The Mystery of the Magi
Deuteronomy 4:29-31 29 But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul. 30 When you are in distress and all these things have happened to you, then in later days you will return to the LORD your God and obey him. 31 For the LORD your God is a merciful God; he will not abandon or destroy you or forget the covenant with your forefathers, which he confirmed to them by oath.
Matthew 2:1-12 1After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him." 3When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4When he had called together all the people's chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. 5"In Bethlehem in Judea," they replied, "for this is what the prophet has written: 6" 'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.'" 7Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8He sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him." 9After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh. 12And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.
Matthew may have had many reasons for including the story of the Magi in the birth and early life of Jesus, but two reasons are most obvious. The first is Magi are heathen Gentiles in search of Jesus. They are in search to learn of Him and to worship Him, in sharp contrast to Herod who wants to kill Him, and the holy men of Israel who could not care less. Though the Magi may have been aware of an obscure reference in Numbers 24:17b, “A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel,” their search for Jesus was prompted more by superstition in the stars than the promise of scripture.
And that is the point. A little off track in their goal, motivated by only partial information at best, they search. They search in contrast to the dullness and complacency of the educated, the informed, the religious elite who know of the prophecy of the Messiah to be born in Bethlehem, but dismiss the whole matter as insignificant and unimportant. It was for people like the Magi that Jesus later prayed, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.” (Matthew 11:25 NKJV) For in their understanding of God, the Magi were babes indeed.
The Magi are still among us. They are those who with little knowledge search for Him who was born King of the Jews, and for whatever reason and in whatever manner, have not given up the search. It may be a driving force, a genuine desire, a flaming light, or a smoldering coal, but the search is still alive.
The second thing we know about the Magi is that they found the One they were looking for. Our search is not an endless search or a futile search. “On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him.” Our search is one in which we discover ever anew the truth of Him that is born in Bethlehem. The Magi found the Child because they searched for Him with all their heart, and as God has promised, “you shall find me”, (Matthew 7:7). Their whole-hearted, determined search took them past the barriers of race and prejudice. It took them past the deceit and hostility of Herod, the yawning complacency of the priests, past over whelming odds. And the Magi found the Child.
When weary from all we are doing to make it a good Christmas, the basic, most fundamental question of Christmas and of life remains: Have we taken our lives in our own hands, or have we placed them in God’s hand to live moment by moment, day by day, seeking and following in an attitude of trust?
From a sermon preached by Henry Dobbs Pope
© Rhonda Hinkle Mitchell
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