What the Wise Men Are Still Teaching Us

One of my favorite Christmas songs growing up was “We Three Kings.” It talks about the gifts and when I got older I realized it was explaining what they are and the meaning behind them: “Gold I bring to crown Him again… Frankincense to offer have I, incense owns a Deity nigh… Myrrh is mine, it’s bitter perfume… sealed inside a stone cold tomb.” There is so much more to these gifts and what they teach us than just a cursory reading would reveal. Gold thread was used for the priestly garments in the old testament, which foreshadows the royal priesthood of Jesus. He is both our advocate with the Father and a divine ruler (Heb. 4:14-16.) I recently learned frankincense and myrrh are both harvested from trees in similar ways: trees are bruised and beaten to get their sap to run down the sides of them. This depiction is reminiscent of the picture Isaiah paints when describing the crucifixion (Isaiah 53:3-5.) Frankincense was used in anointing oil used by Samuel for consecrating kings and myrrh was used in burials, which represents the death of Jesus and His ascension as King! 

           The Magi (wise men) came with the best they could find. These men were wealthy and, as Collins contends, it was already customary to give royalty worthy gifts, but they likely would have given Jesus unusually large amounts of gifts because of their divine leading by God (via the star) to Jesus. Travel wasn’t done leisurely in those days like it is now; for them, travel was something that was done because it had to be; yet, these wise men chose to go on a difficult journey because they believed Jesus was worth the risk. Travel was so dangerous, those leaving had to settle their affairs before they left in case something happened to them and because of the length of time they’d be gone. The Magi were ready to leave everything they knew behind, leaving no ties or debt to their old life and fully embracing the new King they went to welcome.

When they arrived, the wise men asked about Jesus at Jerusalem. Perhaps they assumed a king would be in the palace, or perhaps it was a custom to visit leaders when travelling through their nation. The wise men were probably shocked when the King was irritable about the new King. Of course, this was because King Herod had gotten the throne after a bloody civil war and knew he was out of line in the palace. This is probably one of the factors that led him to be so gung-ho about his murder plot to destroy Jesus (which seemed to be a pattern in Herod’s life - he plotted and killed people that threatened him.) Surely this was not the warm welcome the Magi expected. Why wasn’t anyone else worshipping the King of the Jews? Despite the disbelief of everyone around them, they didn’t let it stop them from doing what was right.

These gifts did so much more than just complete a tradition of present-giving for new rulers. It was an act of worship and allowed prophecy to be fulfilled. Mary and Joseph were by no means wealthy (their temple sacrifice when Jesus was old enough was the most affordable option [Leviticus 12:6-8, Luke 2:24.]) But after the wise men came, their gifts funded the flight to Egypt, the extended stay in a foreign land, and the return home. Collins also states that the riches were so abundant that it was able to support Jesus in His ministry (keeping in mind that it didn’t begin until thirty years later.)

The wise men and their actions can teach us so much, especially in the midst of a year like 2020. We see political turmoil and fear running rampant. This is not so dissimilar to the scene Jesus arrived on those many years ago; but no matter the year, we can still fully embrace Jesus in our hearts and worship Him. Worship can look like singing, praying and counting your blessings, serving in your community, or just sitting in wonder and awe of how perfectly God has weaved His Word together. Everyday acts of worship may seem like a small price to pay, but our obedience in the “small” things can create eternal impacts that we can’t even fathom.

 

Sources:

“The Fears of King Herod,” First 5 Teaching (Joel Muddamalle & Hannah Schindler)

“Gifts of Eternal Impact,” H.E.L.P. Sunday School, 12/20/20, Tim Wells

https://www.biblestudy.org/prophecy/how-rich-were-the-magi.html