MANY HAPPY RETURNS
Matthew 2:1-12
It starts today: The return season. Gifts of wrong size, color, and taste return. Some returning from vacations or visits to family. But other things return too. Somewhere in the next week to ten days we will face returning to a lifestyle more or less like the one we left behind before Thanksgiving. But we do not have to. Should we at all?
Today we remember what the story said about the wise men. We begin where their story ends:
And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route. Matthew 1:12 NIV
And young man, please water that camel good. That beast name is Nebuchadnezzar and he has served me well. It has been a long journey and we still have a ways to go. Do a good job and there will be an extra coin in it for you. I’ll just step over here for a moment’s rest.
Hello fellow traveler. Are you headed home? I am. In fact, if I press on I’ll make it to my house in that Persian mountain range by nightfall. That way I’ll not have to spend another night out here in the open. I never thought of my palate on the floor of my house as all that comfortable, but compared to the hard ground where I have been resting, it will be like sleeping on a cloud.
Where have I been? I’ve been to see the King! No, not Caesar Augustus, though he is master of many kings. No, I’ve been to Palestine. Yes, the king there is Herod. You no doubt know him from his reputation as the great builder of the port city of Cesarea, the aqueduct, and the temple in Jerusalem. Yes, we did see him. But Herod is old. The one we went to see was the newborn king. You’ve not heard of a new king? Ahhh, You have eyes my friend, but you do not see. Don’t feel too badly that you missed the news. You are among many.
While I am eager to get home to my own bed, I will say, there is something nice about spending the night under the stars. I have invested so much of my life to studying the lights of the heavens. Me, and magi like me, believe that the stars reveal eternal secrets. But understand, the heavens can be fickle. If you are not watching you may miss its announcements. Not only do you have to watch the night sky. You also have to watch what is written about the cosmos.
Several months back, Gaspar, my fellow Magi, found words recorded in the ancient writings from Hebrew ancestors who had lived years ago in Babylon. Their scrolls recorded words by the ancient prophet Balaam. They read: There shall come a star out of Jacob, and a scepter shall arise out of Israel. We concluded that the prophet was telling his astute readers that the arrival of a great star would indicate the arrival of a great king. With that, my Magi friends and I began looking intently for the appearance of a new star.
Then one night, we were gathered on the terrace of my mountain home. I had the terrace built to give us a place for clear views of the Persian evening sky. We watched silently in a blended quiet both of awe and study. Balthazar suddenly broke the silence as he shouted Look! We turned and he was pointing out a spark born out of the darkness toward the western plain. A casual observer might have missed it. But we were students of stars and saw purple, crimson, and orange spiral upward from a single point of white radiance. Collectively we all bowed our heads. It is the sign, I said. The king is born and we must go to meet him.
With haste we all retreated to our homes and gathered up the necessary provisions for a long journey across the desert. Included in these were the gifts we would bring to the king. Gaspar brought gold. Gold was a gift you would bring to pay tribute to a king or ruler, acknowledging the royalty of the king.
Balthazar brought frankincense, a resin that was very fragrant and used in worship by a priest. And I chose to bring murrh, an expensive spice used to anoint the temple.
When it became obvious we were preparing hastily for a long trip, my neighbors would ask, Where are you going? I don’t really know. How long will you be gone? I don’t really know. We got some strange looks.
Once we met up not far from here, along with our servants we headed out for our long journey. The heat of the day was only matched by the chill of the night. But the night sustained us as we looked each evening and found the guiding star. You might say we walked by faith and by sight. At long last, after many weeks, we arrived in Jerusalem. Jerusalem, the city of peace, the capital of Israel. Surely if a king was to be born from the Hebrews, this would be the place.
I doubt it was unusual for travelers and caravans to make their way into Jerusalem. But we were unique. We brought nothing to sell or trade, only gifts for a king. Our unique status did get us an audience before King Herod. And after offering Herod the customary courtesies, we asked our question: Where is He that has been born “king of the Jews? We saw his star and have come to worship him” At this, Herod’s demeanor changed drastically. In fact, there was a murmuring all around the courtroom. Herod clearly did NOT like something. But he held his composure together long enough to call the chief priest and teachers and ask them where the Messiah was to be born.
The answer came quickly, In Bethlehem. For this is what the prophet Micah wrote:
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. (Matthew 2:6 NIV)
We were about to make our exit when Herod called us back to speak to us in private. He pressed us with questions about the exact time the star had appeared and how long we had journeyed. Then he gave us instructions to head onto Bethlehem and to return hastily so that he could go worship the new king too. But there seemed something less than sincere about this request. I had just recently met Herod, but somehow I knew I he could not be trusted.
What we learned later was that King Herod was not a king by birth, but had been granted the role of King by the Roman Senate. Because his throne had been given to him, Herod lived in fear that something or someone would take it away. Thus, any threat was treated with severe suspicion. In fact, Herod had killed his wife and two of his sons because he thought they planned to rebel against them. Some said it was safer to be Herod’s pig than it was his son. Now we had brought him word of another seeming rival. It seemed highly unlikely that he was sincere when he told of his desire to worship this child.
It was late when we left Herod’s palace, and our inclination was to stay in Jerusalem until the next morning. Bethlehem was only five or six miles away and we could be there in the morning. But as dusk gave way to darkness, the stars came out. Or, should I say, THE star came out. We rejoiced with exceeding great joy. We were so close. We had come so far. We were so excited. With such enthusiasm there would be no sleep anyway. So we journeyed on until we reached Bethlehem. As we came into the little town, it was interesting, no matter where we stood, it seemed that star pointed toward the same house.
We were nervous. Well, I was nervous. I knocked on the door and a young man, not much older than a boy, opened. We asked the same question we had asked of Herod: Where was the Christ born? Despite my unease, I entered. There in the room, was a common man in simple homespun clothing. He raised his hands in greeting and signaled us to follow. They were working hands, those of a stone cutter, or perhaps a carpenter. Inside was a young girl, certainly younger than my youngest daughter. She held a small child. Is this? I fumbled for words. The girl smiled, and as she uncovered his face said, "His name is Jesus."
Oh! At the sound of that name I fell on my face and wept uncontrollably. We presented our gifts and bowed in worship. I don't know how long I remained there, but eventually, I opened my eyes. I looked up. The girl, his mother was still smiling. I rose to my knees, and reached out and touched the baby's face. He opened His eyes, and looked at me. Oh those eyes. They looked right through me, into the depths of my very soul.
We stayed the night in Bethlehem. The next morning we awoke and the strangest thing. We all had the same sensation not to go back through Jerusalem and avoid encountering Herod again. We had debated often about the track of our journey. But on this we were in complete agreement: There was something about the jealousy, the hypocrisy, the evil of Herod......and we would be no part of it. Herod would have our head if he caught us after we disobeyed his orders. But we didn’t care. So we have returned a different way than we went and now there are many miles of desert between us. We did not go back the same way we came in our hearts either. Meeting God through that baby…it changed me. It was as refreshing as water to a dry camel. Which reminds me: Young man. Is that camel ready yet? Excellent. Well I’m on my way. And God be with you. I know I have certainly been with Him.
The story of the wise men is a story that is shrouded in mystery. From tradition we seem to know all the facts and details. But as we study the scripture we find that there are a lot of questions we can not answer about the wise men from the Biblical text. For example:
How many were there? We don’t know.
Tradition has given them names.
Where did they come from? We don’t know.
What route did they take? We don’t know.
How long did their journey take? We don’t know.
There is a tradition that when they returned to Persia, they gave away their great wealth and became preachers of the gospel of peace. I don’t know if that is true either.
But we DO know that they returned differently than they came.
How interesting that after they worshiped Jesus that they could not return the same way that they had come? I find that to be a fact even today. Once you have met God you will never be the same. An encounter with God changes things – it changes you – doesn’t it? It’s always been that way.
· Jacob wrestled with God and never walked the same the rest of his life.
· Moses met God at a burning bush and he was never the same.
· Isaiah experienced the glory of the Lord in the temple, saying, My eyes have seen the King, The Lord of hosts." Isaiah 6:5 (NKJV) He was never the same again.
· Job questions God over and over again concerning his suffering and when God shows up in a whirlwind, Job knew he had spoke about things he did not know. And he was never the same. Job 40:4-5 (MSG)
That is what happens when we walk into the presence of God. We become changed. That is what happened to the wise men when they encountered Christ – they were changed. That is what happens when we encounter Christ – things become different.
How you come to Christmas determines how you go away.
They came in faith, they returned in fulfillment.
The wise men exercised more faith than anyone in the Nativity Story
Mary and the shepherds saw angels. Joseph had a dream. By comparison, a bright seemed a bit subtle to go on. They believed there was a newborn king.
Moreso, they willingly risked time, wealth, and safety to find him.
They did not know where they were going or how long it would take.
There are times when all we have to go by is something as subtle as a star.
We too have to walk by faith more than sight.
They came in worship
These wise men had no personal agenda.
There were not there to lobby the king (or his family) for special favors.
Instead they came to worship Him, to pay Him honor.
We spend a lot of time at Christmas doing lots of things. How much time in worship?
O Come all ye faithful, Joyful and Triumphant.
O Come ye O Come ye to Bethlehem
Come and behold Him, born the King of Angels
O come let us adore Him…Christ the Lord.
They came giving gifts.
They returned having given Jesus the very best they had.
They offer costly and precious gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
They offered them not out of compulsion but out of grace.
Are you giving generously, extravagantly to God’s work? Giving to the Lord should never leave us the same.
When we walk into the presence of God. We become changed. That is what happened to the wise men when they encountered Christ – they were changed. THAT is what made them wise.
If WE are wise, that is what happens when we encounter Christ – things become different.
The holidays may bring out in you a generosity hidden away much of the rest of the year.
Don’t go back that stingy – tightwad way
Did Christmas inspire politeness in you to get along with people with whom you usually have friction? Family Member, Co-Worker, etc.
· In the Dark Ages, the church at France managed to get warring barons to agree to a special truces on Sundays and holy days.
If for Christmas, you buried the hatchet. Leave it buried. Go back a different way and don’t pick it up.
Maybe you are in church or giving spiritual matters a bit of attention because of the time of year. Don’t go back to business as usual.
· CEO Christians: Christian Easter Only
Christmas brings out the best in folks. Don’t return that. Don’t put it away with the decorations.
All they that come to Christ go away a different route.......once we meet the Christ......once we worship him......we are changed ! We are different !
THAT is wisdom, letting Jesus change you.
Find Christ this Christmas and I can guarantee that you will be changed. Things will be different. Step out in faith and seek Him as the wisemen did.
The first step is to the altar, in faith, as an act of worship, giving your allegiance.
Don’t let the only unique thing about Christmas this year be that it snowed. BE WISE.
