A Different Route

 

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW

A DIFFERENT ROUTE

Matt 2:7-12

7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him."

9 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. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

NIV

Having looked at the story of the Astera, the star, the rising light, the other interesting point is that this Greek word is the base of our English word Astrology. However, let us move on to the story of these Magi. Although we looked into their living somewhere in the East, and traveled west to Jerusalem, although they saw the rising light in the East, we want to consider the purpose of their journey and the reason they knew this was someone who they needed to bring gifts and worship him. There is thought these Magi were of Jewish heritage and were aware of the coming Messiah. Whatever the situation or whoever the Magi were is not the central point of their story. They knew t was something special and were aware of who this rising light in the sky meant and came to bring him gifts and worship him. It is also interesting that when they did arrive in Bethlehem the rising light was still present leading them directly to the place where Jesus was. There is also thought that when they arrived at the guest room of the home, they saw an illumination coming from the head of Jesus. This was the rising light shining up from him into the sky which they saw from a distance. This is most likely the reason some of the paintings of Jesus having this glory ring above his head. However, this is the story of the Magi, and we find their story in our lives. We traveled from a far place to find Jesus. We came from a dark place and were able to see him because of his light, his shining light into our dark lives. Although we had no gifts to bring him, all he desired was that we bring ourselves and that we worship him. He is the light, just as the Magi found him because of his light, we too have found him because of His light, and he continues to light the way for us. This is the reason we say that we follow Jesus because he is leading the way by his light unto our path. We do not know what happened to the Magi after they left the presence of Jesus in Bethlehem other than they returned home. What we can be sure of is their experience with Jesus changed their lives forever. We know that God intervened in their lives by warning them in a dream not to tell Herod about Jesus but to travel home by a different route. Did God give all three the same dream, or just one and he related his dream to the other two? We just do not know, but what we can see is that once they were with Jesus, they traveled a different route, a different path. Isn’t that our story? Once we meet with Jesus, we had to travel a different path. Although we still came home, so to speak, we now walk a path much different than the one we walked when we met with Jesus and fell down to worship Him and we are still walking that different path to home, except we now have a new home we are headed to.