Matthew
2:1-12 (ESV)
Now after Jesus was born
in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise
men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who
has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and
have come to worship him.” When Herod the king heard this, he was
troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; and assembling all the chief priests
and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be
born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the
prophet:
“‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are
by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who
will shepherd my people Israel.’”
Then Herod summoned the wise men
secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. And he
sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and
when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship
him.” After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the
star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest
over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced
exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house they saw the child with
Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their
treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense
and myrrh.And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod,
they departed to their own country by another way.
As I write this post on the evening of
January 1, 2015 I have just spent several minutes reading the posts of friends
on Facebook. Many of the posts I read were reflective of the start of a
new year; i.e.., there are many posts pertaining to New Year's resolutions and
hopes for a better 2015 than 2014. I found it interesting that the feed I
was receiving from Facebook pertaining to my 618 "friends" included
but one post of the season of Christmas still being ongoing, and zero posts
pertaining to Epiphany, which is officially on January 6, but it is celebrated
in many churches this coming Sunday, January 4. Epiphany comes from the
Greek "epiphanai" and simply means "manifestation" or a
"striking appearance." It is twelve days after Christmas (hence
"The Twelve Days of Christmas") and the Biblical text for this day
revolves around Matthew 2:1-12 (see above), which is the story of the magi/wise
men bringing gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh to the Jesus the child.
This story is striking to me for a
number of reasons. In no particular order--and bullet pointed due to my
thinking on the text at this point:
1. The
men in this text are magi; that is, they are astrologers. This makes them
doubly unclean to the first century Jewish community. They were not
ethnically or religiously Jewish (converts), and they were
worshipers of creation rather than worshipers of The Creator.
- Despite being doubly unclean, God had reached out to them through a medium they would understand (the stars). These men responded to God's invitation with eager hearts, not fully understanding what would await them after many weeks of dangerous travel.
2. They
recognized the divine in creation (the star) and responded to it, but this
general revelation of God did not bring them to Christ.
- It was only after arriving in Jerusalem--the city of kings--that Scripture was consulted to locate the birth of the coming king. That is, a revelation of God in nature (the star) could bring them to a general sense of God, but it was the Scripture which showed them the location of the new king in Bethlehem. Without Scripture they never would have found Jesus.
- The same holds true for us today. In Romans 1, the Apostle Paul writes, "For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse." (ESV) In other words, there is no excuse for anyone not to recognize the existence of God as the Creator. But a general, natural sense of God does not bring one to Jesus. It is God's Word, revealed by the Holy Spirit, which brings people to Jesus.
3. The
magi are outsiders to the Jewish community. Matthew goes to great pains
to reveal to the reader of his gospel that GOD LOVES OUTSIDERS. In
the genealogy account in Matthew 1 we read about four different women who were
unclean--outsiders--who are in Jesus' family tree: Tamar (who tricked her father
in law into sleeping with her), Rahab the prostitute, Ruth the Moabitess, and the
wife of Uriah the Hittite (she's so scandalous her name is even given! [Bathsheba]). Matthew lets us know early on that all are welcome
at God's table.
4. When
the magi arrive in Jerusalem they meet King Herod and his scribes. It is
interesting that when the Scriptures are consulted it is the outsiders who
"get it" while the insiders completely miss the significance of the
star, the arrival of the magi, and their journey to Jerusalem.
5. After
the magi had an encounter with Jesus they couldn't go back the way they came.
Sure, they were warned by God in a dream not to go back to King Herod,
but it seems deeper than that. These men were forever changed. They
had met Jesus, worshiped him, and they knew that they would never be the same
again. They couldn't return by the road they had previously travelled.
Epiphany is significant for us today for
a number of reasons. In light of the beginning of a new year perhaps it
is worthwhile for us to simply reflect on what the magi did when they arrived
in Bethlehem at the home where the Holy Family was staying. They dropped
to their knees, presented their gifts, and worshiped the Lord. It was an event of simply, humble, worship of the King. It wasn't pretentious...it wasn't fancy...it didn't have all of the trimmings...it was simple, and it was beautiful.
Oftentimes
when we consider the beginning of a new year we think selfishly, perhaps
for the best of reasons, about ourselves. What are our resolutions
for the new year going to be? How will they benefit us? How will we grow as
people? Will they help us gain influence in work or personal relationships? Etc...
Perhaps the story of Epiphany teaches us
not to be selfish with our resolutions, but rather, to live selflessly:
•
Do we recognize that we are sinners
utterly undeserving of God's love for us in Jesus the Christ (this is grace!)?
•
Do we bow to Jesus and recognize him as
both Lord and Savior...that we cannot save ourselves despite our best efforts?
•
Do we know what our gifts are in
which God has blessed us, and do we present these gifts to the Lord for his
glory and praise (rather than our own advancement or blessing)?
•
After an encounter with the Lord do
we live the same way as before, or, are we mired in the sinfulness of our
previous, unconverted life?
•
Do we look for Jesus in the Scriptures,
or, do we try to find him in other "spiritual" ways such as
meditation, nature walks, astrology, palm reading, or crystals?
As you start 2015 I pray you will do
three things that are rooted in Epiphany (and all of
1. Make
a conscious decision that you will regularly attend worship services.
There is nothing more important than this. The Christian faith is to be
practiced and celebrated within a covenant community.
2. Pray
daily. Set aside a block of time whether it be in the morning, afternoon,
or evening to spend time alone with God.
3. Read
Scripture daily. I had a professor in seminary who regularly told
us that we cannot love God deeply without knowing God deeply. The
place we come to know God deeply is where he has revealed himself in Jesus--the
Bible. Even if it is only a few verses a day, be in God's Word. I have linked some Bible reading plans below.
Grace and peace to you all as you journey as disciples of the Lord into 2015.
