Epiphany Sunday
My ‘talk’ given at the Lynnville (IL) UMC on January 5, 2003.
The Scripture is from the 2nd chapter of Matthew, verses 1 – 12…
(NOTE: Contains BOTH manuscript And a ‘Live’ reading! 🙂
Some years ago I worked at a shop located very close to Naples, IL. If you would ever look for it on a map, you would realize that Naples is pretty much in a ‘dead’ radio area. That means that usually, the only station I could get was the Jacksonville rock-and-roll station. Now, they would not have been my first choice in music styles, but beggars can’t be choosy. And occasionally I might call in for some of the contests, when I could hear them above any engines running or other shop noise. I recall one afternoon when the announcer was looking for seven members of the Justice League of America. So I started counting on my fingers… Superman… Batman… Robin… Aquaman… the Flash… the Green Lantern… Atom… Wonder Woman…that was eight! So I rushed over to the phone and called! After hitting the redial several times I managed to get through and started naming off my list. What I hadn’t heard over all the noise was that he wanted the characters from the 1970’s Justice League of America TV cartoon series ‘Super Friends’… the ones that I named were from the ‘60’s comic books! I didn’t win.
I don’t know about you, but comic books were a big part of my growing up. I truly loved to read, and they seemed to be everywhere! Most barbers and doctors’ offices, back then, always had a supply on hand, and many of my friends would always have one or two lying around. And even though they might be two or three years old, I never tired of reading them.
Comics were one of the ‘big ticket’ items that I would sometimes save up my allowance and head to the local grocery store for. They weren’t cheap! On an allowance of 25 cents per week, it could take up to a month or more to save enough for one of the really big issues! But by the time that I was ten, or so, I had some copies of Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Flash, Atom, and a couple of those Justice League of America issues that had all of them in them. (And don’t I wish that I still had some of them today… I’ve seen what they sell for in antique and collector stores!) I also had a number of ‘oddball’ titles that people gave me over the years… H. G. Wells, Richey Rich, Donald Duck… I would read each of them over and over and over to the point that I could tell you some of the story lines and even describe several of the panels in detail yet today! One in particular I always remember around this time of year… it was a special Christmas issue of ‘Dennis the Menace.’
One of the stories told of Dennis and his family making their annual trip to Santa’s Village. It described the paddock with live reindeer, the various buildings housing ‘elves’, toys, candy, and so on, and finally coming to Santa’s house, complete with Mrs. Claus. Now, in the ‘50’s and early ‘60’s there was nothing at all like that anywhere around the St. Louis area! And since I ‘knew’ that reindeer only lived in the north, I figured Dennis and his family must live somewhere close to the Canadian border like Michigan or Minnesota… you know… north of Chicago. Besides that, those people would be more likely to build an entire village like that for Santa because they lived so much closer to him.
Another of the stories in that issue started off with Dennis rushing home from school into his mother’s kitchen and blurting out excitedly, “Hey, Mom! Mrs. Smith says I’m a wise guy and I need a costume for one!” Well! Imagine the nerve! Calling her son a wise guy! And right in front of all the other students! She heads straight for the phone and calls the teacher. “Hello, Mrs. Smith? This is Dennis’ mother. Just what is all of this about him being a wise guy? He may be a little…what’s that? You want him to be one of the three wise men in the school Christmas play? Oh, I see. Well of course! He’d be happy to! Costume? Oh, that won’t be a problem at all. Sorry for the misunderstanding.”
Have you ever seen a Nativity scene set up without the three wise men? I don’t believe that I ever have. I can remember thinking how magical it was that they arrived at the stable on the night of Jesus’ birth. In fact, it was only a few years ago that I stopped to consider that that may not actually be the case! Let’s consider this story more closely.
Depending on which translation you read, these men are called ‘Kings’, ‘Wise men’ or ‘Magi’. The original Greek word is MAGI, and according to The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary, referred, originally, to the priests and wise men among the Medes, Persians, and Babylonians. These men were supposed to be master astrologers, adept in that secret learning that in remote antiquity had its seat in Egypt, and later in Chaldea, from which fact they were latter often called “Chaldeans”.
At the time of Jesus’ birth the term could have applied to philosophers, priests, or astronomers. They lived chiefly in Persia and Arabia, and were the learned men of these Eastern nations, devoted to astronomy, religion, and medicine. They were held in high esteem by the Persian court, were admitted as counselors, and followed the camps in war to give advice.
Many considered the Magi to be “… astrologers, those who prophesy by the stars, and predict by the new moons.” Matthew, in the very least, uses the term to designate honorable men from an Eastern religion. Most of the historians that I read believe that these people had been in contact with the Jewish people throughout the Old Testament, and were familiar with the prophecies regarding the Messiah. In the 24th chapter of the book of Numbers, the 17th verse reads…
“I see him, but not now;
I behold him, but not near.
A star will come out of Jacob;
a scepter will rise out of Israel.
Over the years, many have tried to explain the star reported in these verses. I, myself, have always tended to believe it to be a natural phenomenon called into existence at the proper time by God. And yet the Wycliffe Bible Commentary says that, “All attempts to explain the star as a natural phenomenon are inadequate to account for its leading the Magi from Jerusalem to Bethlehem and then standing over the house. Rather, it was a special manifestation used of God both when it first appeared to indicate the fact of Christ’s birth, and when it reappeared over Jerusalem to guide the Magi to the place. Since a direct revelation to the Magi is recorded in verse 12, there is nothing improbable in assuming a direct revelation at the beginning to impart the significance of the star.”
Wycliffe also points out that it is, “The house (not the manger) in which the Magi found the infant Jesus. (This) points to the fact that this visit followed Jesus’ birth by a considerable interval, perhaps of months. Some writers say it could have been as long as a year, or more!
At the same time, we really don’t know just how many there might have been. Again, Wycliffe points out that it is, “The three gifts (that) have given rise to the tradition of three wise men. Tradition even names them: Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar. But tradition is not necessarily fact.” I looked in several sources and could find no reference to any of these names. However, “gold, frankincense, and myrrh were thought by ancient commentators to show recognition of Jesus as King, Son of God, and one destined to die, respectively.”
So, what we are finding is that the picture we all have of the three ‘Kings’ standing over the baby in a manger probably isn’t exactly accurate! For whatever reason, Joseph had stayed on in Bethlehem after the birth of Jesus and had found a house to stay in. Jesus could have been some months old… perhaps even a year or more… at the time of their arrival. And there may not have been three of them…there may have been only two… or there could have been two dozen… we just don’t know! The thing is, it really doesn’t matter to the point of the story.
The Life Application Commentary points out that, “Astrology and those who practiced the art were held in contempt by the Bible and by God-fearing Jews. (However,) Matthew made a significant point in highlighting the worship of these wise men (who were pagan astrologers, wise in the ways of secular science, diviners, and magicians) in contrast to the Jewish religious leaders who knew the Holy Scriptures and did not need to travel far to find their Messiah. The Jewish leaders directed the wise men to Bethlehem but apparently did not go themselves. Some scholars say these wise men were each from a different land, representing the entire world bowing before Jesus. These men from faraway lands recognized Jesus as the Messiah when most of God’s chosen people in Israel did not. Matthew pictures Jesus as King over the whole world, not just Judea.”
When Herod asked the religious leaders of Jerusalem where the Messiah was to be born, they quoted from the 5th chapter of Micah which reads… “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village in Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past.” They knew the prophecies of the Messiah… they knew where He was to be born… and according to some historians, they had a fair idea that the time was near. But it was given to a group of Gentiles to recognize and pay Him homage. Doubtless these strangers expected all Jerusalem to be full of its newborn King, and the time, place, and circumstances of His birth to be familiar to everyone. Little would they think that the first announcement of His birth would come from themselves, and still less could they anticipate the startling effect which it would produce… the eventual death of an entire generation of male babies in the area as ordered by Herod.
‘Wise man’… ‘Wise guy’… means almost the same thing, doesn’t it? In my old comic book, Dennis innocently changed ‘man’ to ‘guy’ and with his reputation, his mother accepted his words just as he said them and felt the need to act upon them, only to be embarrassed by the truth once she learned it. And I am sorry to say that there is coming a day when there will be many not only embarrassed by the truth, but downright afraid!
Jesus was the Messiah that God had promised to the Jews! And yet many of them refused to acknowledge Him as such… in particular the leaders, themselves. Jesus Himself realized this! Let me read another story to you from later on in Matthew. In the 8th chapter, starting with verse 5, we read…
When Jesus arrived in Capernaum, a Roman officer came and pleaded with him, “Lord, my young servant lies in bed, paralyzed and racked with pain.”
Jesus said, “I will come and heal him.”
Then the officer said, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come into my home. Just say the word from where you are, and my servant will be healed! …
When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. Turning to the crowd, he said, “I tell you the truth, I haven’t seen faith like this in all the land of Israel! And I tell you this… many Gentiles will come from all over the world and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the feast in the Kingdom of Heaven. But many Israelites–those for whom the Kingdom was prepared–will be cast into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
Then Jesus said to the Roman officer, “Go on home. What you have believed has happened.” And the young servant was healed that same hour.
Listen, again to these words of Jesus. “Many Gentiles will come from all over the world and sit down… at the feast in the Kingdom of Heaven. But many Israelites–those for whom the Kingdom was prepared–will be cast into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
The Magi were just the first of our kind… Gentiles… to seek out the Lord Jesus. The Life Application Commentary points out that, “The religious leaders and teachers had knowledge of the Scriptures, but they lacked the desire to understand and believe. Today, wise men still seek Him! And with so many churches, so many Christian books and Bibles available, so many radio and television programs, so many Christian videos and films — how can anyone not believe? But it happens. Several Bibles on your bedroom shelf and perfect Sunday school attendance do not a Christian make! Like the chief priests and teachers of the law, a person can miss the opportunity to believe in Jesus completely while studying the facts of the Bible meticulously.
And thus, the story of the Magi becomes our story… for it is each of us who is seeking the Messiah! It is each of us who are searching to find Christ! The only difference is that we don’t have to travel hundreds of miles across desert and mountain by camel… He resides right here in our own hearts! All we have to do is open them up to Him… and look!
scluebbert 