I remember hearing Jim Bill McInteer saying one time that the way he studied the Bible was to read until he read something that he'd never seen before. That impressed me that a man who had so much Bible knowledge could find so much that he'd never thought of before. That happened to me while preparing some things for Sunday's sermon.
While combining the two accounts of Matthew and Luke, I saw something that made me think. Flash back for just a second to my first grade classroom. I went to Highlawn Elementary School in Huntington, West Virginia. That was a time when we still recited the Lord's Prayer every morning and we had Christmas plays in December. I remember that I had the role of one of the wise men. (Of course, our version had three) I had a crown and some kind of gift for Jesus. In that play, as in most re-enactments I've seen, the wise men (Magi) come to the manger where Jesus was born. They make an appearance right after the shepherds show up.
Now, come back to the present. While reading Matthew's account, I saw something I'd never seen before. The Magi want to see Jesus, they contact King Herod who becomes paranoid about a new king, and they leave on a different route after their visit. Here it is--Check out verse 11 of chapter 2 of Matthew. It says, "On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh." Did you see it? Look again. They came to the house. Where was the house? What did it look like? How was it decorated? Wow, I have a million questions. But I never thought of Jospeh and Mary having a house. And I never thought the Magi would come there to see him.
Why have I never seen that? It had to have been a humble place, nothing fancy. But these men of great knowledge and evidently great wealth thought it was worth their while to visit this baby while stiffing the King Herod. Let's realize the significance. Let's note the importance of this event. Emmanuel. God with us. Have a great day. JW
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Oh yeah... I've been picking on that whole "wise men at the manger" thing for a while. Jesus was probably closer to 2 years old when they finally showed up at the house. But it doesn't change the big picture one bit, does it?
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