The story of the wise men is one of my personal favorite parts of the Christmas story in the Bible…
“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.” When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him;” (Matthew 2:1–3, ESV)
Who were the wise men? The term “wise men” translates the Greek magi and very likely refers to men who were among the most highly educated, prestigious leaders of the ancient world. Most Bible scholars believe they traveled to Israel from Babylon – the area that is modern day Iraq. It’s 1000 miles due east of Israel. In their studies, they had come across the Hebrew scriptures which predicted when the Messiah would be born. Remember, hundreds of years earlier, Daniel and his friends had been taken into captivity in Babylon and likely were the source of much of the information the wise men had. In the book of Daniel chapter 9 there is an incredible prophecy that predicted the exact time the Messiah was going to born. They saw the star and knew that it was a sign from God that the Messiah had been born. However, the wise men did not know where the Messiah was going to be born, so they logically came to Jerusalem and had the famous conversation with Herod. Then, a wonderful event happened. They saw the star again…
“After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.” (Matthew 2:9–11, ESV)
The wise men saw the light and came to Jesus. It’s that simple. Take a few moments and read John 1:1-14 and see how the birth of Christ is portrayed there as a light shining into a dark world. The wise men are literal examples of those who see the light of Christ and come to Him. Even as I type these words, I get excited because of the reality of my salvation. As an eight year old boy, I saw the light of Christ and came to Jesus. Did I see a star like those guys? No. Actually, I “saw the light” in that I understood who Jesus is and I understood my sinfulness and need for a Savior. You see, light enables us to see. Once I saw Jesus and saw myself – I placed my faith in Him as Savior. In August 1978, Greg Corbin saw the light and came to Jesus. Praise the Lord!
Perhaps you are reading this blog and you are not a Christian. I would love to connect with you and help you along the road to faith in Him. Go to the “contact” section of this blog and I would love to hear from you.
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