Epiphany
Mt
2:1-12
1/6/19
They just showed up. Matthew begins
our text by telling us, “Now
after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king,
behold, magi from the east came to Jerusalem.”
It’s never hard to know what Matthew thinks is important – what he wants
us to notice. Again and again he says,
“Behold!”
And the big
deal here is not merely their presence, but also what they said: “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.” Now that first
sentence set off all kinds of alarm bells, because there was indeed a king, and
he hadn’t just been born.
Herod the
Great was king. Herod was a wicked, but very capable man. He was an unlikely candidate to be ruling
over the lands of ancient Israel because he was actually an Idumean. He was
from the lands of Israel’s enemy, Edom. Though these lands had become Jewish,
the Idumeans were always viewed as half-Jews.
They were second class.
And Herod
had the misfortune of geography in the Roman Empire which kept putting him on
the losing side of the civil wars. When
Julius Caesar was assassinated in 44 B.C., war broke out and twice Herod found
himself having to support the leader who was ultimately defeated. Each time, he
was able to convince the winner that he would be loyal, and they kept him on as
king over the kingdom that was part of Rome’s sphere of power.
And he
didn’t just hang on to it. Through cunning, ruthlessness and sheer determination
he actually managed to assemble the largest kingdom that had existed since the
days of King Solomon. This was a kingdom subservient to Rome, but still the
kingdom he ran. He had worked too hard
to give it up to anyone, and thought nothing of killing his own sons when he
viewed them as threats. As Emperor Augustus
is reported to have quipped: “I would rather be a pig than a son in Herod’s
Court” – since of course, Jews didn’t kill pigs for food, but Herod did kill
his sons. Matthew tells us, “When Herod
the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.” There was good reason to be troubled, because
when Herod got troubled, people often died.
The magi
showed up and explained their question by saying, “For we saw his star when it
rose and have come to worship him.” The
magi were the learned men of their day in the areas of astronomy and astrology
– there was really no distinction for them.
We don’t know where them came from, but Mesopotamia – modern day Iraq –
is a good guess.
And truth
be known, what they said does not match what you have seen on many a Christmas
card. You know the scene – men on camels
traveling through a desert following a guiding star. Instead what they said was that they had seen
“his star at its rising.” They had not
followed a star to Jerusalem. Instead they had seen the appearance of a star or
some of kind of astronomical phenomenon that caught their attention.
The
appearance – this “star at its rising” – indicated to them that a Jewish king
had been born. Certainly the text of
Scripture they had in mind was from the Book of Numbers which said, “I see him,
but not now; I behold him, but not near: a
star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel.” The Jews had certainly taken the Scriptures
with them into exile in Babylonia, and many of them remained there. It would not have been hard for the magi to
come into contact with the Torah – the books of Moses. The “star at its rising”
told them that a Jewish king had been born. But it did not lead them to Jerusalem.
Instead they travelled to the city because that was where they expected
to find a Jewish king.
Herod the
Great put on a good show for the Jews of his kingdom that he supported the
faith of the God of Israel. He was the
one who undertook the massive project that produced the incredible temple that
existed in Jesus’ day. But he also was a fan of pagan Greek culture and
contributed money to different pagan projects in the Mediterranean. When he summoned the chief priests and
scribes to inquire about where the Christ was to be born, it is quite likely
that he really didn’t know. It didn’t
hurt that this was another example of him looking like he actually cared about
the Scriptures. And while he probably didn’t believe it, Herod was also not a
man to take chances.
For these
men who really did know God’s Word, the question was easy: it was Bethlehem,
the city of David. The prophet Micah had written, “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.” Herod then sent the magi on their way to
Bethlehem with the request that they find the child and bring him word so that
he too could worship him. But first he met with them secretly and showed a
particular interest in the timing of when the star had appeared – of when this child had been born. Herod had plans.
Matthew
tells us what happened next: 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.” Thanks to the prophet Micah, the magi had a
destination: Bethlehem. Beyond that they knew nothing more and they must have
been wondering how exactly they were going to track down this child.
And then it
happened. Did you notice Matthew calling
our attention? “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.” The star at
is rising that had prompted the journey to Palestine in the first place appeared
again. But this time things were completely different. This time it actually led to the place where
Jesus was.
There is no
way to explain this by nature as we know it to work. It was a miracle. It was God’s
doing as he led the magi to Christ. They saw it and “rejoiced exceedingly
with great joy.” When they arrived at the place they went
into the house they saw Jesus with Mary his mother, and they fell down and
worshiped him. Then, they offered him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh.
The Epiphany of Our Lord is a lavish
demonstration of God’s grace. We see the
saving action of God that is unexpected and unmerited. The magi were Gentiles. They were not Jews.
They did not descend from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. They were not part of God’s
covenant people. You know who else fits
that category? Most of you.
Matthew’s Gospel is very striking
because it is the most “Jewish” of the Gospels.
For example he also uses the Jewish circumlocution “kingdom of heaven”
for the phrase “kingdom of God.” He alone tells us that the sending of the
twelve disciples on their mission trip was only to the lost sheep of the house of
Israel. And yet … the first people who come to worship Jesus in the Gospel are Gentiles.
By his grace, God has given you
forgiveness and salvation through the death and resurrection of Jesus, Israel’s Messiah. You had no right to expect this. You had no claim on it. But in his grace,
love and mercy God has chosen to give it to you. His love has embraced you and all people.
This is by God’s grace. And it is
entirely God’s doing. You may have noticed that I have consistently
referred to the foreign visitors as “magi.”
I have not called them “wise men” because to God’s people they were not wise. No doubt they were learned.
But they were learned in things that were shot through with paganism. In the Greek translation of the book of
Daniel, the men who were called “magi” are grouped with the wizards and the
sorcerers! When it came to true things
of God, the word “magi” resonated with associations of blindness, incompetence
and opposition to God.
And in fact, at each step of the way
it is God who must lead them. It is
God’s Word from Numbers that told them what the star at its rising provided by
God meant. It was God’s Word from Micah
that sent them to Bethlehem. It was God’
star at is rising – now actually leading them to the exact spot – that showed
them where the Christ child was.
The magi did not come to Jesus
Christ by their own reason or strength, and neither have you. You had nothing you could do. Nothing that is, except engage in sin and
resist God. If you want to know what you can do apart from God’s grace, you can
find examples of it. Actually, it is really
not hard to spot. You see it in the
angry and hurtful words you speak. You
see it in the pride and jealousy you feel.
But in his mercy and by his grace
the Spirit of God has called you by the Gospel and enlightened you with his
gifts. Through the Means of Grace he has
applied the saving work of Christ’s cross and resurrection to you. He has given you forgiveness. He has worked regeneration in the water of
Holy Baptism. He has made you a new man
in Christ.
This is unexpected. This is unmerited. This is a gift. The question now is how we respond to this
gift. Does the grace and mercy God has
given us in Jesus Christ become something we take for granted? Do we treat the Word of God as something that
is really not all the interesting? Do we treat this grace and forgiveness as if
it is now our personal possession that does not need to be shared with others
in any way, form or shape that may inconvenience us?
The response by the magi was very
different. When they saw the star leading and guiding them for those last six
miles from Jerusalem to Bethlehem, they
rejoiced exceedingly with great joy as God drew them to Christ. You need to
rejoice in the means by which God continues to draw you to the Lord Jesus. You need to rejoice in them by using them –
by reading God’s Word during the week and by daily looking to your baptism in
faith. You need to rejoice in them by
coming to the Divine Service each week to receive absolution, hear God’s Word
proclaimed, and to receive the true body and blood of Christ in the Sacrament
of the Altar.
Matthew
tells us that when the magi arrived at the Christ child, “opening
their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.” Our response as the Spirit draws us to Christ
is to offer our treasures. We use our
treasures of time and talents
in order to serve others in our home; at school and work; and at church. We become the means that the Lord Jesus uses
to share grace and mercy with others.
On this
Feast of the Epiphany of our Lord we learn of how the glory of the incarnate
Lord first began to appear in the world.
God led the magi to Jesus Christ through a star. But it was not the star alone. It was the star and his Word by which God led
them to Christ. In the Epiphany we see
the tremendous grace God has showered upon us. Like the magi, we didn’t deserve
Jesus Christ. We could not do anything to know God and his salvation. But through his Word and baptism God has
drawn us to the Lord Jesus and given us forgiveness through faith. And because he has, we respond by giving our
treasures to the Lord for service wherever he places us.
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