“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.” (Matthew 2:11-12)
Wise men, astrologers, magi — all names for those men who went searching for a king with only a star to guide them and a prophesy to direct their way. It seems a strange quest, this following a star, this search for a newborn king. Yet, follow they do. These magi search where the star will lead. The journey will cover a thousand miles with an uncertain destination. Yet they set out in a search not only for a king, a promised messiah, but a search for meaning and purpose. They will be surprised as they discover their destination is not a palace, but a humble home in Bethlehem.
Arriving in Bethlehem, they lay their treasures down. Being warned in a dream — they return home in another way. There is a sense that all of us, having gone to Bethlehem and arrived at Christmas, dare not return by the route we have taken. Christmas ought to change us, ought to cause us to be like those who are wise and be different from whom we were before we met the Christ.
It ought to bring us to a place of changed lives. Christmas, encountered in all of its fullness, does change us. It causes us to take stock of our lives. It asks us to look at the values we are living by and rid ourselves of those that have neither merit nor value. Christmas ought to cause us to return home a little kinder, more generous … less fearful and more faithful. For if it doesn’t, we haven’t truly encountered the Christ.
The star continues to lead seekers to God’s truth, to kneel at Bethlehem’s child and leave as new people … people who have been set free from yesterday’s sins, failures, fears and doubts. Set free to live and love more graciously with a generosity of spirit and with hope in their hearts.
Prayer
Lord, let your people be more kind, more generous, and more faithful as the love You have shown us lights our dark and sinful lives. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Stay encouraged!
Pastor Mike
