Isaiah 60:1-6 • Psalm 72:1-7, 10-14 • Ephesians 3:1-12 • Matthew 2:1-12
In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage." When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet: '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.'" Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. 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." When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over 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. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.
Today as we celebrate the culmination of the twelve days of Christmas with the festival of the Epiphany of Our Lord, transferred from the actual day, January 6th, to today, we recall this story of a band of magi astrologers, King Herod, a star, gifts, and a baby.
The magi did not know what exactly they would find, when they set out on their journey. A comet had caught their eye. They wanted to follow it... We don’t know exactly how they knew this astrological wonder meant that God’s Son had been born…how they found out a child had “been born king of the Jews.” (Mt. 2:2) But they had a yearning, a hunger, a need for something to fill a space inside them that was empty…something they did not know where or how they would find—something that they believed that they would know when they discovered it.The magi come to Jerusalem, a logical place to come when looking for someone in Israel. There were more people to ask there. Economic activity was at its busiest there. People of wealth, status and means were there. Powerful rulers of the Roman Empire were there…someone would know where to find this one who would fill their hopes and desires for a Savior.
When King Herod in Jerusalem hears about these sojourners, and what they are looking for, he is frightened. A new king is a threat to the old and established order. As Herod consults about what to do with his religious advisors, the chief priests and the scribes, he asks them if they know anything about where it is this Messiah is to be born. Herod speaks, “Where is this threat to my power and security coming from, so that I know where to squelch it?” And as the religious authorities confer, they talk amongst themselves. At one level, this series of events sounds like the prophesy of Isaiah 60—which happens to be the first lesson appointed for today’s Epiphany festival. “Isaiah 60,” the chief priests and scribes say to themselves, “that’s the prophesy from the time of Jerusalem’s desolation after we had returned from the exile…that’s the one about Jerusalem’s return to prosperity and wealth and abundance for all…’nations will come to our light…the wealth of the nations shall come to you’ (Is. 60:3, 5)…caravans loaded with trade goods will come from Asia to bring offerings that restore us to greatness! Are these foreign magi, these guests bearing treasures, the sign that this prophesy has come true and the Son of God is here in Jerusalem?”
But one of the scribes spoke up and said, “King Herod will never go for that! He would rather have everyone remain poor and powerless than rich and power-hungry. He’ll never go for that!” And there was silence, and someone spoke up and said, “What about the prophecy of Micah 5?: ‘And you O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who are of the little clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days. Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has brought forth…’” (5:2-3a) “But Bethlehem?” some of them said, “that’s in the boonies! That place is teeny, tiny! Nobody could come from there, let alone the Messiah!” But because they knew that if the Micah prophesy had indeed come true, the threat would be easier to crush in little, lowly Bethlehem, than in big and bustling Jerusalem. So they decided to tell Herod where they believed the Messiah to be born, based on Micah 5.
When they shared what they had discussed with Herod, he was aghast. This prophesy coming true, a new king, would mean his own demise, and his loss of control. As one biblical scholar puts it, “[this prophetic voice of the Messiah’s manifestation in Bethlehem] was the voice of a peasant hope for the future, [a voice for the powerless, the weak, the despairing…the majority of those under Herod’s rule. This voice] is not impressed with high towers and great arenas, banks and urban achievements. It anticipates a different future, as yet unaccomplished…led by a leader who will bring well-being to his people not by great political ambition, but by attentiveness to the folks on the ground.” (Brueggemann)
Herod shares this Bethlehem prophesy with the magi, asking them to go and determine its veracity, so that if it is true, he can put Jesus to an end. But when the magi hear Herod speak Micah 5…they trust that Micah’s voice…this is the voice their hearts have been hungering to hear for all these many days of their journey. This voice is a voice that speaks also to us: that Jesus has become manifest for us not in Jerusalem—not in what is secure, or royal or powerful—God’s Son is born in our Bethlehems: in the world’s poverty, in our innocence, and in the vulnerability of a baby.
When they realize they are still nine miles off from beholding the manifestation of Micah’s voice, the magi follow it with haste, humbling themselves to realize they had not found what they were looking for in Jerusalem. As much as they may have wished their own mastery of reading the skies like led them to the right spot, the voice of God’s love revealed in hidden weakness rather than might, inspired them to go those extra and demanding nine miles south, from Jerusalem to Bethlehem…nine miles to get from self-sufficiency to generosity of self; nine extra miles to get from Herod’s self-preservation to God’s self-offering of Jesus; nine extra miles to get from self-congratulation to God’s love made real among the most undeserving of people of our world.
Where is it that this voice calling the magi and us to go that extra nine-mile journey lead? To the unlikeliest person in which God could choose to reveal love for us—the least powerful, least protected, most vulnerable one of us all: a child. A child-like spirit of love is, in the end, what the magi and we are on a pilgrimage to find. Who of us has, perhaps, amidst all that may give us reason to despair, have lost a child-like wonder and awe at God’s self-generosity of giving us the greatest treasure of all in Jesus? What adults among us have bought in to the myth that we can feel more powerful by living without love—with cynicism, pessimistic and without astonishment? Jesus’ own adult words offer us the childlike antidote that returns us to the humble wonder of the magi—he says, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants.” (Mt. 11:25)
Like the magi, we seek to take part in the activity of God in concrete situations of our personal and communal lives, especially in the most complex and difficult of decisions—whether it’s what job or vocation to prepare for, or what course of treatment to pursue for an illness, or for our congregation, the questions of what step do we take to address the expense of caring for this aging building—in all these decisions, with the magi, God invites us to discern where it is we may be holding on to our own self-security, and what child-like vulnerable place we can open ourselves up to where we will find the consolation of God at work.
The good news for the magi and for us is that Jesus’ manifestation turns us all into children, regardless of how old or young we are. Jesus’ incarnation turns us all into God’s children, blessed by the One who comes to remind us that God does not let darkness prevail, but will always bring the unfailing bright light of Jesus’ love and mercy to littlest, weakest, poorest places of our souls. To we children who can be foolish enough to travel the extra nine miles from Jerusalem to Bethlehem with the magi, God promises that we will find the blessing that we will hear voiced at the end of today’s worship: we will find the face of the Lord shining upon us with grace and mercy forever. Amen.
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