Sermon "Following a Star, Finding a
Stable"
Rev. Lonnie Richardson
Sunday, January 4, 1998
Matthew 2:1-12
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Following a Star, Finding a Stable
If we look at our first reading today, we would see that Isaiah is very accurately predicting the arrival of the Messiah, and specifically, the visit of the Magi. Isaiah tells the people of Jerusalem that the glory of the Lord will shine upon them, which is represented in our gospel by the light of the star. The dark clouds which cover the people could easily refer to Herod and all of Jerusalem. Even though at times Herod had been kind to his people, he had recently become very suspicious of anyone whom he considered to be a possible threat to his throne. He had recently murdered his wife and her mother, as well three of his sons. So the people rightly feared what would happen to them when this news of the birth of the king of the Jews came to him, the news which would eventually lead to the slaughter of innocent children. The kings who walk by the light are obviously the Magi who follow the light of the star. Likewise, in the second reading, Paul's statement that "In Christ Jesus, the gentiles are now co-heirs with the Jews" can easily refer to the Magi who are the first gentiles to encounter Christ.
The journey of the Magi by the light of a star to find the one born king of the Jews is a part of the Christmas story, in fact, the day of their arrival in Bethlehem, the 12th day of Christmas, is for almost half of the world's Christians the day that they celebrate Christmas.
The story of the wise men has always interested me. I started to study them and found some fascinating things about them. For one thing, the Bible tells us very little about them. I think this is one reason why so many traditions later developed about them (just like we know very little about Jesus as a child but whole books of tradition came into being about this). Tradition, for example, says that they were actually kings. You know the hymn, "We Three Kings"? It's based on that tradition. But the text says nothing about this. Tradition gives us the names of these kings. Tradition also says they came riding in on camels. The Bible tells us nothing about their means of transportation. Traditions says there were three of them though in the Eastern Orthodox church there were 12. I think this tradition grew because three gifts were given. But, once again, the Bible does not tell us how many there were.
But what does the Bible actually say about them? The Greek word used here and translated as "wise men" is "magoi" or "magi" (from which we get the word "magic"). Apparently there were two kinds of Magi in those days. Some of them were magicians, charlatans, soothsayers. If there had been telephones in those days, they would have been the ones starting the psychic friends network and the 900 numbers for you to call, and, for a significant fee, tell you your fortune or give you psychic advice. Maybe they would even let you know what way points to set on your global positioning system to find the new born king.
The other Magi were truly "wise" in that they were learned individuals, scientists of their day; astronomers; seekers after truth. They were often used as counsels and advisors to kings. So it was most appropriate that they would go to a king, Herod, on their search. It is believed that the Magi were members of the Medes, a tribe of priests who were to Persia what the Levites were to the Israelites. They became the teachers and instructors of the Persian kings, men of holiness and wisdom who were skilled in philosophy, medicine and natural science. But most of all, they were good and holy men who sought after truth, predicted the future and interpreted dreams. And this was significant because in those ancient days, everyone believed in astrology, that they could foretell the future from the stars, and they believed that a person's destiny was settled by the star under which they were born. This is not hard to believe, is it, given the popularity of horoscopes and signs of the zodiac which supposedly help determine the type of person everyone is.
And what about those gifts? Well, gold is a gift literally fit for a king, especially the king of the world. Frankincense is the gift for a priest and is still used in some liturgies today to represent prayers rising to God. We should also realize that the latin word for "priest" was "pontifex" or "bridge-builder" and that the function of the priest is to open the way to God, one who builds a bridge between us and God. Therefore, what gift could be more appropriate for the Messiah, the son of God, who enables all to enter into the very presence of god. And finally, there is myrrh, which was used to embalm the bodies of the dead. Again, what gift could possibly be more appropriate for the Lamb who would offer himself up for us.
The Magi searched together and have left us the clear message that we must always do the same. We can't search, we can't travel, and we can't find alone. We need one another and that's why we're here today. This is why we come to church. Alone, we tend to become idiosyncratic, distorted, and lost. We need the collective support and prayers of our fellow pilgrims. We are a caravan. We are a church. We listen together. We pray together. We cry out together. We are strengthened and comforted by each other. There's no other way to travel.
The Magi gave their most treasured gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. So what will we give our Lord and Savior? After all, he has given us so many precious gifts: the gifts of our lives and the gift of his infinite love, as demonstrated emphatically from the cross and the gift of family. So what would he want from us? It seems to me that since he has given us the gift of life, that the least we could do is to return that gift to him in some way. So the first thing we can do is present him with our lives and allow his love to be present in and through us. Once we have done that, then we can then channel that love to one another.
We have all been given the gift of time, the gift of life. How better to show how grateful we are for those gifts than by sharing them with one another? Perhaps we might even consider sharing those gifts with our church community, which can certainly use them to fulfill the needs of the many ministries which are carried out here. How many times have we excused ourselves by saying that we have no special gifts or talents to offer? But the truth is that we each have been given the most wonderful gift of all: the gift of time.
The Magi didn't have all the answers. Neither do we. But on their life travels, what they did have was fellowship and the light of Christ to guide them. And so do we. We have the fellowship of the members of our community, if we let them be so, and the light of the cross to guide us. But the best part of the wondrous Magi story comes at the end: they left us a promise. For at last they found what they were looking for. And so will we.
All of us at some time in our life follow a star only to discover a stable. The challenge is to turn that stable into a moment of hope. What is it that enables persons of every age to turn the stables of life into victory? What do you do when you follow a star and find a stable? Look for God in the stable. Offer your best to God. Mark out a new direction for your life.
Let us pray:
Lord, we want to know you, give our lives to show you, all the love we owe you, we're seekers of your heart. Amen.
