Wise Men Still Seek Him

“Wise Men Still Seek Him”

December 18, 2016

Matthew 2:1-12

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2 and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:

6 “‘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.’”

7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”

9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.”

Have you ever thought what it was like for the Wisemen (or Magi) to follow that star? The Wisemen intrigue me; they ignite my interest. There is a little we know about them but there is so much more we don’t know. We have to speculate. We have to guess. Most of the males in this room have played a wise man in a Christmas play at one time or other. We usually were dressed in fancy flowing robes and a crown of some kind or other. We think they were not only wise but rich as well. Some believe they were kings. We sing “We Three Kings”. Scholars says that probably came from Psalm 72:11, which says,

“May all kings bow down to him and all nations serve him.”

And we know they were from the East. The Bible tells us that. We know they came bearing gifts for the Christ Child and we know what three of them were - gold, frankincense and myrrh. Many sermons have been preached on those gifts. They could represent so many things. What piqued my interest, tho, is the Wisemen themselves. What would cause three or more Wisemen, be they kings, rich men or scholars, to leave their homes, jobs, and families, to follow a star? Certainly I am not going to be able to answer that question this morning. God hasn’t given me any divine knowledge to be able to know the answer. But that in itself is a clue. 1. The Wisemen had divine knowledge.

It doesn’t matter if they were a kings, chemists, or astronomers – they had to have had divine knowledge to follow that star. More than that – we can conclude that they had a relationship with God - not only because God revealed this information to them but because they had a desire to know. They had a thirst for this information. They had a hunger to know the things of God.

That says something about them. It tells me that they were, indeed, Wisemen, but it also tells me that they were seekers of God long before this incident. I can imagine them pouring over the scrolls and ancient information that came their way. I can see them all exciting and enthused when they discovered that God was going to send His Son to be born King of kings. And when they discovered that a star would lead them to the Christ-child they must have been ecstatic with excitement. Can’t you see them planning the trip; deciding what gifts to bring; who was going and so on?

But here is something to think about. There must have been many Wisemen; many astronomers; many Biblical scholars in their day. Why were they chosen to find the Christ? It has more to do with just being wise; it has more to do than being magi; it has more to do with being king or being rich. The answer is that they were ‘seekers’.

Would it be corny if I said, “Wise men still seek Him?” It is so true. The rest of the world is doing their thing; going their way; busy with life. Wise men still seek Him. And Wise men still find Him.