"We Have Seen His Star"

Matthew 2:1-3

31^st December 2021

Matthew 2:1-3
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 in the east and have come to worship him."
When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.

The story of the Magi is shrouded in mystery, isn't it? We don't know who the Magi were, or where they came from, or how many of them there were. We don't know how they knew, or guessed, that the star they saw announced the birth of the Jesus Christ the King of the Jews.

We do know that this story shows the kindness of God, and the election of God. The first people outside Jesus's family to visit Him were the local shepherds, poor Jews, outcasts. The second group of people the Bible says visited Him were a group of wealthy, foreign intellectuals. It's believed that, notwithstanding the average British Nativity play, the Magi probably arrived many months after the birth of Jesus, so lots of people might have visited Him by then, but the Bible doesn't mention them.

Perhaps God intended this to show that God's grace is available to rich and poor, to Jew and Gentile, to you and me, to everybody.

But not everybody came. The shepherds came, but lots of other shepherds didn't. Only the group of Shepherds who met the angels on the hillside came. The Magi came, but other Magi didn't. Only the ones who noticed the star, and who interpreted it to mean the birth of the King, came.

Some people translate "Magi" as "wise men". They must certainly have been educated. But the education system in the Middle East 2,000 years ago included such subjects as astrology and magic, which goes to show that not everything you learn in school or university is true. Then, as now, a student would learn a lot of truth and a lot of falsehood, all bundled together.

Somehow, probably by quite fallacious reasoning and false knowledge, they came to believe that the new King had been born. You can sometimes arrive at a correct conclusion using false reasoning. God is full of grace. And God chose these Magi.

When they saw the star, they set out for Judea, and they went to visit King Herod. Herod was not a nice man. He was, as Lady Caroline Lamb once said of Lord Byron, "mad, bad and dangerous to know". He killed several members of his own family just to protect his position.

So it's a bit of a stretch – isn't it? – to describe the Magi as wise men. They certainly weren't worldly wise. No sensible person would visit King Herod to tell Him that a rival for his throne had been born and they wanted to worship him. Also, they weren't spiritually wise – they were astrologers! But God is full of grace.

They asked Herod, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him."

Both the ESV and the new version of the NIV say "when it rose" rather than "in the east". I don't know which is correct, but I like that alternative rendering. The Magi told the evil King Herod that a special star had risen, and they'd seen it, and they'd understood that the Christ-child had been born, and they were determined to worship Him.

Herod didn't understand. He didn't care. All he wanted was to put an end to this threat to his power.

And here we see two fundamentally different attitudes to the incarnation of the Son of God. The wise men wanted to worship the new King. Herod wanted Him dead.

Maybe the Magi were wise, after all, in a more important sense. Maybe they understood that Jesus is worth worshipping, come what may.

There are two basic attitudes to Jesus. Some people want to acknowledge Him as King, and some want to remain king themselves, a bit like Herod. Who rules in your life? Who comes first? Who do we protect? Who do we worship? What's the governing principle that governs your life? Is it "Jesus is God incarnate and I must worship Him" or is it "I will look after myself".

Herod would do anything to preserve his own power. The Magi simply said, "We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him."

If you've seen the star, you can never unsee it. If you truly know Jesus is Lord, you will always know it. Bloodthirsty despots will not stop you worshipping Jesus. Nobody will. Nothing will. The government won't. Coronavirus won't. Fear won't. Nothing will.

Isaiah 9:2
The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death, a light has dawned.

John 1:9
The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.

John 8:12
When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

"We have seen his star", the Magi said.

The shepherds saw an angel. The Magi saw a star. Paul saw "a light from heaven" (Acts 9:3). The Philippian jailer felt an earthquake that released all the captives in his prison. Your conversion, if you've been converted, may have been less dramatic. Some of us see the truth of Scripture. Some of us see the love of God in Christians. But all of us sooner or later, have seen an inner light:

2 Corinthians 4:6
… God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.

The God who made the universe, who created light, has shone His light into our hearts.

We have, so to speak, seen His star when it rose in our hearts.

This Christmas, my main thought has been one of gratitude to Almighty God. Just as He chose a particular group of Judean shepherds, and a single group of eastern intellectuals, amazingly He chose me. And He chose you, I hope.

Either you're seen the light or you haven't. If you have, will you not worship and serve Jesus Christ whatever the cost, whatever the risk? If you haven't, will you not cry for God's mercy. Perhaps God will show you the same favour He showed to the shepherds, and the Magi, and me, and millions of others.

May God's light rise in your heart. And may you have a peaceful new year.