Now when Jesus was born in
Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king,
behold, wise men [astrologers] from the east came to
Jerusalem, asking, Where is He Who has been born King of
the Jews? For we have seen His star in the east at
its rising and have come to worship Him. Matthew
2:1-2 AMP Emphasis Added.
The wise men were philosophers,
astrologers and men of great understanding. They knew about
the promise of the coming Messiah and were expecting its
fulfillment. They saw the star and followed it to worship
the Messiah.
Today wise people still seek to worship
Jesus, the Messiah. They look for ways to worship, willing
to traverse great distances and overcome any obstacles to be
in the presence of the Lord. I believe today too there is a
Star shining in the expanse over humanity. A Star announcing
the reality of the coming of Jesus, leading those who will
follow Him to the very presence of the King of kings and
Lord of lords. A Star who's main purpose is to lead people
to Christ. This Star is the Holy Spirit! Jesus said: "He
(The Holy Spirit) will guide you in all the Truth (Jesus is
the truth! John 14:6)" The Holy Spirit testifies about
Jesus. He leads us to Jesus. He glorifies Jesus. If we
follow Him we will find Jesus every time!
- When the wise makes stupid mistakes
- Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea. Bethlehem
means "house of bread". Isn't it interesting that
Jesus, aka the Bread of Life (John 6:35) was born in
the house of bread? Now the wise men saw the star
rising in the east and followed it until they came
close to the Promised Land. Their start was great,
but then their wisdom blurred their spiritual
vision. Instead of simply following the star all the
way, they interfered with foolish logical
deductions. Instead of following the star to where
Jesus was, they ended up in Jerusalem. Instead of
the house of Jesus they went to the palace of Herod,
after all the King of the Jews are bound to be born
in the palace of a king!
Their misinterpretations caused Herod and all of
Jerusalem to be disturbed and troubled, (Matthew 2:3)
and eventually threatened a whole generation.
Herod ordered all the Hebrew babies killed to get to
Jesus. Joseph and Mary had to flee with Jesus to Egypt
to escape the wrath of Herod. Can you see how one silly
mistake can have enormous consequences? What would
happen if they simply followed the star? It would lead
them straight to Jesus!
- When they had listened to the king, they
went their way, and behold, the star which had
been seen in the east in its rising went before
them until it came and stood over the place
where the young Child was. When they saw the
star, they were thrilled with ecstatic joy.
Matthew 2:9-10 AMP
You will do well to follow the lead of the Holy
Spirit, regardless of what your flesh tells you. Do not
be distracted by religious logic or deductive
philosophies. Follow the Star of God. He will take you
to the very presence of the Lord. Let Him lead you
through scriptures and through life. Keep your eyes on
the Holy Spirit and you'll meet Jesus. Do not count on
mere religiosity and traditions to show you the way.
Allow God to lead you with His Holy Spirit. The Holy
Spirit will thrill you and fill you with ecstatic joy
just like the star did for the wise men. "The Kingdom of
Heaven is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy
Spirit" ( Romans 14:17)
- Gifts for the King
- The wise men produced 3 gifts from their
treasure bags as acts of worship to Jesus. They gave
Him gold, frankincense and myrrh. Let's look at
these gifts:
- Some think there was a significancy in their
gifts; they offered him gold, as a king, paying him
tribute, to Caesar, the things that are Caesar's;
frankincense, as God, for they honored God with the
smoke of incense; and myrrh, as a Man that should
die, for myrrh was used in embalming dead bodies.
(from Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible:
New Modern Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright
(c) 1991 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)
Today give Him your gold! Honor Him as your King.
Allow Him to reign over your life, your emotions, your
actions and the motives of your heart. Give Him your
frankincense! Worship Him as your God. Respect Him as
your Lord and serve Him with all your heart. Give Him
your myrrh! Recognize that great sacrifice He gave of
the cross. He paid the price for your sin. He died for
you so that you can live in Him! He is the Lamb of God
that takes away the sin of the world.
Indeed, Wise men still seek Him!
