Epiphany 2018

The Long Road Home

Matthew 2:1-12

Introduction

I think everyone likes a little adventure in their life.  I’m not talking extreme sports or anything crazy like that.  Those folks are a breed apart.  But most people, I think, are searching for something in their lives.  I know that bug afflicts me all the time.  I think I was always that way.  If you ask my mom, she would tell you that I was always doing something.  Not always good – but I was always doing something.  I’m still that way.  Hard for me to sit still. 

If I could afford it, I’d go back to school.  I just love school!  (Diane winces whenever I bring this up.)  I love to learn.  I remember for years after I finished my master’s degree being frustrated because there seemed to be no path forward in education for me.  There were no terminal degree programs (don’t you just love that phrase “terminal degree?”  You can interpret it any way you like!)  that I could do.  I was qualified to do doctoral work in music, but music didn’t fully satisfy my life’s vocation.  Other programs just didn’t seem to fit.

So, when I discovered a doctoral program in worship studies that could do, I jumped at the chance to enroll.  I well remember my first session at the Institute for Worship Studies.  Even though my head was exploding from all the pre-course reading, it was like I reached the Promised Land.  I told the president of the school that I thought he had designed the program just for me.  To this day, I half believe that to be the case.  Even though the place and all the people were new to me, I felt like I had made a long journey and had finally arrived at home.  Even now, more than ten years after I’ve finished the program, the Institute is in session this week and I feel like I’m missing out on a family reunion. 

Have you ever experienced a life journey like that?  Something inside you compels you to pursue a place, a person, or an experience?  Maybe it’s been the chase for a career.  Or perhaps it was the pursuit of a spouse.  When the engagement was finally sealed, you felt overwhelming joy! 

It seems that human beings are born for questing.  Think of all the legends of the cultures around the world.  Whether it was to prove the mettle of your character or to win some prize, it seems that people are always pursuing something.  Every romantic tale is a quest fulfilled or denied.  If you’re into Greek mythology you know about Ulysses and his long journey home after the Trojan War.  Marco Polo was exploring trade routes to China.  Columbus was searching for a convenient way to the Indies.  Lewis and Clark were looking for the Northwest Passage and exploring the Continent.  Then there’s Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade – the Quest for the Holy Grail.  The fact that the movie was so popular reinforces the notion of the quest as a universal impulse.  Even animals are subject our humanistic interpretation on the same theme.  There’s Lassie Come Home and its variation from the early nineties: Homeward Bound.

Questing – searching is part of living.  Matthew’s story of the Wise Men is one of the Bible’s greatest examples:

 

The Word – Matthew 2:1-12

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. ⁴ When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born.  “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:

 “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
    are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for out of you will come a ruler
    who will shepherd my people Israel.’”

Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared.  He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”

After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.  When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.  On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.  And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

Matthew’s purpose.

The story of the Magi’s visit is found only in Matthew’s gospel.  Matthew, of course, was one of Jesus’ disciples and would have intimate knowledge of the Lord’s life.  He wrote the gospel to prove that Jesus is the Jewish Messiah and to explain the Kingdom of God.  You can trace his purpose throughout the narrative as Old Testament prophecies regarding the Messiah are frequently cited.  It is no surprise then, that Matthew uses this story at the beginning of his gospel to introduce Jesus – even as a little child – as the King of the Jews. But what is especially remarkable is that these seekers – these wise men – were not Jewish people.  To a first century Jew, they were the ones who had the inside track to God.  By having the Magi, who were definite outsiders as Jews would understand it, as the first in his gospel to seek out the Messiah, Matthew has already challenged the preconceived ideas of his readers.  Like most compelling stories, it begins provocatively.

The Magi

 Who were these wise men? 

First, we can say that we don’t know how many there were.  But there certainly must have been more than three in the entourage.  Jerusalem was used to having foreign visitors pass through.  Three guys asking for directions would not have caused much of a stir.  Most likely, their caravan included attendants and perhaps even soldiers.  The story tells us that the king was disturbed and all of Jerusalem with him.  This was no case of “the three amigos.”  We probably get the idea of three kings from the three gifts and the popular Christmas carol.

Not only were there more than three, but they weren’t kings either.  Traditionally, we’ve called them the “wise men.”  Most translations call them “Magi” which has a strong connotation of magic.  Some translations have labeled them as “astrologers,” a practice specifically forbidden by the Hebrew Scriptures.  Most likely, they were men of a scientific or spiritual bent who observed the heavens for unusual phenomena.  They must have been honored and wealthy in their culture to have been able to garner the resources for such a journey.  Certainly, their gifts were extravagant and expensive as they came seeking to honor a king. 

But what possessed these wise men from the east to undertake a quest to find the King of the Jews – especially since they weren’t Jews?  Somehow, they must have been impacted by Hebrew hopes and dreams.  It seems likely that they might have been from the area of Babylon and encountered Jewish prophecies while the Jews were in exile there.  Certainly, Daniel spoke of the coming Promised One and messianic hopes and dreams must have been on the hearts and lips of every Jewish exile.  The urgency and uniqueness of Hebrew aspirations were intense enough to impress their captors and spur the Magi on their journey four hundred years later.  And not only that; the Magi didn’t come simply to investigate some scientific phenomenon:  they came to worship.  There’s a lot more to this story than what simply meets the eye.  There are great mysteries at play here.  God is at work. 

The Prophecy

 Let’s return to the story:

When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. ⁴ When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born.  “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:

 “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
    are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for out of you will come a ruler
    who will shepherd my people Israel.’”

Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared.  He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”

Doesn’t it strike you as odd?  Spiritual outsiders were seeking the Messiah while the spiritual leaders of the day were oblivious even though they obviously knew the prophecy about Bethlehem from Micah 5:2.  It is not a point we should easily ignore.  Jesus didn’t:

Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying:  “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son.  He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.

 “Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’

 “But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business.  The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them.  The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.

 “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come.  So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’

Matthew 22:1-9

Not all those who think they are in the Kingdom are in.  And those that we might think excluded may indeed be the invited guests.   

Herod

 What about this rogue, Herod?  He was a ruthless puppet king, propped up by the Romans.  In fact, he was not even a full-blooded Jew, but rather a descendant of Essau rather than Israel.  He was insecure.  Once he had his wife and her two brothers murdered because he suspected them of treason.  His actions further on in the story to murder all the baby boys under the age of two in Bethlehem are entirely consistent with his character. 

Notice that he seems quite concerned and spiritual on the surface.  The wise men, it seems, would have been deceived if they hadn’t been warned by God in a dream to ignore Herod’s charge and depart by another route.  Therein lies a valuable lesson for all of us as we journey through life.  Not all is as it seems.  What may look to be right and spiritual may be in fact a ploy from the Devil himself to destroy us.  Just as God was active in prodding the Magi on in their journey, I am convinced that Herod’s deceitful actions were directly inspired by Satan.  The monstrous outcome of the Slaughter of the Innocents came straight from the pit.  We must be wary and discerning on our spiritual quest.  I believe if we are listening, watching, and genuinely trying to pursue God, he will intervene and protect us just as he did the Magi.  

Discovery and response

 The story says that as they left Jerusalem for Bethlehem the star reappeared.  We don’t know if it was a special star that God appointed, a comet, or an alignment of planets. But we do know that it was from God.  

“…and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.  When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.”  

We don’t know exactly where the Magi came from but we do know their journey was long and arduous.  Every summer for nearly ten years my family would drive across the country from New Mexico to Long Island, NY to be with my grandparents.  It was a long and arduous trip with no air conditioning in the car and five children.  You can imagine the joy when we finally arrived.  It can’t compare to what the Magi felt.  A more complete translation that captures the fullness of Matthew’s original language would read more like this:

            And having seen the star, they rejoiced with great joy, exceedingly!

“On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him.”

Our Christmas pageants and nativity scenes get it all wrong.  There is something wonderful and mysterious about a newborn baby.  The infant is generally quiet while held in his mother’s arms.  We all sigh and say “awww” while we wonder at the beauty and miracle of new life.  That’s what the shepherds saw and experienced in Luke’s gospel. 

Matthew’s story is maybe one year or perhaps even two years later.  Jesus is no longer being held in his mother’s arms.  He’s probably running around the house, getting into things and knocking things over as all toddlers do.  Of course, he was perfectly obedient in all things, but he was still human.  100%.   As a toddler he was unsteady on his feet and always curious.  As the Magi entered the house, I can just hear him calling for his mommy that strange men were outside.  I can see him tugging and wondering at their curious clothes and asking them toddler’s questions like, “What’s your name?” and “What are you doing?” as the entourage came in.  I say that not to be sacrilegious. That these learned and wealthy men would prostrate themselves before a little boy is almost too much to imagine.  To an infant, perhaps.  There is a certain mystery to the newborn.  But toddlers are all too human.  That’s why their actions of worship and extravagant gift giving are all the more profound. 

Christ – salvation for all

 So what do we learn from the Magi’s story?  I have two things.  First, Matthew, through this narrative and throughout his gospel, tells us that salvation has come to all peoples, not just to the Jews.  Matthew, writing to his people, opens the gospel with this story and closes with Jesus telling his followers to make disciples of “all nations.”  With the Magi and the Great Commission, we celebrate God’s inclusion and invitation for all to come to him.  That God has so spurred on these Gentiles, who would have been shunned by pious Jews, to seek out the Messiah and find salvation is instructive to us.  God’s heart is for the whole world – not just for us who assume we are already in the Kingdom.  This story should make us more than just a little bit uncomfortable in our complacency about reaching others for Christ.  May God use this story to ignite a fire of mission and evangelism in our hearts.

Secondly, and the point that I want to impress this morning, is that we are all born with a quest for knowing God.  In each of us, so says NT Wright, there is a yearning for justice, beauty, relationship, and spirituality.  All cultures around the world celebrate stories of famous quests seeking something precious.  That universal impulse is an echo of God’s voice calling to us.  He is calling us to the long road home. Augustine famously said, “You have made us for yourself; and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you.”  The Magi have shown us that all of our yearnings are met in Jesus Christ. 

Have you recognized God’s call in your life even today?  There is perhaps no better time than the first Sunday of the New Year to reflect on your relationship with God.  It doesn’t matter who you are or how spiritual you think you might be.  God is calling you this morning.  Are you going to respond to his invitation?

The Magi show us even more.  They model perseverance in their journey.  Every step across the long desert miles was a step of obedience and worship as they followed that strange star.  This is all the more remarkable because they didn’t have the Scriptures or any kind of spiritual heritage that would have prompted them to respond to the God of the Bible.  And yet they did.  God foresaw this all along.  Hundreds of years earlier, he spoke through Isaiah the prophet:

“I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me;
    I was found by those who did not seek me.
To a nation that did not call on my name,
    I said, ‘Here am I, here am I.’

                                                     Isaiah 65:1

They heard his voice.  They saw his sign in the heavens.  And they followed.  They endured hardship and they kept their focus. 

Don’t give up.  Refuse to be apathetic like the religious leaders of the day.  Press on.  Be like the wise men.  Learn to hear God’s voice and keep following his call in your life. 

I don’t know what God has in store for First Baptist Church in 2018.  I’m not lacking in vision.  We do need clarity.  And I’m not presumptuous that God is required to bless every idea that we have.  But this I do know.  God is working in us.  As they would say in Narnia, “Aslan is on the move.” 

We are a good church.  We have what the world around us needs.  Next week, I’ll talk a bit more about where I sense God may be moving.  But we have to join him in his work.  It’s not a matter of just showing up for worship each Sunday morning.  It starts there.  At the core, pursuing God, as the Magi did, requires great cost and a willingness to be changed. 

And how will we know when we’ve arrived at the place where God is calling us?  We’ll know.  Long before the wise men made their journey, Jeremiah, the prophet spoke of God’s willingness to be found:

“When you come looking for me, you’ll find me.

Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed.” 

                                                                                                Jeremiah 29:13-14 (The Message)

Like the Magi of old, there will be great joy…exceeding great joy.

I wonder.  Will we be like those ancient wise men?