Wisemen: Seekers Of The Truth

“WISEMEN: SEEKERS OF THE TRUTH”

(Matt 2:1-12)

- Matt 2:1-12

- Pray

- Our text today tells us about some wise men. They are called magi. These were men of science, students of astronomy, students of the body of

knowledge of their day. They were seekers of the truth and they had

come upon some very important knowledge.

- But that knowledge alone is not what made them wise. It is what they did

with that knowledge. You see, these wise men knew how to apply the truth

they had.

- And that is what made them wise.

- What can these magi teach us today? What example do they give us to live by? Are we willing to be SEEKERS OF THE TRUTH.

- As we look at several characteristics of their wisdom, if we will be open to follow their example, we may find the ability to live above the level of the ordinary and mundane.

1. AN ATTITUDE OF EXPECTENCY

- Expectancy motivated them to seek out the child

- Certainly they had knowledge that the King of the Jews would be born. They told Herod they had seen His star while they were still in the east

- But merely the having of the knowledge was not enough. I’m sure they could have made note of the sighting of His star in their journal. They could have recorded it for posterity, but they wanted to see for themselves

- They were filled with anticipation of what they might discover. So, they became men on a mission. But it was a mission full of hope. Hope of finding a savior, a King of all Kings.

- In fact, they were so sure they would find Him that they brought the gifts with them

- Do you have a great expectency of seeing the Messiah? Do you have child like anticipation that Christmas is coming?

- Jesus said in Mark 10:15, “I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the Kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”

- In order to come into the Kingdom, you must look to the Lord with hope. You must believe that He can do something in your life. Expectancy says that Christ can make a difference

- When I seek Him with expectency, it gives me hope to live another day.

- A few years ago the psychology department of Duke University carried on an interesting experiment. They wanted to see how long rats could swim.

- In one container they placed a rat for whom there was no possibility of escape. He swam a few moments and then ducked his head to drown.

- In the other container they made the hope of escape a possibility for the rat. The rat swam for several hours before finally giving up.

- The conclusion of the experiment was just the opposite of our common conclusion. We usually say, "As long as there is life, there is hope."

- The Duke experiment proved, "As long as there is hope, there is life."

- We must live our lives with great expectency of seeing the hope that can only be found in the Christ child.

The next characteristic we find is ...

2. A WILLINGNESS TO TAKE A RISK

- Not only did they exhibit a certain expectancy, but they also were willing to risk that they were right.

- We’ve all heard the little cliche, "Nothing ventured, nothing gained." There is truth to that statement.

- Jesus said it another way. He said, "Seek and ye shall find." In other words, we must step out on our expectation if we would find what we are seeking.

- The wise men were willing to put their faith to the test of action.

- Risk is what puts the works to faith. It is the wise men hitching up to the camels and starting out across the desert following the star.

- It is Peter stepping out of the boat to walk on the water. It is Moses being pursued by Pharaoh, stretching out his rod to part the Red Sea.

- It is Abraham lifting the knife to sacrifice his son, Isaac, believing that God knew what He was doing. It is Joshua marching around the walled city of Jericho, trusting that God would bring the walls down,

- It is David going forth to face a mighty giant, armed only with a sling and some rocks.

- It is Daniel walking into the lion’s den, refusing to leave off his devotion to God.

- It is Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednigo willing to risk all for Christ and be thrown into a fiery furnace

- You see, risk is precisely what we need. Risk is faith in action, and faith in action causes us to grow.