Wise Men; Out with the Old, In with the New (Matthew 2:1-12)
Gary McManus, 01/04/2015Part of the Christmas series, preached at a Sunday Morning service
This is the traditional reading for today.
Because it is traditional we are desensitized
to this familiar report of the wise men and Jesus’ birth.
But Matthew’s report contains news and information
that in its day was amazing, surprising. . .and today we would
consider shocking and maybe even frightening.
It is the birth of the Messiah, our Lord, Jesus the Christ.
[Some of the introductory information is taken from
http://rationalfaiths.com/christmas-reflections-three-wise-men/
by Julie M. Smith ]
Our very own popular retellings of this story wind up
confusing us rather than truly explain this account of
Jesus’ birth.
Three? Kings? orient (where in the orient?)
Pastor has preached on the wise men, the star, their country
of origin. All of this information does not deliver a punch
to our gut like these words did when Matthew’s people
heard them for the first time.
So, let’s try again. . .
Here is a retelling of some of this info.
One author has done this through three books.
(See author Liz Curtis Higgs’ “Bad Girls” books.)
Let’s pretend it is a typical day in Daleville, Indiana.
. . .
In the retelling we more clearly see that the strangers
are foreigners. . .a foreign nation and probably a foreign
religion!
So what are they looking for really and why here?
Matthew tells us that even for the strangers with a strange
religion, the answers to their questions are
in the Jewish Bible (God’s Word).
The strangers are content with the answer!
Vss 2 and 11:
The Greek word translated "worship" is used
elsewhere. It is the word Jesus quotes as the
great commandment,"worship the Lord God. . .”
It is the word Satan uses in Satan's temptation
of Jesus:"all this I will give you, if you will
bow down and worship me."
Worship God only.
Worship is what the wise men give to the infant Jesus.
Were the wise men followers of Zoroastrianism?
The wise men left behind their old ideas of God.
They left behind their old ideas of what God
is doing with this world.
The wise men now saw:
God had come to be with humanity.
God had come to save humanity.Jesus=God saves.
WARNING:
The following is NOT politically correct:
Jesus is not just the Messiah of Israel,
but of the whole world.
Truly God speaks to us where we are,
in terms we can understand. . .
God wants to make things plain to you.
Even the shepherds do not have to guess. . .
Jesus is our Messiah. And Jesus is the Messiah
for people who aren’t here right now.
Jesus is really the Messiah of people of other religions
( just like these wise men).
[Matthew is saying] For those people who aren’t followers yet
. . .they will want to bow down and worship their Messiah,
(just like the wise men did).
All of us--leave behind our OLD ways of doing things.
Embrace our Messiah, the one who came to save us.
Jesus, Messiah. Blessings. Amen.
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