Reflection on Matthew 2:1-12

 

Matthew 2:1-12

1 In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, magi from the east came to Jerusalem, 2 asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star in the east and have come to pay him homage.” 3 When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him, 4 and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it has been written by the prophet:

6  ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,

are by no means least among the rulers of Judah,  

for from you shall come a ruler 

who is to shepherd my people Israel.’ ”

7 Then Herod secretly called for the magi and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. 8 Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.” 9 When they had heard the king, they set out, and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen in the east, until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. 11 On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

 

Reflection

God gave the magi a star.

I do not want you to forget this intentional action by the Lord.  God gave the magi a star.  I do not want it to get lost on you just how much of a gift this is, especially considering who they were. 

Typically, we think, these guys are three kings.  Of course, God has their backs.  But, these guys were not kings, they were magi.  They were into astrology.  They were into reading the stars and getting meaning out of the stars, because they (like most ancient people) believed that the stars were actual heavenly beings.  And, if you could figure out what those guys and gals up there in the heavens were up to, then maybe you could figure out what is going on with the stuff down here as well. 

Divination, figuring out what the heavenly beings are up to, was forbidden in Leviticus 19:26.  It reads, “Do not practice divination or sorcery.”  That seems to be a pretty clear cut instruction. 

Could the sun, moon, and stars be used to help predict the seasons and the time of year?  Yes, that was permitted.  God might even use the sun, moon, and stars as a sign or warning (Genesis 1:14).  So, you could watch out for that.  But, are people allowed to use them to eavesdrop on the heavenly council as they make their deliberations?  No. 

Of course, the magi were not Israelites, so we can forgive them for being ignorant of this law.  They had no compulsion to follow Israel’s laws, but that makes it all the more surprising that God chose them.  God gave them a star.  And, if God chose them, God might also choose you.

And, while we are at it, can we mention that it is equally surprising that God gave a star to these people “from the east,” who were not even followers of Israel’s God?  Why would God choose these strangers to reveal God’s greatest gift to humanity?  Why not choose someone who actually knows about the coming of the Messiah; someone who has been eagerly awaiting and praying at their bedside for the Messiah’s coming.  Why not choose someone who cares that the world will finally be set right by God?  I do not know the answer to that.  But, I do know that God chose the Magi.  God gave them a star.  And, if God chose them, God might also choose you.

Many biblical scholars have pointed out that these “three men” might not have been three, nor were they necessarily men.  Even in the Bible there are women mentioned practicing divination.  And, the Bible says nothing about how many visitors there were to Jesus’ home.  That being said, it is quite possible that they were men; after-all, if the three wise women had visited Jesus, they would have brought diapers, formula, and a casseroles or two for the family.  I stole that from the internet.  But, I agree, who gives a baby “gold, frankincense, and myrrh” (Matthew 2:11)?  But, the magi did.  It was to them that God gave a star.  And, if God chose them, God might also choose you.

You see, the more that I study the Bible the more I think that God chose the magi because they were foreigners.  Just remember that when the Lord called Abraham, he said, “In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:3).  And later after Isaac was not sacrificed by Abraham, God repeats this promise and says, “In your seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed” (Genesis 22:18).  God has always, from the very start of the story, wanted to reach everyone.  So yes, these foreigners are chosen to see God’s gift of love to the world; God’s love in the flesh.  And, if God wanted to reach them, God probably wants desperately to reach you in a deep way too.

God did send the magi a star, because that was where these magi were looking.  God gave them a star to follow in order to reveal God’s ways to them.  Take a quick note that it was only when the magi detoured from this plan, detoured from that star that some major, life threatening problems were set in motion.  But, we will get to that in a minute. 

First, I just want to point out that these people knew the language of reading the stars, so God started there in order to draw them closer to the Lord’s heart and soul.  God is willing to stoop down and speak our language, to walk with us for a while in our ways, in order to grasp hold of us.  The magi believed those stars meant something, so God made the star mean something.  God gave them a star.  And, if God spoke their language and understood their ways, maybe God understands you better than you can even imagine, and can speak in ways you can understand as well.

God gave them a star.  But, they failed to keep their eye on it. 

They saw the star while they were still in the east, but they failed to follow it straight to God’s intended destination.  The Bible indicates that the magi were detoured, because the first time the magi make an appearance in the Bible is just as they wander into Jerusalem asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star in the east and have come to pay him homage” (Matthew 2:2). 

They were not the first people to take their eyes off of God resulting in a tragic consequence, and they will not be the last.  Adam and Eve took their eyes off of God and trusted the word of a snake instead.  There were tragic consequences.  The Israelites, after being freed from slavery in Egypt, failed to trust God while Moses was away on the mountains receiving the commandments.  There were tragic consequences.  And, I am not even going to start talking about all of the times that I have not trusted in God and the direction that God wanted me to take.  But, if I were, you would see that the consequences, though they did not exactly affect the destiny of all humankind or cause a mass casualty situation, were not good all the same.

For the magi’s part, their failure to trust God, and where God was leading them, caused them to trust in an insecure ruler which lit the spark of a horror that they could have never anticipated.  They went to Herod to inquire about the newborn king.  This caused Herod to be “frightened,” as the Bible says, “and all Jerusalem with him” (Matthew 2:3).  Sure, the magi were given the probable location of the child, the Messiah, the new king, by Herod’s priests and scribes, but they also triggered the fears of a man who did not want to lose power, and set the stage for many baby boys to lose their lives as Herod sought to destroy the future king.

If only they had trusted God and not sought out the wisdom of someone else.  If only they had just looked up, because when they eventually did look up they saw “ahead of them, [going] the star that they had seen in the east, until it stopped over the place where the child was” (Matthew 2:9). 

Have you ever been in that sort of situation?  Have you ever faltered in your trust of where God is leading, and it backfired?  Have you ever trusted in your own smarts or the recommendation of a friend, or simply just ignored God’s leading because it was not to your liking and you did not like what God had to say?  Has anyone ever been hurt because you failed to follow your star?  God gave them a star.

I do not know about you, but those failures, those hurts that I have caused will play over and over again in my mind, usually when I need to be to bed early and get lots of sleep.  It is always on a night when I actually need to be well rested for the next day.  Every, single, time. 

Well, if you understand what I am talking about, then I have a story that I want to finish for you, because, even though the magi take their eyes off of God, God does not take eyes off of them.  God gave them a star, again.  And, if God chose them still, even after their failure, God will also choose you too, after your failures. 

When Jesus instructs us to forgive seventy times seven times, it is because he forgives that many times.  Jesus is always seeking to lead us back.  God is always forgiving and trying to start over with us again. There is always a star to follow.  This forgiveness does not erase the harm that is done, but God always provides a chance at a new start and a new life. 

And, that new start, that chance to follow the star once again, delivers the magi to, as the bible says, “the place where the child was. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh” (Matthew 2:9-11).  They followed the star, and it led them right to where God wanted them the whole time, to Jesus.  And, when they are with Jesus, their hearts are overcome with joy and gratitude as they give gifts out of thanks for all that God has done. 

God gave them a star.  And, if God chose them, God will also choose you.

Look up and follow your star; whatever that star might actually look like.  It might be a faithful friend.  It might be a faithful coworker.  It might be an unexpected opportunity or seemingly chance occurrence.  Or, it might be an actual star up in the sky.  No matter what God chooses to draw you closer, look up and follow your star.  Even if you have tragically veered off course before, look up again, and follow the star.  Jesus is drawing you closer and closer to his abundant life.  That is the way of love.