Matthew in his gospel gives the account of the wise men or magi that sought the Messiah at His birth.....Matthew 2: 1 - 12.
To me this brief vignette of the wise men is nothing short of amazing. We aren't given a lot of information, but we know that:
they came from the east
they were scholars
they studied astrology and astronomy
they incensed King Herod to multiple murders by suggesting that there may be another king
they followed the star in the east to where Jesus was
they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy
they fell down and worshipped the child Jesus
they presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh
God warned them in a dream not to return to Herod
the magi left for their own country by another way
they were never mentioned again
We do not know how many wise men there were and we are very certain that Jesus was no longer an infant in a manger when they appeared to visit Him.
What is so intriguing is, what made these men seek Christ?
What made them leave the dark world of the occult and set out on a long journey following a star?
What makes any of us seek Him?
No mere man is going to wake up one day and decide that he is going to seek God. There is nothing in our sinful nature that would ever want to seek Him...........sin rejects God.
God seeks us out and puts His Spirit in us and gives us the faith to believe what is written in His word.
Romans 10:17 "Faith comes from hearing and hearing by the word of God."
God spoke to these wise men and told them to follow the star in the east and it would lead them to the Messiah. They did what God told them and they found Him just as God said.
Their response: They fell down on the ground and worshipped Him
Our response: We do the same...........there is no other response in the face of God.
That beautiful, bright star led them to the indescribable gift......Jesus Christ.
My oh my they must have had such stories to tell. I'm so glad that God included this passagae in His word.
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