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Why were the Wise Men so Wise?

December 3rd, 2012 Rev. Daniel Forster

“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 saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.’” (Matthew 2:1-2, ESV)

If you ask folks why the wise men were so wise, you’ll be in for quite a surprise at the various answers you receive. One thing we know for sure is they were astrologers. (Matthew 2:1, AMP) I find this quite interesting because they were not what we would call “religious men” yet they left their comfortable lives and traveled a long and dangerous distance in search of the king whose star they saw (vs. 2).

They were also wise enough to know be familiar with the Old Testament and know that the star meant Jesus was titled the king of the Jews in scripture. (Numbers 24:7; Jeremiah 23:5) After hearing from God in their dreams these wise men were wise enough not to return to Herod for he was not to be trusted (vs. 12).

“After this interview the wise men went their way. And the star they had seen in the east guided them to Bethlehem. It went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were filled with joy! They entered the house and saw the child with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.” (Matthew 2:9-11, NLT)

The wise men were wealthy enough to make the journey and bring expensive gifts and were connected enough to speak to King Herod. However, when they saw Jesus they did not even hesitate to bow down and worship and present their gifts.

These men did not doubt that they had followed the star wrong (vs. 11). They had faith in God’s Spirit to lead them to the right place. These men were not distracted by these worldly circumstances because they had their eyes on Jesus! Now that is wise.

Lord, this Christmas help me to be more like the wise men. I pray that I wouldn’t focus on my worldly circumstances but that I focus on You. I want to seek You with all of my heart, soul, and mind. Amen.