Magi From the East
I love all of the Christmas stories. You have the shepherds in Luke. You get the magi in Matthew. I like how it worked out that way.
You see, Luke was written to Gentiles. Matthew was written to Jews. So what is Matthew saying to a Jewish
audience by focusing on wise men from a distant land who come and worship at
the feet of a baby? Matthew is being
quite blunt here. Matthew is saying that
the wise religious leaders of the Hebrew people were dullards. They just didn’t get it. They were slow to comprehend – if they got
anything at all!
The magi – who have no special connection or heritage tracing them
back to God – get it. They manage to
find the house where Mary and Joseph are staying. They manage to come and be some of the first
people to worship the Messiah. {The shepherds of Luke’s story were truly
the first, though.} These people who
have no special connection whatsoever to the Hebrew faith manage to be capable of
coming and worshiping at the feet of Jesus.
He was a simple, little baby.
They managed to worship.
What of all of the wise prophets in Herod’s court who had access
to all of the temple scrolls and the lineage of Abraham? They missed the boat. They didn’t see Him coming. For the record, that’s a theme we’ll get used
to in Matthew.
Speaking of the Magi, they bring gifts of gold, frankincense, and
myrrh. Two of those are items that when
burned give off a rather pungent smell.
They are items typically burned when in the presence of a dead body, as
dead bodies tend to give off their own pungent smells. I love the connection to the death of Christ
that God brings to the birth of Christ.
We can truly say that Jesus came to die.
The wise man brought spices of burial as gifts to the God-made-man.
I’ve got one more pretty cool note before moving on. The word Bethlehem means “House of Bread.” How neat is it that this savior of the world –
the Bread of Life from heaven – would be born in a place named for being a
place of bread. I love that God paid
that much attention to detail.
Egypt
I love the story of the flight to Egypt, too. Joseph is warned in a dream. Again we see Joseph being able to exercise
compassion. He takes His family to
Egypt, where they are saved while they wait for Herod to die.
What’s so cool about this story?
In the Exodus, God led His people out of Egypt after they were spared
from the famine that hit Canaan many years prior. They rebelled. Now, Egypt will once more protect God’s
servants. Once more God will use Egypt
to save His people. But this time, when
Jesus comes out of Egypt, there will be no rebellion. Jesus will grow up and lead people to
God. Jesus will mature and disciple
people in truth. Jesus will become the
man who takes upon the sin of the world and instead of rebelling, He will
redeem us.
Slaughter of the Innocents
While Jesus is in Egypt and when the magi go home without telling
Herod, the king becomes enraged. He
wanted to come and take care of Jesus.
He wanted to eliminate the competition as it were. Since Herod wouldn’t have the opportunity to
kill one baby, he made the decision to kill them all. Every child under the age of 2 died in
Bethlehem.
This seems like such a sad passage. It is.
But it doesn’t have to read that way.
Yes, there was incredible pain there.
Yes, there had to have been parents who were inconsolable. Their child had been slaughter for no fault
of his own. What misery an act such as
this evokes!
Yet, it need not be complete misery. Those innocent children died in the same way
as Jesus: through no fault of their own.
Now, I’m not saying that they weren’t guilty of original sin. Of course they were. But Jesus would die to save the world. These innocents died protecting Jesus. Their life was laid down so that Jesus’ life
could be laid down in the future. It was
a horrible act, but it is not an act without spiritual symbolism. This doesn’t make it right in any way. But their sacrifice was not lost on God. Of that I am sure.
Imagine what eternal life will be like for those children. They know that their life was laid down for
the sake of Jesus. Could there be any
higher calling in Christendom? They gave
the ultimate price for Jesus, the Messiah.
Return to Israel
Joseph and Mary return to Israel when they hear that Herod is
dead. However, they don’t go back to Bethlehem. Instead, they go to Nazareth in Galilee. Joseph still desires to protect his boy. Prophecy is fulfilled. Born of Bethlehem; called a Nazarene.
As we close this chapter, we get a sense of humbleness. Jesus was born in a manger. Innocents died for Him. He spent His early years in a foreign
land. When He came back, He lived in a
back-water town called Nazareth. He
lived in a region of Israel known for producing ruffians and rebels. This is not a great start to life for a
king. But Jesus would be no ordinary
king. Jesus would rule humbly out of
these humbling conditions. He would
bring salvation by following this path of humbleness before God that existed
from the moment of His birth.
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