Good morning my dear “Walking with Jesus” friends,
Everyone I know has a favorite part of the Christmas story, I wonder what yours is? This week we’re looking at what happened AFTER that special night in Bethlehem. Yesterday we visited the Temple with Joseph, Mary and infant Jesus and encountered Simeon and Anna… wow what a special day that must have been for them!
The next event, which the Bible gives, may have actually happened several months or even a year after Jesus’ Bethlehem birth, but this event started months before Jesus was born. Matthew gives us the story of ‘Magi’ coming from a distant country in the east to find a ‘newborn king’. Exactly which country they came from, we don’t know, nor do we know for sure how many of them came. Usually the story of these men, when told in drama or song, depicts three of these often called “Wise Men” but that’s probably because three types of gifts are mentioned. Historians and Bible scholars tell us the word ‘wise’ is probably very accurate for these men. They were scholars having studied history, civilizations, cultural legends, and they seemed to also be men who studied the constellations of stars in the sky. I believe them to also have been deeply spiritual men seeking to understand what God was doing in the world in their time.
We’ve seen how angels came to Zechariah, Mary and Joseph explaining God’s plan to come to earth in the person of Jesus, and provide eternal hope to any in our world who would believe Him. We’ve seen how angels announced and then led shepherds to find this newborn Jesus, and how the Holy Spirit led Simeon and Anna to find Joseph, Mary and infant Jesus in the Temple that day. So it shouldn’t surprise us that God did it again… God found a way to lead these Magi and their caravan, from a far distant place, to experience the miracle of Christmas and actually see Jesus!
This raises an important question: what has God been doing in your life, all the way back to your childhood, to draw you to find, encounter, and come to know Jesus? The next question is maybe even more important… HOW have you responded to what God has done to draw you to Jesus?
Matthew tells us this “Magi caravan” did not come asking for Jesus, instead: “…during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked ‘Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We have seen his star in the east and have come to worship Him!” (Matt. 2:1,2) Now, perhaps you are thinking, ‘If these guys are scholars and so smart, why did they go to Jerusalem? How could they miss that He was to be born in Bethlehem?” Oh, that’s a good question and the only answer I have is probably what you and I have experienced when the map or GPS we are following is leading us in a different direction than we think we should be going. I believe they knew of Micah’s prophecy, but they also knew the prophecies which spoke of His kingdom, His throne, and if He was to be king of the Jews, regardless of where He was born, logic told them they would find Him in the place all kings of the royal Hebrew family lived and reigned… Jerusalem. Also, it appears they had been following a bright light in the sky they called a star, which they believed had led them to Jerusalem.
But WHY, you might ask, would God lead them, either by star or logic, to Jerusalem, when the Messiah was in Bethlehem? Ah, the answer to that my friends is very important then and this Christmas. Just yesterday I heard of a friend who lives near me and had a “Jesus is the Reason for the Season” sign in their front yard, along with a small nativity display. I was shocked to learn they were asked by people living in their neighborhood to remove it because it was offensive to them! THAT is why God led the Magi to Jerusalem rather than Bethlehem!
God did not send the Son of God to earth ONLY for those who would welcome Him, believe in Him, love Him, trust Him for their salvation and spend eternity in heaven with Jesus. Oh no, my friends. The power of love with which God designed and created our human race; the power of God’s love with which He sustains the life of every human being, regardless of their spiritual attitudes; the power of God’s love for humanity sent Jesus to earth for ALL people, including those who reject Him. God wants EVERYONE He has created, ANYWHERE in the world, in EVERY generation, to have the chance, the opportunity to decide for themselves what they will do with Jesus and God’s love for them!!!
Matthew records: “When King Herod heard of the Magi’s inquiry he was disturbed and all Jerusalem with him…” (Matt.. 2:3) Now, why would the people of Jerusalem be disturbed when they heard Magi from the east came looking for a newborn king of the Jews? FEAR! If you’ve ever lived in a country with a brutal dictator as I have, and as many people do today in many parts of the world, then you understand! Most political leaders are egomaniacs. Most care far more about their ego, their personal agenda, their fame in history, than they do about the people they govern, would you agree. That’s how it was in Jerusalem with King Herod. He had many times before killed those people he perceived to be a threat to his kingship, even members of his own family! The people were afraid this Magi visit would stir up Herod’s anger which easily could get out of control and irrationally cause great pain to many people.
Matthew tells us King Herod sought counsel from his scholarly advisors who told him of Micah’s prophecy that Bethlehem was where the Messiah would be born. So he called for these visiting Magi, pretended to welcome them, and sent them off to find this newborn king, asking them to return and report to him so he could also go and celebrate the birth of this long awaited child. Of course he had no intention of allowing that child to live! Matthew tells us the Magi left the king and continued following the star which led them to Bethlehem, and their excitement in anticipation grew as they neared this little town.
“On coming to the house they saw the child with his mother Mary and they bowed down and worshipped Him.” (Matt. 2:11) While only a few words, this sentence is very important in the Christmas story. Evidently Joseph was not at home when they arrived, at least he is not mentioned. Yet he was there a very short while later in the story, so that tells me he was out working somewhere. Joseph had a little family to provide for! Also, the word “house” is used, not stable or manger, and that tells us by this time Joseph has found a more permanent place for his little family, in Bethlehem. Thirdly, these Magi worshipped, which tells me they had a deep spiritual understanding of the importance of this child both for the Jews and all peoples of the world. Oh, and of course this was happening in Bethlehem, not Jerusalem and not Nazareth, so obviously Joseph and Mary had stayed in Bethlehem after the census for a while.
I doubt any of us can imagine the shock for Mary, and the commotion in their neighborhood, when this Magi caravan arrived. Only camels could have brought them this far distance, and likely they had servants with them to care for the animals and help in this long journey. But the gifts, oh my the gifts they brought into that little house and placed before Mary and her child: “They opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts of gold, and incense and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they return to their own country by another route.” (Matt. 2:11,12)
How long did their visit last, I don’t know, but clearly God was watching over every aspect of what was happening there in Bethlehem, but also back in Jerusalem, in Herod’s palace. The angels were busy in those days weren’t they, being sent by God to earth to keep informing and guiding and protecting people connected to this Christmas miracle. And so, after being guided by God in their dreams, the Magi learned they and the child were in danger, and they left Bethlehem rather quickly, by a different route, heading back to their homeland. Have you ever thought about how Mary explained this remarkable event to Joseph when he got home from work that evening?? What would you have said? And if you were Joseph, what would you have done when looking at those treasures?
Let’s pause right here friends, and spend the evening with Joseph, Mary and little toddler Jesus. Yes, I suppose by now Jesus was about 1 year old. What do you suppose that evening was like as Joseph and Mary discussed the Magi visit and looked at those gifts? What do you imagine their neighbors were saying about the Magi caravan that day? I suspect they prayed, maybe quite a lot that evening, asking God to help them understand what it all meant, what they should do with those gifts, what they should do to live wisely in this town of Bethlehem. And as they lay down to sleep that night… God was preparing to send another angel, for life was about to get very complicated for Joseph, Mary and infant Jesus. Pause with me right here… as God looks at your life and mine, with all that’s going on in our lives and in our world, is it possible life is about to get very complicated? Do we trust God enough, will we follow His directions closely enough that we will be able to weather the storms ahead in 2022?
Here’s a song to reflect on that…
Today’s Scripture is Matthew 2:1-12.
Choose below to read or listen.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson 262.441.8785
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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