A Journey of Faith
By
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
OPENING:- Today as we are approaching and will be celebrating Christmas on this week I felt God taking me in a different direction. I am not going to deal with the traditional Christmas message. Tradition has a major effect on how we perceive scripture and the things of God and it is because of tradition, that it is imperative that we need to be cognizant and continually ask God for wisdom and understanding. The Bible says Proverbs 4:7 “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding”.
Journey:- Traveling from one place to another
Faith:- The substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.
PRAYER:-
SCRIPTURE:- Matthew 2:1-12 “ Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel. Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also. When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.…”
Today I want to look at the Wise men, their Journey of Faith, and how their Journey of Faith should exemplify what all people of faith who call themselves Christians should exemplify and that is a willingness to go. This journey of the wise men has several very important factors that we must apply to our walk with God.
A.) They saw
B.) They came
C.) Their journey was a journey of sacrifice.
D.) Their journey was a journey of faith.
E.) Their journey was a journey of worship.
F.) They obeyed
G.) Their journey was a journey of obedience
First let me establish who the wise men were! Verse 1 says “Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem”. They were wise men from the east, nothing else is said about their origin here. Contrary to popular Christmas tradition, the Bible does not use the terms three wise men or three kings to describe the travelers who went to see Jesus after his birth. Matthew used the Greek word magoi to describe them. The word magoi is the same Greek word from which we get the word magician. The wise (magoi) men were most-likely astrologers from Babylon or Persia, some 500 miles away from Bethlehem. A similar group of people is mentioned in the book of Daniel. They are the group of advisers to the kings of Babylon and Persia. The king calls upon them to solve difficult mysteries, riddles, or dreams. Daniel himself belonged to this group. And he was admitted only after he studied for three years in their university. Somehow, the wise men had met the prophesies of Daniel or another Old Testament prophet and were waiting for the coming King, the Savior of the world. In the Chinese Bible the word used for “magi” or “wise men” is PHDs. This reflects the idea that they were the highly educated of society. The Bible does not reveal the names of the wise men and that is significant because, when the Bible mentions a person by name there is something about that person that God wants us to understand. When it just says certain man or woman or in this case “Wise men” there is something about their actions and behavior that God wants us to understand.
The Magi dropped everything to travel to see Jesus. They understood that the King of the Jews was the One that they would worship as their own King. They were so confident of this that they were unwilling to wait until He had claimed His kingdom. These wealthy scholars hurried to bow down and humble themselves before a mere Child, recognizing that this Child was worthy of worship. They were spiritually wise because they sought to know about the one true God and His Son. This desire to worship the king set them off on an amazing journey. They traveled from some 500 miles away therefore this journey that these Magi undertook was no weekend trip. This was before trains, plans, and automobiles so this journey would have been most likely traveled by camel. This trip would have taken them about 60 days barring any incidents, weather, sickness, stopping for provisions, and so forth. This was truly a journey of sacrifice. Their journey was uncomfortable, inconvenient, and time consuming. They traveled on this long journey by camel through the desert without a clear destination of where they were going. That is walking by faith and not by sight. The journey was one that was a journey of worship and produces a transformation.
Verse 2 says “Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him”. We have seen his star – 1.) THEY SAW – I want to deal with this a little bit. People have argued about this star almost since it happened, some say it was an angel, science says well Jupiter and Saturn get in a perfect alignment and the combines light of the two planets produce a bright light and therefore produce the Christmas star. However; I propose to you this just could be what they saw - The Bible says in Psalm 119:1130 “The entrance of thy words giveth light…”.
WATCH THIS:- When Jesus, the Logos – the Word of God made flesh John 1:14 “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth” – was born, stepped into humanity, the word entered humanity and produced light, his star, which is exactly what scripture says. Now regardless of what the nativity scene portrays or the song says the wise men were not in the immediate area, remember we established the fact that they were some 500 miles away. They saw the light, the star some 500 miles away WHY – because they were expecting something. The spirit of expectation is the breeding ground for miracles. The Spirit of expectancy causes a confidence in our minds and hearts that God is going to show up. The spirit of expectancy was heavily upon the wise men because they understood scripture, they knew the prophecies and understood Daniel 9:24-25, “which talks about from the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah…” So, they were expecting the arrival of the Messiah. Matthew 2:6 says, “And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel”. So many times, we want God to do something, we expect God to do this or that, but we fail to understand scripture. 2 Chronicles 7:14 says “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land”. We expect God to heal the land and forgive our sins, but we haven’t humbled ourselves, turned from our wicked ways, sought His face or prayed yet we expect to see His hand and never once have we looked for His heart.
So, the wise men SAW his star because:
1. The understood scripture – you want to see His affects you have to understand scripture. John 5:39 says “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me”.
2. They had a spirit of expectancy. The Clark Sisters said it like this “I expect a miracle every day”.
Because they understood the scriptures and were expecting something to happen, when they saw the affects of the miracle (not the miracle itself yet) it caused a desire inside of them to go. One song writer put it like this: - Nearer my God to Thee.
Verse 1 concludes with “there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem”. We already established that they came from some 500 miles away. The saw his star because they were expecting something. Before their journey even began, they had to be ready and waiting. Had the Magi not been faithful to watching and waiting for God’s signs, they have easily chalked up the star as an astrological event, like Saturn and Jupiter aligning themselves in perfect alignment, instead of a sign from God. But, because of their faith and the expectancy, they knew the moment they saw the star that they had to move. When they saw it, they came to Jerusalem!
Verse 2-8 “Where is the one born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when we were in the East, and we have come to worship him”. This mad Herod upset, and he gathered all the chief priest and scribes and demanded to know of them where the Christ should be born vs 3. No King of the Jews had been born. There was no baby in the palace. Who were these men, coming in and upsetting the whole city, and demanding to worship a baby King that didn’t even exist? Understand Herod was the King of the Jews and the priest and scribes were Jews, yet they were not expecting the Messiah. John 1:11 says “He came unto his own, and his own received him not”. King Herod, with doubts and jealousy raging in his mind, called together the Jewish religious’ leaders vs 6-8 “And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel. Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also”. Surely, if there was a King Who had been born, if the Messiah had really come, they would know about it. But the religious leaders knew nothing about it. They knew that the Messiah would be born in a little town called Bethlehem. Beyond that, they knew nothing. They weren’t expecting anything, they didn’t understand scripture, and they apparently hadn’t noticed his star in the sky. They couldn’t be bothered to travel six miles to Bethlehem to see if the Messiah, God’s promised One, had truly come, much less worship Him.
Vs 8 says “And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also”. To have come so far, to be so close to the end of their journey, and to be surrounded by people of supposedly like faith only to find that no-one knew of his birth, no-one had a desire to worship him, no-one seemed to care, and everyone was getting upset just at the mention of his birth. Can you imagine how the wise felt as they leave Jerusalem to head to Bethlehem.
No doubt they began to even question themselves, had they even seen his star? They hadn’t seen it since it appeared to them in the East. Did they misinterpret the Scriptures? Could they be wrong? Have they traveled all this way for nothing? They have now been traveling for at least 60 days, dealing with the weather, desiring to see the King of the Jews and Worship Him.
Vs 9 says “When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was”. WATCH THIS:- the star, which they saw in the east, went before them… They hadn’t seen the star since they saw it in the East some 60 days ago God had not forsaken them, they were not abandoned. Sometimes in our Christian journey it may be a while before we see a sign from God, but keep on pressing on, keep on holding on, keep on striving and pretty soon after while God is going to show up in your situation.
Vs 11 says “And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh”.
When the Wise men finally come to the house where the Christ Child was staying, they “fell down and worshipped him,” (which is the reaction proper for being in the presence of the King of Kings).
Then it continues with and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. These were not random gifts that they had lying around, they were not the leftovers after they had done all that they wanted to do, they were each significant at the time, and they have important meanings for us today.
1. Gold is a precious metal that has been used for jewelry, ornaments, currency, and idols throughout human history because of its color and shine. Gold is symbolic of His Divinity – Kingship of God. The Gold represented Jesus’ royalty as King of Kings. Gold in the Bible is symbolic of God. It represents the most precious of metals and is extremely rare in its purest form. The intrinsic value of gold has been established since ancient times and gold was used to honor kings. The furniture of the Tabernacle features gold, symbolically pointing to Christ and His deity. The Ark of the Covenant was constructed of acacia wood (symbolic of Jesus’ humanity) and overlaid with gold (symbolic of His divinity). It was a common practice in that day for a foreign envoy to offer gold to a newborn prince who would one day ascend to the throne.
2. Frankincense is an expensive fragrance or perfume made from trees in India and Arabia. Frankincense symbolized Jesus’ position as Lord of Lords and Priest of God. Frankincense is an aromatic, clear resin obtained from trees in northern India and Arabia Isaiah. It is used in incense and perfumes and was treasured for its aroma and healing properties. Frankincense was an ingredient used in the sanctuary of the Lord Exodus 30:34 as part of the meat offering Leviticus 2:1, 16; 6:15; 24:7 and as a sweet savor (incense). Frankincense is also a symbol of prayer Psalm 141:2; Luke 1:10; Revelation 5:8; 8:3. The smell was thought to ascend to heaven and please God. As they offered this valuable gift, the wise men recognized Jesus was ultimately worthy of worship in the highest order.
Because of the use in the Temple, frankincense is emblematic of Jesus’ office as a Priest of God Exodus 30:34-37. It is also symbolic of the priest’s work in offering the prayers of the people to the Lord, Luke 1:10, Revelation 8:3-5.
3. Myrrh is a specific kind of costly perfume made from rare thorn bushes in Arabia and Ethiopia that is used as an antiseptic anointing oil and embalming fluid. Represent Jesus as the Prophet of God
Myrrh was a spice used for medicine, cosmetics, and anointing oil. It was mixed into the oil that was used to anoint prophets for the divinely appointed work of revealing God and communicating His will and words to His people. The gift of myrrh also takes on another representation. In addition to anointing prophets, oil was used in the anointing of the dead. Myrrh eerily foretold of Jesus sacrificial death. This very expensive spice was often used in embalming practices. Myrrh was presented to Jesus at His birth pointing to His life as a Prophet and it was used at His death to anoint His body for the grave.
UNDERSTAND:- The Wise men were not purchasing anything with their gifts, they understood that there is a price to worship, through the gifts they gave were praising with meaningful purpose and substance. Worshiping Jesus is more than simply bowing our knees or saying we worship him. The wise men gave Jesus gifts to demonstrate their worship. In 2 Samuel 24:24 David says he wouldn’t offer sacrifices to God that cost him nothing. We can see that the gifts the Wise men offered were treasures fit for a king. They weren’t stingy. They didn’t send servants to give them either. They went themselves. Their worship cost them a large amount of time and expense.
For us we need to learn that worship requires sacrifice, both of our time and expense. Romans 12:1 it says, “Present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.” That means that everything we have and even our very being must be devoted to God in worship.
CLOSING:- Your journey of faith may not be easy. People will question you co-workers will scratch their heads and even call you crazy, family may even turn their back upon you or call you. You may even have so-called Christians that are supposed to be of like faith disappoint you. There may even be times when God Himself will seem distant from you. However; He will be with you every step of the way because He said He will never leave you nor forsake you.
The Wise men were expecting a miracle and willing to do whatever it took to see Jesus. One song writer put it this way “Oh I want to see him look upon his face there to sing forever of his saving grace….” Then another song writer said “When I see Jesus Amen”.
Think for a moment about what God might be calling you to give up for the sake of following after Him.
It could be half an hour less in bed in the morning so that you can worship Him or read the Bible or just communicate with Him in prayer.
It could be leaving your comfort zone and seeking His face.
church and starting conversations with them or inviting them to your home.
We are not called to a life of comfort and ease. We are called to a life of sacrifice.
The wise men didn’t have a lot of information in front of them. Though there was evidence in Scripture and the star itself, there was no 100% proof that they would find the King they were looking for. But they believed.
They believed that Jesus is the King of Jews and that this star would lead them to Him They were not the only ones to see the star, but most people ignored it while they took action. They had faith that it was a sign from God announcing the birth of Christ. They seemed to know some of the Scriptures and what the prophets had said about him and believed.
Their belief led to action. They were willing to sacrifice comfort and security to see and worship him. They were willing to face the ridicule, criticism, and the murmurings of their friends. They were willing to leave their homes, their places of comfort. Why? Because of faith.
Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”
Hebrews 11:6 “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him”.
Do you believe enough to Seek the Lord While He may be found Isaiah 55:6.
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
