Matthew 2:1-12 Pastor Nathan P. Kassulke
The Epiphany of Our Lord Sunday, January 7, 2024 “Wise Ones Worship Jesus”
Who are these guys? For years, we celebrated Epiphany by talking about the Magi, a word that probably came up nowhere else in our experience. Our current translation calls them Wise Men, with both words capitalized. The capitalization means that these are not just men who happen to be wise. They are men in official positions in which their wisdom is used as they carry out their responsibilities. And beyond that, we don’t know a whole lot about them. We know what we read and learn about these particular Wise Men in Matthew 2. Scripture doesn’t tell us how many there were or whether they rode camels. We know that they were Gentiles, men not from the nation of Israel, the descendants of Jacob. And their worship of Jesus when he was still very young makes them first Gentiles we know of to worship him. As Jews and Gentiles alike worship the baby Jesus, we clearly recognize that he has come for all people. Unlike what many nativity scenes show and many songs suggest, these men did not come to the stable on the first Christmas night. They came some time later, at the longest perhaps two years. Even though we might be curious and uncertain about some things, these Wise Men serve as models for us, non-Israelite believers who celebrate the birth of the Savior. These Wise Men demonstrated spiritual wisdom. They serve as examples for Jew and Gentile alike, men and women alike. They show us that Wise Ones Worship Jesus. And it is wise for us today to consider their journey, their joy, and their generosity. Their journey brought these men from the east to Jerusalem first of all. The Bible does not specify their point of origin, though what we call the Middle East (as opposed to the far east) seems most likely. Their journey may have been some 500 miles or even more. And they left on that journey when they noticed a special star that indicated to them the birth of the King of the Jews. This star was clearly a special sign that God used to alert them. They were given by him a unique opportunity to play their special role in his unveiling of salvation history. And they were able to undertake this journey. And no distance was too great for them to travel. In a lot of ways, the Wise Men are very different from you and me. A different time, a different place, a unique opportunity and a special sign. But what is the same is the importance of seeking and worshiping the Savior. You don’t need a journey of 500 or more miles. You have opportunities right here at your fingertips and in your neighborhoods and at a sanctuary much more accessible for you than Israel was for our Wise Men. So, unfortunately, we can take this for granted so easily. Our worship can become routine rather than heartfelt. It can be crowded out by other appointments and busy work instead of being of supreme importance to us. We marvel at a long journey because we know that our own selfish sinful natures would be so reluctant to put in so much time and effort. The journey of these Wise Men is a reminder of how much we need our Savior. The Wise Men did not find the Savior at their first stop in Israel. They went to Jerusalem where the palace was. That seemed to make perfect sense. The sign of the star had taken them that far, but they needed more information. They had an audience with King Herod and asked him about the King of the Jews whose star they had seen and whom they had come to worship. And the one who was at the time King of the Jews, the man sitting in that earthly role, was alarmed. This was a ruthless King and politician who would stop at nothing to pursue his own interests and to protect his position. He had murdered family members to protect his throne. He was prone to jealousy and rage. When he was troubled, all Jerusalem was troubled. And they had good reason. Herod never
got the opportunity he sought to eradicate another threat, but he did later react with rage and terror and attempted to do exactly that. What Herod also did, right here in our account, was he pointed the Wise Men in the right direction. He knows where to turn. He understood that Scripture has the answers. His experts in Scripture told him precisely where Christ, the Messiah, was to be born. Bethlehem. They knew the prophecy that we heard in our Christmas services, the one fulfilled by Mary and Joseph making their journey from Nazareth to the town of David. And so the next destination for our Wise Men had been determined. But what a contrast! What a study in differences when we compare Herod with these men who had come to him. Herod had the Scriptures. He had the experts. He had the knowledge at his fingertips. He even had the location of the Messiah very near his own backyard. But he was upset and ignored the Christ except to view him as a threat to his own power and position and influence. He didn’t need a journey and he didn’t need a sign. And he missed out on the joy of Christmas, the joy of knowing Jesus. Not so the Wise Men. With a new destination in mind, they set out again. And they saw the star again, and everything lined up. They found the very place. And before they had even entered, when they realized that they were again on the right path, they were filled with joy. Our translation says, “they rejoiced with overwhelming joy.” The Greek captures this picture with words that have the same root: they rejoiced with great rejoicing or they joyed a great joy (I know that doesn’t really work the same in English, but you get the picture). Joy in seeing Jesus comes from understanding why Jesus came. Jesus came to be the Savior. He came to save people from their sins. The specific temptations and specific sins are different from person to person, from place to place, and from one time period to another. But the concept is the same. We are born as rebels against God. We are born with a selfish heart and evil motives like Herod. We serve our own interests and power and fame and glory until God calls us out of that darkness into his wonderful light. Or in the picture employed by our Second Reading, he gives us life from death. God through Jesus Christ rescues us from the hell and destruction we deserve and gives us the eternal joys of heaven. How could our reaction now be anything but joy? And our joy shows itself in generosity. The generosity of the Wise Men is legendary. Rich gifts fit for kings. Gold, frankincense, and myrrh. These were lavish gifts from joyful hearts. And God offers us opportunities for just such generosity. Our offerings are an obvious parallel to the gifts of the Wise Men and lavish offerings serve the needs of others and the sharing of the Gospel. They are truly gifts to Jesus. And we can be generous with our time and our talents as well. Generosity is an attitude of giving rather than hoarding. It is an attitude of seeking to serve rather than to be served. It is a tangible way joyful people express their joy and their love and their thankfulness. It is a way we can be like those Wise Men. And all of that is a result of the good news of great joy. All of that is a result of God’s grace. It is for all people, whether Jew or Gentile. So that we don’t get a wrong idea, it is worth mentioning that the Wise Men were not believers because of their wisdom. They didn’t come to their conclusions because they were smarter than others, or richer, or more powerful. They came because God led them. They came because God called them to this and changed their hearts to follow him and to worship Jesus in their journey and their joy and their generosity. God made them wise spiritually. He made them wise for salvation. And he has done the same for you and for me. Thanks be to God for his good news of great joy for all people. Thanks be to God who has led us to believe that wise ones worship Jesus.
The Text: Matthew 2:1–12 (EHV) 2 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, when Herod was king, Wise Men from the east came to Jerusalem. They asked, 2“Where is he who has been born King of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” 3When King Herod heard this, he was alarmed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4He gathered together all the people’s chief priests and experts in the law. He asked them where the Christ was to be born. 5They said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, because this was written through the prophet: 6You, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are certainly not least among the rulers of Judah: because
out of you will come a ruler, who will shepherd my people, Israel.” 7Then Herod secretly summoned the Wise Men and found out from them exactly when the star
had appeared. 8He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. When you find him, report to me, so that I may also go and worship him.”
9After listening to the king, they went on their way. Then the star they had seen when it rose
went ahead of them, until it stood still over the place where the child was. 10When they saw the star, they rejoiced with overwhelming joy. 11After they went into the house and saw the child with Mary, his mother, they bowed down and worshipped him. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12Since they had been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they went back to their own country by another route.