Wise Men Still Seek Him (Matt. 2:1-12)

This sermon was preached on 22/12/2013

Who were the wise men? We do not know. Where did they come from? We cannot be definite about what is meant by ‘the east’. How old were they? We have no idea. How many of them were there? At least two, perhaps three, maybe more.

The visit of the wise men from the east to Bethlehem is only recorded by Matthew. Various reasons can be suggested for its inclusion. Perhaps Matthew is informing his readers that Jesus will be the Saviour for all peoples, and not only for Jews. Or maybe he is indicating that all types of people will worship and not just poor people like the shepherds that Luke describes.

When did the visit take place?

The common assumption is that the visit happened during the period immediately after the birth of Jesus. It could have done, although there are a couple of details in the account that could suggest otherwise. The first detail is the age of the children that Herod chose to slay, which could suggest that the potential period for the visit covers two years. The other detail is the kind of habitation where they found the family. They found them in a house, but they were not in a house when Jesus was born. The mention of a house has caused some to suggest that Joseph and Mary had decided to live in Bethlehem.

There is also a detail from an incident described by Luke that indicates the wise men did not meet the family at the time of the birth. In Luke 2:22ff there is the account of Jesus being presented in the temple after the time of purification was over. The period of purification lasted for forty days after the birth. When Joseph and Mary offered a sacrifice on that occasion they offered the poor person’s sacrifice. This information has two consequences for when the wise men saw Jesus. The first is that if the wise men had seen him before then, Joseph and Mary would not have offered the poor person’s sacrifice because they had received gold from the wise men. The second consequence is that, after the wise men had left, Joseph was told to go and live in Egypt until Herod was dead. He would not have gone up to Jerusalem after that. So the earliest time for the visit of the wise men is that it could have taken place several weeks after the birth of Jesus.

How did the visit take place?

By this question, I mean what helps did the wise men receive as they travelled from their homes to visit Jesus. Matthew mentions two – the star and the prophecy of Micah.

A cosmic sign indicated that the King had been born. The wise men arrived in Jerusalem convinced that the birth had already taken place, which is another argument for indicating that their visit was not at the actual time of the birth. Their words could be read as saying that the star appeared at the time of his birth.

A lot of suggestions have been made as to what the star was. Some have suggested it was a comet, others that it was a kind of falling star. It is known that the wise men of the east consulted the stars in order to find information, so some suggest that while they were so engaged they saw a star they had never seen before.

Personally it looks to me that they were expecting the Messiah to come. This is seen in that they linked this new star to him. It is possible that they were Jews working as Daniel had done centuries before for the civil authorities in the east. Or maybe they were Gentiles who had embraced the Jewish faith and had become proselytes. I think the latter is more likely because if they had been Jews they would have known about Micah’s prophecy. What is obvious is that they knew the Messiah had come.

I suspect also that God worked in their hearts and caused them to follow the unusual star. This is how God often works. Individuals begin to find that they are doing what they would not have done before. Something that they cannot explain is happening to them. This divine activity can take very many forms. I recall in my own case being drawn to a particular set of Christians, who then became involved in my conversion. If someone had said to me six months before then that I would be drawn to go near to those believers I would have dismissed the suggestion. Others find themselves with a desire to go to church or to read the Bible. In whatever way it happens, the Lord is working secretly.

A similar kind of thing happens after conversion. An individual finds himself developing an interest in a particular country or in a certain activity. He cannot explain why, but eventually he realises after careful consideration that he should go and serve the Lord in that place or in that way. Of course, it helps to have the counsel of others and we can that in the behaviour of the wise men. They did not travel in isolation. Did one of them get the burden first or did all of them get it simultaneously? We don’t know, but we do know that they decided to seek for the Messiah together. And in doing so, they are a wonderful example of Christian fellowship.

It is worth noting that cosmic phenomena happened at the birth and at the death of Jesus. At his birth, there was a new light in the sky and at his crucifixion there was no light at all in the sky for a few hours.  These are signs from the Creator because no 0ne else could provide them. And when he returns in the future, once again there will be clear signs in the heavens.

Yet one needs the Bible as well as cosmic signs. An obvious question that comes out of the story is why did the star lead them to Jerusalem and not straight to Bethlehem. I would suggest two answers to this question. One is that God wanted to give people from Jerusalem the opportunity of going to visit the Saviour. The other is that he wanted the wise men to put the Bible above their other experiences.

Thinking about the first answer reminds us of the grace of God. The Lord was good to Jerusalem at that time. No doubt there were those in the temple who heard what Simeon and Anna had to say after that day when Joseph and Mary came to worship six weeks after Jesus was born. Luke tells us that there were those who were looking for redemption. And the Lord in his providence even arranged for those in power to hear about the arrival of Jesus, although they did not think much about the news. The Lord arranges those kinds of situations all the time. I wonder how many people in Inverness heard about Jesus this past week in ways that may seem to be only chance encounters.

With regard to the second answer, that of ensuring that his Word is consulted, we know this is what happens whenever a person is converted. I don’t mean that a person has to have a Bible, but he does need to hear the message of the Bible. He will not be converted because he finds himself doing new things; instead he will be converted by listening to the gospel and understanding it. Similarly, a Christian is not guided to a place of service only by hunches; in addition, he will find instruction and clarification in the Bible.

As far as the wise men were concerned, the Bible’s message was conveyed to them by a very unlikely person – Herod. God can do this whenever he wishes. The wise men were not so wise on this occasion because they did not see the true motives of Herod. But the Lord later took care of that problem when he informed them in a dream not to go back to Herod.

I think it is safe to assume that the wise men would have thought about the verse from Micah as they journeyed south the short distance to Bethlehem. So we can think about it for a short time as well. We can first note how specific the Bible can be. In this verse, the exact place of the birth of Jesus was stated. Further, we can also note that the presence of Jesus gives great significance to a location (what would make Bethlehem prominent was that the Saviour would be born there). And we can also note that Micah describes the work of the Messiah, he would be a shepherd king (and this picture of Jesus is repeated throughout the New Testament. Even in the eternal state, Jesus the King will shepherd his people to the fountains of the waters of life).

What did they do?

First, they went on their way joyfully. Their joy was because they could see the star again and follow its path. Travelling together in joy is a good way to prepare to meet with Jesus. The psalmist in Psalm 122 rejoiced when others encouraged him to join them in the worship of God. Nehemiah reminded the people that the joy of the Lord should be their strength as they participated in the restored worship at a recovered feast in Jerusalem.

Second, Joseph does not seem to have been there when they arrived. Perhaps he was away working. Wherever he was, imagine the story that Mary would have to tell him when he came home. With wonder he would have listened to her describe the important visitors, their falling down and worshipping the infant Jesus, and the amazing gifts that they provided. And is this not a picture of Christian fellowship, telling and hearing about the incredible events associated with the person and work of Christ.

Third, they knew their place, which was to bow down before Jesus. These men had spent their lives in the presence of dignitaries, but they had never bowed before them with the love and enthusiasm that they showed when they fell down before the Saviour. We should notice that the bowing down was not the worship, although it was a posture that helped them to worship. The worship would have been what they said.

Fourth, they placed before Jesus very costly gifts (gold, frankincense and myrrh). I have read and heard many ingenious suggestions as to what these gifts are meant to illustrate and usually they seem to miss the point, which is that worship should be extravagant. The wise men would not have dared to offer their earthly masters a trivial gift. And their example tells us not to give miserly to the Lord’s cause. As Paul reminds us, the Lord loves a cheerful giver.

Fifth, their worship was followed by a test. Would they obey God or would they obey Herod? Remember they might not have known what Herod was like and he had expressed a wish to worship Jesus. Yet the Lord gave them a command and it meant that they would have to disobey Herod. It was a test, and they passed it. True worship is always followed by tests that will focus on whether or not we intend to obey the Saviour.