Matthew’s story now shifts back to the Magi, who had
traveled from their homeland in the east, following the star. On arriving in
Jerusalem they stopped and asked Herod - who was king of the Jews by Roman
decree – where the new king would be born. After he consulted others, Herod
told them, expecting them to later return and report what they’d found. Armed with
the missing piece of information (that Jesus would be born in Bethlehem), they
left to narrow down their search.
“After they had heard the king, they
went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them
until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they
saw the star, they were overjoyed.”[1]
Understanding the
background to the above verse, it occurs to the reader that the arriving Magi
must earlier have come to a point or place where they either couldn’t discern
exactly when they were directly under the star, or where they couldn’t find it
in the sky any longer at all. Why else would they have even thought to ask
Herod for directions? But now back on their way, the star again appears. This,
more than any other fact, leads one to conclude that the star was not a
convergence of planets (as some have suggested) or some other kind of natural
but infrequent phenomenon. It was a supernatural sign, appearing, disappearing
and moving according to the will of God, entirely for His purposes. Those
purposes included motivating the Magi in the first place, leading them to Herod
to ask a heart-proving question, overwhelming them with joy and guiding them to
the exact place Jesus was.
God is always faithful to
lead those who want to see Him to Himself, and He will use all manner of
circumstance and signs – be a dream or a supernatural star in the sky – to do
so. All along the way, He uses their faith – however small and incomplete it
may be – to accomplish things for His glory. Some of those things are wonderous
– like looking up and seeing the star. Some are confusing – like suddenly not
seeing the star. Some – like speaking to a foreign king - are fraught with danger.
All of them require action on the part of the believer, be it starting a
journey or asking an authority for direction. Ultimately, such actions taken in
faith lead to joy, for they lead to worship of Him.
This is His way.
· Where are you
on your journey to seeing Christ? What decisions must you take today to keep
you on that path? Is this a season of
seeing signs, or a season of asking questions?
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