Summary: Herod the Great, king of Judea at the time of Jesus' birth, was known for his impatience, bloodthirstiness and ego. He desired power above all else and was quick to lash out wrathfully if he perceived any threat to his own glory. Many people suffered at his hand, and he was, by all accounts, a pretty awful guy. As unlike us as Herod may sound, when you look at how he responded to Jesus' birth, we start to see similarities to our own lives. We profess a desire to worship Jesus (as Herod told the magi he did), but we are often unwilling to turn over control of our "kingdoms" to God. We call ourselves followers of Jesus, but we bristle at the idea of honoring him as king of certain aspects of our lives. So this week, let's ask ourselves: will we worship Jesus as the magi did or will we fight his control of our lives like Herod?
