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

The Christmas story will not be complete without mentioning the wise men who came from East, seeking the new born King.  One of biggest myths in the Christmas story is that they were three in number.  We even have a Christmas carol that begins with the words “we three kings of orient..”.  However, the Bible never tells us how many they were. They did give three gifts – gold, frankincense & myrrh, but we don’t know if they were three or more men in the group.

Another  myth we often read or see in Christmas cards / paintings is that they went to see Jesus in the stable.  The Bible never says that either.  Matthew 2:10-11 tells us that after they left Herod, they saw the star again which led to the “house” where the child was. Matthew 2:11 – “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.” (emphasis mine). Jesus was already at home when the wise men found Him.  He also was not a baby anymore, He was a “child”, not a babe. Some scholars say Jesus might have been around 2yrs old here.

The most interesting thing about the wise men is that they were not Jews.  They did not live in Jerusalem, they were not Scribes or Pharisees. Some have said they were probably astrologers, maybe so. Whoever or what ever they were, they knew something about a coming Messiah and when they got the sign that He was here, they went in search of Him.  They did not go searching to see what He might look like, they did not go to request healing for themselves or their loved ones,  they did not go to get something out of Him, but they went in search of Him to give Him gifts and to worship Him.  When they saw the child Christ, they fell down and worshiped Him.  Amazing!

One would have thought that if anyone would be eager to find the Messiah to worship Him, it would have been those Scribes and Pharisees who were so conversant with the scriptures, but not so.  Even after the wise men told them that they had seen the star of the Messiah, the Scribes and Pharisees were not in anyway curious to go find out if it was true. They did not rush to Bethlehem to go find out about this king.  How sad.  While they knew all the scriptures about the coming Christ intellectually in their heads, their hearts were far from Him.  While it is good and commendable even by scripture to study and come to the knowledge of the Truth, that knowledge should lead to a transformed heart. 

 They did not go searching to see what He might look like, they did not go to request healing for themselves or their loved ones,  they did not go to get something out of Him, but they went in search of Him to give Him gifts and to worship Him.  When they saw the child Christ, they fell down and worshiped Him.  Amazing!

From a human standpoint, the Scribes and Pharisees would seem to be the wise ones since they knew most, if not all the scriptures about Christ in their head. However, they were the foolish ones, for while they knew about Messiah intellectually, they had no relationship with Him. They did not desire to see Him, nor worship Him.  They are like the idolators in Romans 1:22 – Claiming to be wise, they became fools,

In today’s world, most have heard about Jesus and know something about Him intellectually, but most do not really know Him intimately from their heart.  It does not have to be that way.  If you don’t know Christ as your personal savior and Lord, you can today.

The reason He was born was to glorify the Father by saving His people from their sins. Matthew 1:21 – She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”.   Humble yourself today like the wise men from the East, reject your foolish ways and be wise.  Repent of your sins, ask Him to forgive you and receive you to Himself.  He has promised that He will receive you. John 1:12 – But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God

Merry Christmas Everyone!!