JESUS BORN TO DIE

 JESUS BORN TO DIE

Upon entering the world, the life was Jesus was threatened. I believe that anyone who tries to kill God is an Antichrist and has the Power of the Wicked One. 

In a sense, Adam, Cain, and Abel were a triumvirate of sorts. Triumvirs in the Latin were three men each with different tasks within a government. In the case of those three, Adam was the father, Abel, the son, and Cain an absent spirit because he was of the Wicked One (1 John 3:12). 

Triumvirates are important in both government and theology. The Godhead, or Holy Trinity, is a triumvirate and a triune Godhead each head with a different task. Today, another type of triumvirate will be discussed. 

First consider the early Roman governments: The first triumvirate consisted of Pompei, Crassius, and Julius, the latter who was the “Caesar” or as it turned out the lead head. 

The second triumvirate was Anthony, Lepidus, and Octavian. Octavian became the “Augustus Caesar” — the majestic Caesar. He was a type of Christ and perhaps an Antichrist. 

After the Roman Republic Octavian alone was the “Caesar” but he had a triumvirate of sorts as well. 

The future Caesar would be Tiberius (Nero Caesar) who was Caesar during the adult ministry and crucifixion of Jesus successive to Octavian (Augustus). Nero was considered an Antichrist because he murdered so many of the apostles, as well as Christ in absentia. 

My point is that both theology and Christianity comes in threes for both the righteous and unrighteous orders. 

The triune God consists of three substances: (1) The Power of God (the “Father”), the Object of God (the “Son”), and the Shadow (the Holy Ghost of God.) 

Using a coin, the Power (Father) is the “spin” of the coin (Yahweh), the “tails” is backside of God (The Ghost), and the “heads” the Person Jesus. 

The “God coin” is not just two substances but its Dynamic is the third. 

Preceding Nero (Tiberius) was Octavian. 

Although Octavian was dictator, he also had two sides as well. 

During the reign of Octavian, Herod was named king, but it took three years for him to reign. I took from 40-37 BC for Herod to gain the throne from Antigonus. 

As such, there was a sort of triune dictatorship. Caesar as the High Authority, Herod who was real king, and Antipater who was the ghost of the Hasmoneans past. 

Herod ruled with the authority of Caesar in the absence of Caesar. Once Antigonus was gone, there remained another sort of triumvirate: Augustus Caesar, Herod the Great, and other kings to the East (ten imperial provinces with governors). 

When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem (Mat 2:1) 

Literally, the “wise” men were Chaldeans (Babylonians). Their wisdom is inferred. “East” therein is an arising of either the Sun or stars. It is implied that they saw a star from their position eastward in Babylonian and it was “arising” or converging. They had not followed the “star” but watched heavenly bodies converging: Venus, Jupiter, and Mars. 

Normally governors of the Roman provinces were received with the right hand of friendship. Herod had the “right hand of friendship” with his fellow governors of the other provinces. There were ten provinces of the Roman Empire, Herod was friends with those in the East.

The right hand of friendship was that each, in their own province, had the authority of Caesar who was in Rome and each were partners in keeping the laws of the Roman Empire. In the absence of Caesar, each were little Caesar’s in their province. 

Then came kings from the East. How many is unknown. Rather than the “right hand of friendship” with Herod, they came to pay homage to the newborn King, asking, “Where is He that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen His star in the east, and are come to worship Him.” (Mat 2:2)

How many is unknown; perhaps a whole caravan or even just two. Three is assumed because of the three gifts. 

Problem 1: They did not come for the right hand of friendship with Herod, and

Problem 2: They did not come for friendship with Caesar.

Problem 3: They came from Babylon whose territory once belonged to Alexander but not to Caesar. Caesar was not as great as Alexander.

 

They snubbed both Augustus and Herod. 

Julius Caesar has first claimed Godhood, and in a sense, “Caesar” means King of kings and Lord of lords. 

Jesus, so said Paul to Timothy, “In His times he shall show, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords… (1 Tim 6:15) That day is coming: John saw Jesus revealed in the end, “He (Jesus) has on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, “King Of Kings, And Lord Of Lords” (Rev 19:16). 

Why was Herod miffed at Jesus and the wise men? 

First off, the wise men not only knew the location of Jesus, but that He was their king. He was King of kings. That is wisdom. 

They knew that Caesar desired to be their King, or Caesar, but that was not to be. It would be Jesus who in the end would be “Caesar” as King of kings. 

They were directed there to that specific location by the LORD GOD when they followed the bright light coming with convergence. They were wise that they knew that they were not to see an ordinary king but the LORD of lords. 

Julius Caesar was the first Pontifex Maximus, Lord of the house of lords, whoever the gods of the lords might be. 

The wise men did not come to pay homage to the Pontifex Maximus but to Jesus, the true Lord of lords. 

No wonder Herod ordered the massacre of the innocents. He feared for his position just as Antigonus had feared for his. Herod saw a war ahead and feared losing his head, so God in the Person of Jesus had to be sacrificed. Jesus was born to die and Herod was the first appointed to that task. 

The gold, frankincense, and myrrh represented His kingship, his lordship, and His death. 

Paul wrote to Peter about Jesus, “His own self bare our sins in his own Body on the Tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed” (1 Pet 2:24). 

The wise men knew that: They knew scripture and followed it; Isaiah had prophesied, “He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. (Isa 53:5). 

The wise men had followed the Word of God to find Jesus, and there He was — a new born king.