Matthew 2:20
Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child's life.
*Strong's Ex. Conc. 4198
Go: I travel, I journey, I go, I die
From the Greek word 'poreuomai' (pronounced por-yoo'-om-ahee).
Remember the context in which the word is used. Transporting from one location to another.
Here we see Jesus on the road again. A nomadic birth and childhood He had.
LEAVING HEAVEN
God Sent His Son
John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life
Galatians 4:4, 5
4. But when the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law,
5. to redeem those under the law, that we might receive our adoption as sons.
LEAVING BETHLEHEM
Matthew 2:13-15
13. When the Magi had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up!” he said. “Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the Child to kill Him.”
14. So he got up, took the Child and His mother by night, and withdrew to Egypt,
15. where he stayed until the death of Herod. This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”
LEAVING EGYPT
Hosea 11:1
When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called My son.
Matthew 2:20, 21
20. Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child's life.
21. So Joseph got up, took the Child and His mother, and went to the land of Israel.
LEAVING BETHLEHEM, AGAIN
Matthew 2:22, 23
22. But when he learned that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee,
23. and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophets: “He will be called a Nazarene.”
Isaiah 11:1
And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots.
*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 5342
Branch: a sprout, a shoot
From the Hebrew word 'netser' (pronounced nay'-tser). Indicating a branch, or city of Nazareth.
The Lord's travels did not end there either, as some of us know. In Luke 2:41-52 we read of Jesus and His family's journey to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover, a journey they took every year. But this year was different. When the feasting ended and the family caravan left, Jesus stayed behind. He was teaching in the temple to the astonishment of everyone who heard Him, including His parents when they found Him.
Not until He was grown and began His ministry did He travel permanently. Luke 9:58 "And Jesus said to him, "The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere He might lay the head." Always on the road, no home of His own, no bed to lie in at night. Not until His ministry ended here did His travels end.
LEAVING THE GRAVE
Matthew 28:6; Mark 16:6; Luke 24:6, 7; John 20:1-18
LEAVING EARTH
Acts 1:9
After He had said this, they watched as He was taken up, and a cloud hid Him from their sight.
Now, His travels are done in us. We who serve the King go where He leads. We journey with Him, for He is ever with us. We are never alone, so we walk faithfully, speak boldly but gently, work obediently in His fields and wait patiently for His return. Jesus is coming and He is coming back soon. For Christ has said, in Mark 16:15 "And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature." And also in Matthew 28:19, 20 "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Yes, every believer in their generations has said this. Days could be years, years could be centuries, millenia. Seconds turn into forevers. We say it all the time: this is taking forever! and we get impatient with the situation we are in. Forever cannot be measured by time. But someday after all is said and done, forever is where we will stay. With Jesus. Our travels will be ended and we will rest in Him. O Glorious Day!
Make sure you have your passport ready to leave this earth. Believe on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. Simple faith.
LIGHT OF THE WORLD by the African Children's Choir
I FEEL LIKE TRAVELIN' ON by Gloria Baily & Sylvester Morgan
I MUST HAVE THE SAVIOR WITH ME by Gloria Baily
