“Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, Saying,
   ‘Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the East, and are come to worship him.” Matt 2:1-2

Should we be surprised that there was no large crowd awaiting the birth of Jesus? Hardly anyone knew of the impending event. Angels had to sing to shepherds and prophets had to prophesy in the Temple about the approaching nativity. In fact, in verse three of Matthew we are told that, “when Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.” That these travelers from the east, who are called “wise” by the Scriptures, were drawn of the Spirit from a faraway place serves as a hint that very few men were wise about spiritual things at that time. We might even infer that wise men were a very rare breed in the days just preceding the first coming of Christ. We might also conclude that not much has changed in two thousand years as men await the second coming of Christ. How many wise men are there who await the coming of the Lord?

Verse two is very revealing in that it declares these wise men saw “His Star!” Questions ring out. How did they know it was Christ’s star? How did they know He was the King of the Jews? And how did they know to worship Him? Instead of being excited and joyful, Herod and all Jerusalem were troubled. What a strange and foolish way to feel at the coming of the Savior. His actions were even more incredible, and proved him to be a fool’s fool.

When Herod gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. Their reply to him was, “In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, art not the least among the princes of Judah: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel”. Matt 2:5-6 (see Micah 5:3)

Then Herod called the wise men, and inquired of them when the star appeared. His next move was to send them to Bethlehem, he told them; “Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also.” This, of course, was a lie. He had no intention of worshiping Jesus, for when he heard the prophecy of Micah and that he would rule over the people of Israel he sought only to kill him. As we read on we find out to what lengths he would go to do away with “Mary’s Boy Child”.

How foolish of Herod to think he could undo prophecy or frustrate the plan of God. Though wise in the world and politically adroit in every way this power hungry man was a complete fool. He had gained the world and would lose his soul. His temple was a marvel and his palace a place of splendor and beauty. He had built cities and successfully courted the Roman Emperor Tiberius in a deadly game of cat and mouse politics. He was ruthless and knew every means of protecting his power by intrigue, bribery, brutality and persuasion. And yet he stands the symbol of the foolishness of the world that went about its business as the Lord Himself was taking on the form of mortal flesh to bring man the gift of immortality through forgiveness and redemption of sin.

But the wise sojourners were not taken in by Herod’s crafty plan. After hearing the king, these perceptive men ignored his instructions and departed to continue their search for the Messiah. Once more the star appeared to them, the one “which they had seen in the east” (inferring: a rising light). It went before them, till “it came and stood over where the young child was.” Instead of wondering how this could benefit their worldly position and place the wise men were humbled by being in the presence of God.

“When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshiped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.” Matt 2:11

After accomplishing the mission God had so perfectly guided them on, He once more spoke to them, this time in a dream, warning them they “should not return to Herod, so they departed into their own country another way”. Once more these obscure believers proved their wisdom by being obedient to the voice of God.

Before Herod could react to the birth of Christ the Lord gave Joseph a dream, saying, “Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him” Joseph, too, proved himself a wise man by taking immediate heed to the dream he was given.

“Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the WISE men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the WISE men.” The prophecy of Jeremiah was fulfilled; “Rachel weeping for her children”. When Herod was dead, the Lord visited Joseph in Egypt with a dream, telling him to return to Israel. They settled in a city called Nazareth: fulfilling that which was spoken by the prophets, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”

Now about the WISE MEN!! These men are only spoken of once in the Bible, but the account of their faith and deeds takes up most of a chapter. Perhaps they are kept somewhat mysterious because their experience was one of a spiritual journey. If only more were willing to take such a WISE journey, hearing the voice of God and doing what He says.

There are all kinds of speculation, stories and even outright and outrageous lies about them. Some of those guesses are; who they were, how they dressed, their skin color, their gifts and even where their bones were laid to rest. But I believe they were men who knew God, who had personal contact with Him. How else would they have known what the “star” meant and what it was about and that the child would be the “King of the Jews”. Were they Caucasian, Black, Oriental, or Jew, none of that matters – if it did, God would have made a point of telling us. In fact, God’s silence on the matter of race and origin of these men points more directly to their spiritual character rather than their fleshly heritage. These men heard from God personally, were obviously instructed to follow the star, gave gifts in adoration and worshiped the Son of God. They heard and obeyed! And those my friends, are the signs of “WISE MEN”!

There was a shortage of “WISE MEN” in those days, and so there is today. Not nearly enough men and women seek, believe and obey. The formula is simple but the world complicates it. The population of the world approaches 6 billion today, as of 1993 less than a third of the population called themselves Christians. And of those how many know what it means to be a true Christian? It may be their “religion”, but they have no personal knowledge of Jesus Christ the Saviour.

That is why Jesus came to this earth, born of woman and the Holy Ghost, the very Spirit of God, that He might be both man and God. This shows us how we can become a part of God’s family by being influenced by the Holy Ghost in our lives, guiding us to be more like Jesus every day.

I hope this will be each reader’s most cherished gift this Christmas, the guidance of the
Holy Ghost, for the rest of your stay here on earth. This will make you a “WISE MAN” /
“WISE WOMAN”.