|
|
"Wise People" - January 6, 2008 - The Rev. Vicky Ney
|
January 6, 2008 “Wise People” The Rev. Victoria Ney Text” Matthew 2:1-11
I recently saw something on the internet that falls into the “just when you think you’ve heard it all” category. Most of you, I’m sure, have heard the feminist-type joke about the Three Wise Men: If three women had gone searching for the Baby Jesus instead of the three wise men, they would have stopped for directions, arrived on time, helped deliver the baby, cleaned the stable, brought practical gifts and there would be peace on earth.” To refute this assumption that “women can do it better than men,” there’s a new story going around that it was actually women who caused the wise men to be late for the visit with the baby Jesus in the first place. It asserts that the wise men would have arrived on time if their wives hadn’t insisted on shopping for new robes and matching hats for them before they left and they were delayed further because one of the wives lost a gift in the bottom of her purse.
No matter how it happened, the story of the magi and Epiphany ranks right up there with the Christmas and Easter stories in terms of snaring our human imaginations. If you think about it, this story has all the ingredients of a thriller: a question that needs to be answered, a mystery (the star, the ancient prophecy), the promise of God that must be protected, it has heroes, an evil character, and it has an intriguing plot.
Great poets such as William Butler Yeats and William Carlos Williams have wrapped words around the visit of the wise men. Longfellow even gave them names: Melchior, Gaspar, and Balthasar. Hundreds of artists have painted the scene, including Botticelli and FraAngelico. And songs have been written about it, including one by James Taylor entitled “Home by Another Way.” So the three kings have captured the imaginations of creative people for a long time.
What is interesting to me, is that after all these centuries, we still don’t know exactly who and what these wise men were? Astronomers? Psychics? Wizards? Scientists? All we really know is that they somehow figured out by the configuration of the sky lights that something important was happening in the world.
What we Do know is that the word magi is a derivative from an Old Persian word that referred to a priestly sect of Zoroastrianism. As part of their religion, it is said that these priests paid particular attention to the stars, and gained an international reputation for astrology, which later gave rise to aspects of mathematics and astronomy—as well as the modern practice of fortune-telling. Their practices with the occult led to our English word magic.
Most scholars surmise that these magi were from an institute of learning—maybe a forerunner of the university, somewhere in the region of Persia, our present day Iraq or Iran. In the 13th Century, the Venetian trader and explorer Marco Polo, said that he saw their graves near what is today the city of Tehran. It’s entirely possible that the three wise men were descendants of the Israelites that remained in Babylon and had assimilated into the population after the other exiles left to go back to Israel 500 years before this. Or, at the very least, these “wise men” had access to the prophetic writings the Jews left behind in Babylon. They saw the promise that was written long before that said, “A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel.” So they kept searching the skies looking for a sign that the messiah, the anointed one, the promised one had come into the world. Suddenly one day the sky lit up, and these wise men figured out that something important was happening in the world.
That’s where the next mystery comes along. What was the brightness in the sky? A star? A comet? A configuration of planets? Some say Jupiter and Saturn aligned with a star. Who knows? It was bright. And the wise men must have been fairly sure about the significance of this star if they embarked on such a long journey to the West. It seems that nature is leading humanity to something extraordinary.
What I believe Matthew is trying to get across to his readers is that a new time has dawned for all the world. Everybody, no matter who you are or where you are, can see God’s light breaking through the darkness. The prophecy of Isaiah comes to fruition: “The people who lived in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the shadows of death a great light has dawned.” So the first part of this story leaves us with a growing suspense: something big is happening—on a cosmic level, something that concerns the whole world. But what is it? What is the meaning of this new star in the West?
Then we come to the evil plot of the story. Every drama, whether fictitious or in real life, has a hero and an anti-hero. The hero in this story is obviously God—fulfilling a promise and trying to do something spectacular for human beings. The bad guy here is obviously King Herod, inspired by the forces of darkness to quench the Light of God.
If the Wise Men were following the star, why did they stop in Jerusalem to inquire where Jesus was? Did the star disappear for awhile? Did clouds cover the starlight? Perhaps they thought the new king was Herod, Jr.
Most scholars speculate that it was merely an eastern custom. Foreign dignitaries normally presented themselves to the local king. That way, the king of the province would know they came in peace. In any case, the wise men must have been important enough to receive an immediate summons to see King Herod.
They ask King Herod if he knows where the new king is. In response, Herod summons his clergy and advisors. They tell him that, according to prophecy, a Messiah will come out of Bethlehem—but not to worry, since that prophecy has been around for a long time, and nothing has happened. So, of course, Herod hides his evil plans and asks the wise men to find out where the new king actually is. That way he can conserve his budget and have the magi do the expensive detective work for him.
Here’s another puzzle. In verses three and four it says that King Herod finds out where the Messiah is to be born and plots to kill him. Do you see the paradox here? I mean, if he believed in the prophecy, did he really believe that he could kill the God’s Messiah? Did he really think he could actually overthrow God’s plans? Did he think he was more powerful than God? Well, history is full of examples of madmen who thought they were in charge over destiny itself, and they left a trail of atrocities behind.
Isn’t it interesting that everyone in Herod’s palace has the proper information about where the Messiah was going to be born—Bethlehem—and the wise men confirm that they had seen the promised star in the sky. But no one, not even King Herod who seemed most interested, bothered to take the time and go the ten miles from Jerusalem to Bethlehem to see if the Messiah was actually there—to see what it all meant!
The Wise Men are truly amazing. These men were willing to take action. These guys made a long journey that forever changed their lives. They put commitment to their conviction. They were not going to stop until they found the promised Messiah. They put feet to their faith. They didn’t just sit there staring out into the heavens, they started a search.
Let me ask you a question: Are you a seeker or a sitter? Are you like one of the wise men—a wise person? Do you actively seek God?
The Wise Men were seeking God. They were willing to travel who knows how many miles, endure all sorts of difficulties and hardships, following a star, a sign in the sky, believing that God was leading them, but not really knowing what to expect. The first people of faith in the New Testament are heathens—pagans—from the East. They were not the people we would normally think would be interested in finding God. It almost seems as though they had more faith than I do—any of us. Would we put ourselves out like they did to find God? They were willing to be seekers with all their hearts, minds and strength.
Once they found Jesus, saw him, had the experience of his presence, they were overwhelmed—overwhelmed by God’s great gift to human beings. They worshiped. They offered their gifts—gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Strange gifts for a baby, don’t you think? Scholars have put all kinds of meanings to those particular gifts—that they represented Christ’s kingship and priesthood, his sacrifice—very deep, theological meanings. But think about it—what would a poor baby, from poor, peasant parents need with a bar of gold and a couple of bottles of expensive perfume? (Well, okay, may they would want the money—but perfume?!) Seems as though food, clothing and a couple of tickets out of Bethlehem on a caravan might have been better!
I really believe the significance of their gifts was that they gave Jesus everything. You remember they were really magicians. Gold, frankincense, and myrrh were tools of the trade for them. It’s what they would always carry with them in order to work their magic and incantations. They were so overwhelmed by the Messiah, they gave him all that they had and all that they were.
What a difference from us when we come before God! We come expecting to receive something—answers to prayers, healing from diseases, freedom from problems, end to financial difficulties, peace in our families, peace in our hearts. The wise men found that when they truly encountered God, their lives were changed—their old way of life was meaningless. They needed to give of themselves.
One last thought in closing….The last verse of our scripture passage is very interesting. “And being warned in a dream, they went home by another way.” (Matt. 2:12)
I think it’s more complicated than getting a new road map. They not only went home another way, they WERE another way—they went home changed. They could not go back the same way they had come.
We cannot be the same—cannot go home the same—after we have truly looked at God’s great gift to us.
Let me just clarify something: You don’t just encounter Christ once in your life. We encounter/experience Christ many times and in many ways throughout our lives. But each encounter should cause us to change, to shift direction, to go home a different way.
In this New Year, will your faith take you home a different way? Or will you/we stubbornly insist on choosing the “safe” well-known path, even though we might know it’s not the right one?
Going home a new way can be a path of new beginnings. For some that might be forgiving someone—or ourselves, changing behavior that is destructive, getting help for a problem, letting go of past mistakes, or, like the Wise Men, offering more of themselves—giving more of our time, talents, and treasures so that others can encounter the living God.
Maybe you’ve been waiting for a laser bright light from the heavens to somehow appear to you. You don’t need a laser light to find Christ. When you come to the table this morning, know that you are encountering Christ. He is here with us by the power of the Holy Spirit. You can walk away unchanged if you want to. But if you truly encounter Christ, you may just need to go home another way.
|
|
|
<< Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 Next >> |