The Magi's Visit

Introduction:

I would like tom share some things I have learned this week. One would be that pastor’s sometimes ask how folks are doing. The general answer is I’m doing fine. In my theology class the professor said to exam the answer in this light. A person who falls from an upper story of a tall building may shout while passing each window on the way down, I’m doing fine, but eventually the facts will catch up with the person’s experience. The take away is that life is difficult and we need to understand that I’m doing fine usually means I’m barely holding it together while fighting not to hurt someone who may well need it. In sharing a little about the culture of this time period I will pass along information from a book on the study of the new testament. The average person did not have toilets, indoor running water, electricity, cell phones, video game systems, electric lights, television, beds with mattresses, heating systems, air condition, or readily available books. What they did have were huts made of stone, stucco, wood, straw, mud and dirt floors. They had each other for company and an imagination to spell bound each other with stories of adventures.One of the ruling groups of the day who controlled the religious lives of the people were known as pharisees. They for the most part were middle class laymen. In the time of Herod the Great they numbered about 6000. In an attempt to keep the jewish people pure and sin free they would adopt laws to prevent the lesser jew from sinning. Som first in order to protect themselves a law was made where by a pharisee could not eat in the house of a sinner. however they could eat with a sinner in their own house. The host had the sinner change clothes when he entered the house to prevent unwanted spreading of sin. It was illegal to spit on the ground during the sabbath. The act could disturb the soil which would constitute plowing and that would be working on the sabbath. A woman could not look in the mirror during the sabbath lest she may see a gray hair and attempt to plucket it out. thereby working on the sabbath. It was illegal to eat a egg laid on the festivile day. A man could not carry his clothes out of a burning house in his arms. That would be working. He could put on as many sets as possible then walk out that was OK. It was illegal to travel more than three fifths of a mile from the city in which a person lived on the sabbath. It was OK to on the day before travel three fifths of a mile and leave food for the sabbath. This would make the eating place home so a person could continue another three fifths and so on until they arrived were they were going. Jesus and the pharisees clashed over these silly laws repeatably.

II Body: The Magi’s Visit

Matthew 2:1–12 “Now when Jesus was born in Beth-lehem of Judaea 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. When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. And they said unto him, In Beth-lehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, And thou Beth-lehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel. Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, inquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Beth-lehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship hi…” 9 When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. 10 When they saw the star, they irejoiced with exceeding great joy. 11 And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, jthey ||presented unto him gifts; kgold, and kfrankincense, and lmyrrh. 12 And being warned of God min a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.

Herod the Great was a ruler of Judaea during the birth of Jesus. Herod was best known for his revitalization of the newly rebuilt temple. It is said that his beautification of the temple made it far exceed the grandeur of the original. No expense was spared. One thing to notice in the scriptures would be how it differs from our Christmas account. Matthew doesn’t say there was three wisemen. It is believed that as many as 12 arrived to visit the new king of the Jews. They didn’t arrive at the manager in fact they arrived at the house where Mary and Joseph were now staying. The census count is over, the people have returned home and places were available for the couple to stay. Herod was very curious about when the wisemen first saw the star in which they followed. He was plotting to fix a time frame of when the Christ child would have been born. He knew the town from the writing and teaching of the prophets and now if he could get the time window down and a location he could narrow the number of children and ages he would have killed.

The Holy Bible: King James Version, Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version. (Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2009), Mt 2:9–12.