This sermon was delivered to St Oswald’s, Maybole, Ayrshire, Scotland on the 8th January 2012; St Oswald’s is a Scottish Episcopal Church in the Dioceses of Glasgow and Dumfries.
The readings for today are: Isaiah 60:1-6 Ephesians 3:1-12 Matthew 2:1-12 Psalm 72:1-7,10-14
“Please join me in a short prayer from Psalms 19:14, and ” Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of our hearts, be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer. Amen.
Introduction
To most people, the word Epiphany will mean nothing. In fact most Christians will probably say they have heard the name but are not to sure what it is, until you mention the wise men then they will quickly regurgitate the story of the three wise men, (or the three kings), from the east visiting Jesus the night he was born giving him gifts of Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh.
Well this is not the message in Mathew’s gospel. Yes the Christian tradition pictures these wise men, (or Magi as in Magicians), as kings; but it is most likely they were astrologers from Babylon, who, because of the influence of Daniel, heard about a promised messiah. It is also assumed that there were three of them, one for each of the three gifts presented to Jesus, yet again, there is nowhere in the Bible to indicate that there were only three.
And, by popular opinion, it is taken that these wise men showed up on the very night of our Saviour’s birth; despite the fact that most historians and theologians agree that the visit took place when Jesus was about two years old.
So you may ask, what are we to believe? Well I do not think these facts are too important because it does not interfere with the real message which is Jesus was presented to the world in his full divinity.
Let me explain, Mathew in his gospel tells us what our reaction should be to this birth; a reaction which asks, who exactly is that baby in the manger; as later on, Jesus himself asked His disciples that very same question in chapter 16 "Who do you say I am?"
Jesus is the King of the Jews
According to the apostle Matthew who was a Jew, writing to fellow Jews; Jesus is the King of the Jews, the promised Messiah, and the Christ; Mathew then gives us two proofs.
First, the star
First, the star; because unlike us, the people of Matthew's age would not have found the Magi's claim bizarre, … that a star rose to herald the birth of the King of the Jews. In Matthew's day it was accepted that births and deaths of great men were marked by heavenly signs; such as written in Numbers 24:17, were it says "A star will come out of Jacob; a sceptre will rise out of Israel" and the Jews of Matthew's were well acquainted with this prophecy, and that star was no accident, to them, it was a sign from God.
Second, the place of his birth.
The second proof Matthew gives us is the place of his birth, which was Bethlehem. When King Herod heard about the Magi, he was told by his chief administrators who quoted Micah 5:2, by saying "In Bethlehem, in the land of Judah”. Matthew's message is so very clear: the baby in the manger is the King of the Jews, the Christ, the Messiah.
Jesus Acknowledged as King by Gentiles
To move on, the Epiphany is all about the divinity of Jesus being revealed to the world, and who better to reveal his divinity than the neutral or alien Gentiles. That is what is happening here. The Gentile Magi are proclaiming Christ as the Messiah and this in God’s plan, removing all political manipulation.
Now as you know, when a new King is born, there is usually excitement; … however the Magi must have been disappointed as they were directed to a lowly house.
Yet, when the Magi announced that Jesus was the Messiah, the people, together with Herod, were actually disturbed.
Herod was disturbed because Jesus was a rival to his throne, and Herod met secretly with the Magi because he was already planning to kill all the infant boys of Jerusalem in order to ensure the death of Jesus.
The ordinary people were disturbed because they knew what happen when Herod felt threatened, as he would murder, kill and pillaged; which he did.
The Priests and Pharisees were disturbed because the Messiah's birth threatened their political status and public positions, and so instead of rejoicing, many were disturbed rather than rejoicing.
You therefore must ask as to why the Magi, despite all this despondency, continue with their search for the Messiah onto Bethlehem.
Well the Magi were not first century autograph hunters who wanted the thrill of being the first ones to greet the new King. No, they had had already announced their intention in Jerusalem that they wanted "to worship him." Verse 11 says "they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him".
Imagine this: these Wise men, Gentiles, proud, probably arrogant and independent, bowing before an infant, acknowledging a Jew as the Ruler of their lives, … accepting Him as their Lord and Master. Now that takes faith.
And that's not all, verse 11 says: "Then they opened their treasures “and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh". These Magi gave Jesus their best.
Matthew is giving a very strong message to his fellow Jews here: namely, that these Gentiles recognised Jesus as the Messiah, whereas the Jews do not.
The Magi had only a star, yet that was enough to send them on their great journey to worshiped a great king.
There is always this two-fold reaction to Jesus: some believe and worship him; others reject him and his message. What you believe is in proportion to what has been revealed to you as per our New Testament reading this morning.
Herod is the horrible dictator and puppet king.
The final theme discussed by Mathew is the style of leadership between these two Kings.
In 40 BC, the Roman Senate had given Herod the title, "King of the Jews“ yet Herod was disturbed by the suggestion that a new king would challenge to him and his authority; and Herod being totally insecure and paranoid did not take any chances.
According to the Zondervan Bible, Herod had killed all his rivals, including: the brother of his wife, the husband of his sister, a trusted friend, one of his ten wives, his mother-in-law, another husband of his sister, and three of his own sons. This is an evil and dangerous man, and one to be avoided.
(cf The Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopaedia of the Bible, Volume Three, pages 126-138).
Herod gained and held his throne through fear and bloodshed. He ruled by the sword, and used bribery, deceit, and force, to achieve his own ends. You can therefore understand why the people therefore did not rejoice at the news of this new king Jesus, for fear of reprisals from Herod.
Christ the shepherd King.
In stark contrast to Herod’s reign, we have the future reign of the Messiah. 2 Samuel 5:2 says that He "will be the shepherd for my people Israel."
The Messiah's rule, unlike Herod's, will not be marked with violence, bloodshed, and tyranny; and according to Isaiah 40:11, “the Messiah ... tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young”.
The prophet Jeremiah also says the Messiah, (in Jeremiah 23:5), "will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land".
Now it is true that many of the Jews of Matthew's day did not have this shepherd conception of the Messiah, as many of them thought of the Messiah as a kind of Jewish Caesar, someone who would conquer with the sword, and someone who was not all that different from King Herod.
Yet it was a huge surprise of the Gospel that the Messiah, lived as a slave and died as a criminal on a cross before He sat on a throne. Jesus was the slave of all before He became the Lord of all.
So both Herod and Jesus had the title “King of the Jews”, one is apparently strong and rules with the sword; the other is apparently weak, and the servant of all. Notice the word apparent, the one who is servant of all has the all strength, and the one who needs to show force, needs to, because he is so weak.
Conclusion
The story of the Magi is a call for us to bow down and worship Jesus as the Messiah, and give Him the best of ourselves.
It is hard for us today to imagine the god like powers of those ancient kings, as today royalty tends to be mere figureheads, but to those who lived under the shadow of ancient thrones, they either bowed or perish.
That is the message this morning, the message if Mathew, the message of the Epiphany, that Jesus is Lord and we are here to worship him in body, soul and spirit. I know I am talking to the converted, but we too have a choice, we either bow-down, worship and be saved, or we reject him and perish.
A spiritual life is life indeed, but a spiritual death although taking longer, leads to an ultimate death; and like Herod, a spiritual death can disturb everyone associated with you.
Amen.
Let us pray,
Father, we thank you for Jesus.
We thank you that he is our messiah, our saviour and our king, and like the wise men all those years ago, we are here this morning to worship him as Lord.
We thank you that he was born in a lowly stable, and lived as a humble man; that he knows and understands the pressures we face in our lives.
Father, bless us this day, that as we face 2012, we do not face it alone. We do not know what is in front of us; so let us know that you are with us, guiding us every step of the way.
Father, give us also a revelation of your mighty strength through weakness; so we can reflect it in our lives. Show us your power through humility, and teach us how to use humility wisely in our lives to reflect you here on earth.
We ask in Jesus name,
Amen.
