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In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
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 when it rose 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 Messiah 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 shepherd 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 search carefully for the child. As soon as you find Him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship Him.”
Matthew 2:1-8
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Have you ever stopped for a moment and considered how millions upon millions of people are in the same moment but having completely different experiences?
I think we sometimes get so caught up in our own selves that we live in a vacuum without taking into account that we are just one of scores of people on this planet who are going through life in the midst of their particular surroundings and circumstances which vary, not just from nation to nation but community to community.
We’re reminded of this as we continue looking at the Christmas story and the events that unfolded well after Jesus was born. While we don’t know Jesus’ exact age at the time the Magi sought Him, we can estimate he was two years old or under as the murderous King Herod commanded that every boy two or younger be massacred in Bethlehem after the Magi failed to return and report to him of Jesus’ exact location. Such a treacherous, evil act was nothing short of psychotic genocide to try and eliminate the boy Herod saw as a threat to his power.
Rewinding, we are looking at the run up to this and the Magi seeking to honor the One who was to be born the King of the Jews.
These Magi, touted as being a trio even though the scriptures don’t affirm this, traveled from the east to Jerusalem. We don’t know much about them except that they were from a people group known as the Magians. It’s widely believed that they lived somewhere in the vicinity of Persia because of the knowledge they had of the Jewish prophecies that had foretold the coming of a great King who would rule over Israel. This knowledge is thought to have come from the dispersed Israelites who were taken into a seventy year exile in Babylon which was later conquered by the Persians.
It’s obvious that the Magi were God believers and it’s felt worshiped light as a symbol of God’s presence and work. And so when an unusually bright start appeared to the west of them, one that had never been in the night sky before, the Magi felt impelled to seek it out, feeling it would lead them to the newborn King of Israel.
Now, unlike most men these days who stubbornly refuse to ask directions when they travel, the Magi decided to stop in Jerusalem and ask about the whereabouts of the “One who has been born the King of the Jews”. The scriptures tell is that the word of their inquiries made it to the Roman King over Judea who was named Herod at that time.
Disturbed by what he and the entire city had heard, Herod summoned “all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law”, those who would have been experts in the Jewish scriptures and prophecies. He asked them “where the Messiah was to be born” and they responded with words spoken by God through the prophet Micah saying:
“In Bethlehem in Judea 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 shepherd My people Israel.’” Micah 5:2
Armed with the information, we read where “Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared” before dispatching them “to Bethlehem” with the following order:
“Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find Him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship Him.”
Now, as we covered earlier, Herod had no intent to worship Jesus. Rather, he wanted him dead but as the events unfold, that plot is foiled by a God who wouldn’t let it happen. While it was Jesus’ destiny to die for the people He came to save, that time was not now.
As all this was happening, keep in mind that Joseph, Mary, and their little boy Jesus were going about their life in Bethlehem, completely unaware of what was transpiring in Jerusalem. God was moving and working in both places but in different ways but soon the lives of the Magi along with Jesus and his parents would intersect in a special engagement, one we will look at in tomorrow’s final message of 2023.
In the meantime, let’s be wary of all our brothers and sisters in the world each and every day, praying over them and whatever circumstances they may be dealing with, circumstances that will most often be very different from our own.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.
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