THE STORY OF THE WISE MEN – Matthew 2:9–12 – After listening to the king, [the wise men] went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.
Gift-giving is probably the most common element of Christmas today. Christian or not, most Americans give and receive gifts on December 25. But we don’t find any gifts in the Bible stories about Christmas.
That is, until we meet the enigmatic wise men.
We don’t know much about the wise men. About all that we know is that they had positions of influence (hence “wise men”), that they were extremely rich (hence the lavish gifts), and that they came “from the east.” Beyond that, they remain largely shrouded in mystery. Were they kings of some sort? Consultants to a foreign king? Priests, maybe? And did they come from Persia or India or Ethiopia or Arabia? Or from all of these places?
The Bible keeps us in the dark about many of the details we might most like to hear—details like these. Instead, we are told merely that these mysterious men made a long journey to worship Jesus.
So why does this matter?
The arrival of the wise men reminds us of God’s purpose in salvation. In many of the other stories, Jesus is hailed as Israel’s coming King. He is the Son of David, come to deliver his people. But the wise men remind us that Jesus came for more than just Israel. As Simeon said when he met baby Jesus in the temple, this child came to be not only “glory to your people Israel” but also “a light for revelation to the Gentiles” (Luke 2:32).
The birth of Jesus blasts apart the dividing lines we are used to. How could it not? This is God himself, crossing the greatest divide we could ever imagine the span of heaven and earth, holy God and sinful humanity. If God, through Jesus, was crossing that great divide, it only seems right that his arrival would knock down a few other dividing walls along the way.
Jesus came to earth to heal what sin had broken. That includes the chasm between God and humanity. That includes the chasm between one nation and another. Jesus came to heal both our vertical and our horizontal brokenness.
The wise men recognized this. Whoever they were, we know they were not part of the nation of Israel. And yet, like Simeon, they knew that a new light had dawned—not only for Israel but for the whole world, and for them.
The wise men are known for the great gifts they brought. Gold, frankincense, myrrh. But they would be the first to tell you that they did not give the first Christmas gift; they received the first Christmas gift. That gift is Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world, the only one who could reconcile us to God. And to one another.
Pray
O God … Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the walls that separate us; unite us in bonds of love … that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne … 1
Amen
