Neighborhood Ministries

The Power of the Light-The story of the Wise Men reminds us that not everyone was glad to see Jesus come. We often think of the Wise Men coming to see the baby in the manger, but the Bible says that the Wise men went to the house where Jesus was. Since Herod ordered the soldiers to kill all male babies two years and younger, Jesus was probably a year or more old by the time the Wise men arrived. We like to think that the coming of a great king who would bring peace, would be a great thing and everyone would be glad, however the story of Herod reminds us of how jealously man without God seeks to maintain his power. They love the darkness because their deeds are evil. When the Jews forgot God and returned to their selfish ways, while still maintaining an appearance of worshiping God, God sent the prophets to remind them how to walk with God. However, they tortured and killed the prophets. Jesus came to bring Light into the darkness, but Herod tried to destroy Jesus by killing all the baby boys in Bethlehem. When the Catholic Church forgot God and sought to build up its power, God sent the reformers to restore the church, but church leaders tortured and killed many of them, rather than give up their power. Since then, men of power have feared those who preach the true Word of God because they know that men who know God will not bow down to them or serve them. We see today what lengths those in power will go to silence the church and those who serve God because they know that they can never totally control the world as long as there are Christians.