Ephesians 3:1-12
Matthew 2:1-12
"You
shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land
of Egypt.” Exodus
22:21
As Luke’s
Gospel is unique in the story of the boy Jesus in the Temple, Matthew’s Gospel is unique in the story
of the wise men. Yet as with stories of
the boy Jesus being found in other, extrabiblical sources, so are the visiting
wise men found in some of those same sources.
There are details lacking in the Bible found in these other sources.
So we can find all sorts of twists and turns to this
story that may cause some confusion and even doubt as to whether the story
itself is true. There is even a birth
account of Jesus in the Qur’an. So any questions would be fair. Looking more closely to the biblical and the
extrabiblical accounts, however, will reveal a significant and fundamental Truth
we can all embrace: all these sources point to the biblical prophecies written
so long ago of what was to take place.
The Lord made a Promise long before this time, a Promise made in the
midst of Israel’s darkest days, and the time of that Promise to be fulfilled
was upon them. Emmanuel had come to
Israel.
Now come the visitors from the East, visitors from
outside of Israel. Other sources give
these visitors names and countries of origin, but the Christian tradition does
not name them though the tradition insists upon three. Yet the only count we are given is to the
number of gifts, so it has been deduced that since there were three gifts,
there must have been three individuals bearing each gift. Ok. So
what? That number in itself tells us
nothing useful, and has actually been the source of some conflict as we find
ourselves engaged in senseless arguments about things that are not biblical,
traditions we have created and embraced as “truth”. These are alleged “facts” we dispute while unintentionally
overlooking The Truth. Stepping over a
dollar to pick up a dime.
What we must see is a Covenant not only renewed in the
sight of Israel with great Promise; but a Covenant greatly expanded so much so
that the Holy Creator used His own creation, a Star, rather than a prophet to
summon the Gentiles from a far-away land.
Kings, maybe. Herod’s response
was less than overwhelming as to the presence
or even the status of these guests, but he was greatly disturbed as to the purpose of their visit.
Though I think maybe the fulfillment of the prophecy
may be the central part of the story, there are still a few elements of this
story we should take into account.
It has been suggested perhaps Herod was Jewish by
race, but it seems clear by what is revealed in the Scripture that Herod was no
child of Israel; he was a minion of Rome.
If it is true Herod had some Hebrew lineage he was born into, it is
pretty clear Herod favored his Roman acquisitions.
There was power in Rome. There were riches in his position of favor
and authority; the best the “world” has to offer even today. In the birth of this Messiah referred to as
“King of the Jews” by these “strangers”, these “outsiders”, there was a potential
threat to his power and authority. And
Herod did take this prophecy very seriously once he became aware, enough to
confer with the religious leaders to pin it down. A Gentile would not have so bothered, but Herod
believed enough to feel threatened.
He believed enough to feel as though all he had, all
he believed he was entitled to apart from the Scripture, was now at risk. He believed enough to know the world was not
big enough for him and another King born in the land Herod thought was his own
to do with as he pleased.
Let us also consider that the chief priests and
scribes, the Scripture teachers of Israel, are not written of as rushing out to
see for themselves all which has been taking place. Their reading of the prophecy pertaining to
this news seemed almost casual as if with a shoulder shrug. Would we not get pretty excited about the
coming of the King we’ve so eagerly waited for if we read it and heard some
rumor that added substance to the prophecy?
Frankly, no. We
often point to the Revelation and
some of what is written in the epistles and the Gospels of “signs” pointing to
the End of Days, yet there is very little in the way of repentance. Even within the Church it is business as
usual. Too many people, even those
claiming to believe, are running away
from the Church. So it would seem we are
no more excited about “signs” and prophecies than the chief priests and scribes
were. We are as casual today about
worship of The Lord as the chief priests were about the Word of The Lord. The Church must not overlook that parallel.
What we might be able to see is that these Gentiles,
these “strangers” had come to find something worth the effort and the risk and
the trouble they went to; a prophecy from the very Scripture Israel as a Body,
as a people had come to take for granted.
These “strangers” were searching for something inside of Israel they seemed to believe included them.
That alone might be worth some concern on Israel’s
part, and certainly on Herod’s part.
Think of it: a KING who would summon
outsiders by command of
nature? A King who would
welcome “strangers”??
The prophecy speaks of more than a single “event” as
the birth of Messiah. This prophecy
speaks of a “King” who was now laying claim to a Kingdom which extends beyond
the borders of Israel, certainly beyond “Caesar’s” reach, well beyond the walls
of any Church today. The exclusive
territory was no longer so exclusive that it is defined by “us” and
“them”.
The Church today must take a good, long, and much
closer look at what is being offered to these “strangers” not by Israel as was
Israel’s call as a “priestly nation”, but by Israel’s God.
This God of Israel was always the God of all creation, all humanity; but because
The Lord’s own people did not celebrate and worship and offer Him as such but
tried to make Him exclusive and unique only to them – their “personal” God –
the God of all creation has burst forth in an all-inclusive, all-encompassing
way to summon those we have deemed unworthy
of His attention. The God of all
creation has declared His independence
from those who would dare try to hamstring Him as their “personal” or exclusive
God.
Pope Francis has called 2016 the Jubilee Year of
Mercy, and our own Bishop Mueller has issued a call for prayer and fasting for
Spiritual Revival – both of which are to direct us to the “strangers” among us;
the very “strangers” we once were. Let
this Epiphany no longer be what we have allowed it to become: a boring story
with no real significance for us beyond the liturgical calendar or the little
statues.
Let us be renewed in the Spirit of the Living God to
actively extend mercy and justice to those who cry out for mercy and justice. Let us become once again the Body of Christ
we are called to be. “For we, too, were
strangers once” … until a Star summoned us to come inside. Amen.
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