An Epiphany Sermon

I.

What led the Magi to Jesus? St. Matthew writes, “After Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews. For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

We say the star led the Magi to Jesus and we’d be right, but not completely. They had specific information about the star’s meaning. Where did they get that? Astrology? Mysterious pagan rites of the east? Would God work through witchcraft to reveal his Son? No, he would not.

“When you come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominable practices of those nations. There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering, anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, or a sorcerer or a charmer or a medium or a necromancer or one who inquires of the dead, 12 for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord.” Deut. 18:1-12

The Lord warns against the practices that have been leading generations of gentiles into the slavery of demons and death. The same applies to the New Testament church.

“Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Gal. 5:19-21

The Lord is holy and his means of revelation are holy. This is why we seek fellowship with God through ‘holy’ baptism and ‘holy’ communion. This is why we preach and hear nothing but the ‘holy’ Word in this church. They are not from superstitious human imagination or demonic temptation. They are God’s own means of revealing the knowledge and power of mankind’s salvation.

Superstition had nothing to do with the Magi’s presence. So how did they know that the King of the Jews was not Herod surrounded by opulence in the temple. How did they know that David’s true heir was coming, the branch that would sprout from Jesse’s all but forgotten stump?

They knew the Scriptures, dear saints. They trained their hearts to hold fast to the Word as much as their eyes had been trained to watch the skies for promised sign.

II.

The star, dear saints, was promised. They had read Moses’ record of Balaam’s prophesy, “I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near: a star shall come out of Jacob and a scepter shall rise out of Israel.”

It shouldn’t surprise us that men of the east would know Moses. Their ancestors had led the Israelites of David’s line into captivity. The Assyrians to the north had scattered the ten tribes across the world. They carried the Word with them. In lands where only the incantations to dead images of wood and stone had been heard a new and living God’s voice filled the gentile hearts.

Yes, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob promised great works and salvation to his people, but he also promised to gather a people who didn’t know the true worship of faith.

To David’s house the Lord promised, “Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know, and a nation that did not know you shall run to you, because of the Lord your God, and of the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you.” Is. 55:6

To Israel the Lord promised, “The sons of those who afflicted you shall come bending low to you, and all who despised you shall bow down at your feet; they shall call you the City of the Lord, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.” Is. 60:14

The Lord foretold the gentiles would say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.” Is. 2:3

The Lord said, “In that day mankind will cast away their idols of silver and their idols of gold, which they made for themselves to worship.” Is. 2:20

Instead of giving their fear, love, and trust to idols, instead of giving gifts of worship to demons who desire nothing but the destruction of men they’ve entrapped by lies, the gentiles would come to worship the Lord from every corner of the earth. The Father says to his Son, “A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall bring good news, the praises of the Lord.” Is. 60:6

This is the great mystery, says St. Paul, that had been hidden for millennia since the world’s foundation. He calls it the mystery of Christ, “which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. The mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel” (Eph. 3:4-6).

The magi heard the hints of the mystery from the inspired prophets, and they believed. They waited until the mystery of their salvation was signified by the rising of Judah’s star to their west. Then they loaded their animals and set out in search of their Lord, praying and hoping he would receive them as he had received the sons of Abraham when they approached the Lord in faith.

III.

The palace in Jerusalem was the obvious place to go. Instead of finding a newborn they discovered nothing in Herod’s court but deceit, corruption, and murderous intent. David’s true descendants were an existential threat to his crown. Herod wasn’t even a Jew. He was a Idumean, or in the old way of speaking, an Edomite. Why else did he lavish so much of his wealth on the temple? He was trying to buy the good will of the people who all resented him as a pretender and an obstacle to the true king.

For his own advantage, to preserve his power and position, Herod sought the wisdom of the scribes and archpriests. They confirmed what every faithful Hebrew knew by heart. According to Micah 5, the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. If Herod or the wise men sought him, that’s where they should go.

Herod lied. After determining know how long the star had been in the sky to narrow down the age range of the children he’d murder, Herod said, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.”

Men’s hatred cannot stop God’s plans for salvation. Though the magi had parts of the scriptural puzzle, they lacked this one last piece. Though Herod meant it for evil, disclosing the location so the magi would lead him to the helpless child, the Holy Spirit meant it for highest good. He himself would lead these travelers to their Lord and God, the incarnate Son of God.

To confirm Micah’s prophesy, which the magi hadn’t known until they visited Jerusalem, the star reappeared and led them wise men to Bethlehem and to the very house where Jesus, their Lord, waited for them seated on Mary’s lap.

The Lord and Messiah of Israel didn’t deny or reject these foreigners. He received them and made them his own people, the first citizens of the new testament church. They had entered by the door of faith, trusting in God’s promises of salvation recorded in the ancient sermons of the prophets. From faith they gave their gifts of worship; gold to confess the child’s kingship as David’s true heir, frankincense to confess his divinity, myrrh to confess the Christ’s child’s holy work yet set before him, to suffer and atone for the sins of the world, the sins of both Jews and Gentiles.

Hearing and faith. By no other means has God received men into his favor. Though you are not remarkable among men, though you are not descended from kings and prophets, though your ancestors lived in the ignorance of idolatry, God chose you to be his people. He chose you to receive his saving grace. He chose you to follow in the footsteps of the magi to come and worship the infant Jesus by faith alone to be saved.

Rejoice dear Christians. Today is Christmas for the gentiles. “In Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” Eph. 2:13