January 4 Isaiah 60.1-6, *Matthew 2.1-12 Jesus – A Secret Revealed (Jesus is revealed as the Messiah) Pastor Jacqueline Hines

The wise men coming from the East must have been a very impressive group of travelers from afar. [ # 1 blue manger  ]  One has to wonder if they drove camels as lofty as limousines.  Did they dress like dignitaries in pressed suits and designer dresses who were accustomed to being wined and dined? What was it about these people that caused King Herod and all of Jerusalem with him to be afraid? Why did anyone in Jerusalem even care about some strangers asking the simple question:  “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews?”

We know that even babies can be significant in the world of politics. [ #2 Kate Middleton]. Babies matter when they are in the ruling class. Rulers of every age and station matter to someone somewhere [ #3 Pope Francis] [ # 4 Hitler]           [#5  Obama] And someone somewhere is likely to be afraid, threatened, willing to fight, even to kill in order to avoid being ruled by a certain ruler.

In spite of all the political carrying ons in this world, let the wise men, whoever they were and whatever they looked like, remind us that if God is not the ruler of our hearts and homes, it is not we who are the ones in control. If we don’t surrender to the holy, we surrender to the unholy. What else is there?

The travelers came from the East. The East is always to the right, and biblically, it is the faith symbol of the presence of God. God comes from the East, from the right, not the wrong. Regardless of circumstances, we always know where God is coming from.

The wise men said they had observed a star that led them to Jesus. [#6  North Star] The idea of following a star is inconceivable to most of us. If you are going somewhere these days, following a star is the hard way to go. Following a star is what you may do when you are lost or running for your life. Following a star is what you do in the dark, when your path is yet to be revealed, when the way we should go seems to be a secret known only to God.

Today when we want to go somewhere we are more likely to use a map, get directions from someone who has been there, or use a GPS.  The wise men followed a star because they were on a secret mission. They had to keep their eyes on things above and not below. They were on a faith journey and trusted the star when it shone brightly and when it was out of sight. That is exactly what we are doing as we journey into this New Year, seeking all the good God has prepared for us. They believed that Jesus was about to be revealed as the anointed one, the chosen one, the one to save God’s people from their sins. We too are expecting what is now unknown, a revelation of salvation that is to be cherished as precious, that needs to be respectfully guarded and protected.

Jesus was the secret yet to be revealed. He was the secret that had to be protected. After all, what society really wants to be saved from their sins? It takes divine intervention and power for the saved to really help the lost, for the living to really want to help the 8000 children dying every day of hunger or lack of clean water, for those who are safe to enter into conversation with those who choose violence, for those who boldly face reality to pray for pornographers to give up their crude fantasies. Jesus was a secret to be protected from a hostile world.

When the wise men found Jesus, they worshipped him. They knew he was the one, the light of the whole world – the light that would reveal great good as well as evil being done under cover of darkness. They gave the gifts they had prepared by faith.

On their trip home, God spoke to them in the secret place of their dreams.             [ # 7 verse 12…And having been warned…] Verse 12 says they were warned in a dream not to return to Herod. So, they left for their own country by another road.

Just as they followed the star at night, the wise men followed God’s direction tucked away under the cover of a dream, hidden - all to protect the precious secret revealed to all who had the faith to follow.

The journey of the wise men teaches us three ways to get to the Messiah, the one chosen to save us from our sins. First, we must look up in the darkness.  [ #8 man looking in a grey sky  ]   In those situations where there seems to be no light, God is always there showing us the way.

Second, we must accept God’s direction without argument. [#9  man bowing before Jesus ]  God gave the wise men directions in their sleep, when they could not move a muscle to protest.

Third, if we are going to find the only one who can save us from our sins and the sins of others, we must worship him. The Greek word for worship points to the culture of the day that showed their reverence by falling on their knees and letting their foreheads touch the ground. [ #10 man bowing on ground ]  We share that ancient culture with the kneeling benches at our altars.

The Greek word for worship points to the culture of the day [ #11 kissing pope’s hand] that showed reverence by [  #12 kissing woman’s hand ]  kissing the hand of the revered one in the same humble manner as a dog who licks the master’s hand       [ #13 dog licking hand  ]  or kisses the face [ #14 dog licking face ].

The wise ones worshipped the Messiah and then gave gifts. [ #15 wise men with gifts ]  Mother Theresa   [ #16 Mother Theresa ]  says it’s not our gift that counts so much as it is how much love is in the gifts we give. There is a whole lot of love in the lick of a master’s hand.  

May all our gifts be full of such love.  [#17 Jesus and lamb] Amen.