“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, ‘Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.’ When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. So they said to him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet: ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you shall come a Ruler who will shepherd My people Israel.’”
On the church calendar, January 6 is designated as the Epiphany of our Lord. It is the day which the people of the Christian Church have designated to remember the visit of the Wise Men from the East who came to Jerusalem to worship the newborn King. When they arrived in Jerusalem, they inquired, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.” Details are not given in Scripture telling us who the Wise Men were or how many there were. We are not told from what country they came or how far or how long they had traveled.
Generally, it is assumed that they were Gentiles, non-Jews, coming from a distant country. Therefore Epiphany is called the Christmas of the Gentiles. Epiphany means manifest. God through a special star manifested to the Wise Men that the promised Savior had been born. Through whom or when God revealed to the Wise Men the promise to send a Savior is not revealed to us either. In what way the special star told them that the Savior had been born is not revealed to us either.
What then do we know? We know that they knew that the Savior had been born and they came to Jerusalem to worship Him. If they had not known that Jesus was the promised Savior and the Son of God, they would have been guilty of idolatry. But they came to worship Him and Scripture clearly states, “You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve,” Matthew 4:10.
King Herod and all the people of Jerusalem were troubled and upset. The wise men were looking for the King of the Jews. They were not looking for an earthly king. However, that is how Herod understood their question. A new king would have been a threat to Herod’s throne. Like a politician, Herod was ready to do anything to keep his position of power. We see this type of reaction every day in our own beloved land when the positions of politicians are being threatened.
Herod summoned the religious leaders together to find out where Jesus was to be born. The religious leaders knew what the prophet Micah had written, although most of them did not believe that Jesus’ birth meant the fulfillment of God’s promise.
What does this tell you and me? God kept His promise and sent the virgin-born Jesus to be our Savior. It is Jesus in whom we should put our trust for the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation. Jesus is the Son of God whom we, like the Wise Men, should worship. Furthermore, to learn the truth about Jesus we must go to Holy Scripture, as Jesus Himself directs us, “You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me,” John 5:39. Both the Old and New Testament testify that the Son of God became also the Son of Man born in Bethlehem. We must worship Him in spirit and in truth. He lived the perfect life in our place and He suffered, died, and rose again to conquer sin, death and the devil for us. Let’s be wise and worship Jesus as God’s Son and our Savior.
Thou art the Way; to Thee alone, from sin and death we flee,
And he who would the Father seek, must seek Him, Lord, by Thee.
Thou art the Way, the Truth, the Life; grant us that Way to know,
That Truth to keep, that Life to win, whose joys eternal flow. Amen.