Matthew 2:1-12
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, 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 saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.” When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. When 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. “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: “‘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.’” Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He 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.” After 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. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On 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. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.
I once had a debate with a man who was a self-professed “Christian Skeptic” about the reliability of the story of the Magi in Matthew’s gospel. He told me that no rational thinking person could accept such a story. One of the reasons for his skepticism was that he claimed it was preposterous to believe that ancient pagan scholars from the east would ever come looking for a Jewish Messiah. I tried to show him that there are solid historical reasons to believe that this story is not really all that far fetched.
There was a common ancient belief that the birth and death of kings were marked by signs in the heavens. In 44 B.C. in one of the great flukes of history, Julius Caesar had been murdered and over his funeral pyre was seen a supernova that amazed everyone who saw it.
We also know from many historical documents that there was a shared belief among ancient people in the notion that someday a great human ruler would come out of the region of Judea. In 60 A.D. the Roman general Vespasian returned to Rome after conquering Jerusalem claiming to be the long awaited ruler out of Judea. In addition, we know that right around the time of Jesus’ birth, there was an unusual conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn that astounded ancient scholars. (Jupiter is referred to as the “King Planet” and Saturn is the “Sabbath Planet”)
In light of all of this; the idea that ancient astrologers from the east, believing that great events like the birth of kings were marked in the stars, and knowing about the rumors of a ruler out of Judea, and seeing the planets align in the heavens…it makes perfect sense that they would actually show up and ask, “where is he?”
This is, I think, the real power of the story of the Magi - they showed up looking for the King! While most of the world went about it’s business oblivious to what God was doing, these pagan scholars from a distant land came to find Jesus. While we don’t know much at all about these strangers from the east, there are three significant lessons about them and their search that are important for us to remember.
First – They were looking for something. The Magi saw the star. This was their first hint about the baby to be born Savior and King. This means that they were watching and looking for something. They may not have known exactly what they were looking and waiting for, but at least they were searching.
Second – They were willing to follow. Once the Magi saw the star, they did not just sit around debating it’s meaning, they followed it. They were willing to take a step of faith in order to find what they were looking for. I have known many people who say that they are seeking the truth, but when the moment comes for them to move beyond all of the philosophizing and debating about the truth, they are unwilling to commit.
Jeff Frazier
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