you. And they're all connected to the way that Jesus arrives in the world. Embody humility with your family. Listen more than you speak. Serve your family this week. Look for extra opportunities to serve the people next to you. Practice generosity. Give of your time, energy, or resources without expecting anything in return. Pursue peace with your family. Extend and receive forgiveness in an effort to resolve any conflicts that are out there. Practice simplicity. Be content and grateful for what you have. This making sense? All right. I'm gonna invite our worship team back out. We have a tradition where we sing silent night. Um, I do have one request, and that is don't spill any wax on the chairs. I really like our cleaning lady. Her name is Amy, and uh a couple years ago, you guys did awful. You spilled wax all over the chairs, it ruined Christmas, it was not good. So do me a favor, try not to spill any wax, keep your candles upright. Um, but if you'll stand, our ushers will get our candles going, and then we'll sing together.