The Gospel
Matthew 2:1-12
In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, "Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage." When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:
`And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who is to shepherd my people Israel.'"
Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage." When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.
The Sermon
We three kings
Today is Epiphany. It is
the day that we celebrate Jesus being revealed to the world. This
gospel reading is a wonderful story of wise men, magi, coming from
the east to pay homage to a new king. We are not told how they found
out about this new king. Maji during this time were often
astrologers and magicians and counselors to royalty. It makes sense
that they would go first to the ruler of the region in order to get
more information on what they perceived was happening. It would have
been protocol. We don't know how many wise men there were. We do
know that they brought three gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
All three of these gifts were extremely expensive during that time..
Gold still is. Gold was an appropriate gift for royalty.
Frankincense was often used in ceremonies to gods and Myrrh was often
used in preparing the body after death.
It is pretty clear that
the magi were not from anywhere nearby. They may have been from
Persia or even India. The symbolism is clear. This newborn king was
going to be known and honored by more than just the area where he was
born. He would be for the whole world.
The reason we are reading
from Mathew today is because this event is only told in the Gospel of
Matthew. Mark, Luke, and John make no mention of it. Matthew is
unique in that he was directing his gospel toward the Jews and he was
making a case that the prophets had foretold Jesus coming as the
messiah. The reading today includes the prophesy of Micah which was
written seven hundred years before Jesus' birth. It says, “And
you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the
rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd
my people Israel.”
So, wise men brought Jesus
gifts and laid them at his feet. What about us. What do we have to
give? I am not talking so much about tangible gifts such as gold and
frankincense. I am talking about our God given gifts. How do we use
our talents and lay them at the feet of the lord. Some of you may be
sitting here thinking, 'I got nothin'. I don't believe that.
Some of those gifts may be
your kindness, or your mercy, or empathy, or generosity. God sees
these gifts and God wants you to freely give them to others in your
world. And when you give them to others you have given them to Him.
Amen
Fr. Fred
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