The bible just says the three kings travelled from eastern lands to see the king of the Jews. When they lost sight of the star they went to Herod. Then they started the journey again and saw the star. The star gave them great joy. The star stopped over the stable in Bethlehem. The three kings worshipped baby Jesus and returned another way because God warned them in a dream to not go to Herod.
I think it is so beautiful that three humans travelled far with nothing to give them directions than a star. The star was their gps. Gps or global positioning system that gives us free information on how to get to our destination is metaphorically similar to the star that appeared in the sky to the three kings and showed them the way to Bethlehem. In between the star stopped or disappeared. When the star disappeared they went to Herod.
Let not the star disappear in our lives.
To me the star is my parents. If I keep their instructions in my head and heart I will not lose my way.
Who is the star in your life.
What is the star.
The star guides the three wise people.
My parents instructions guide me.
Unlike modern gps the star does not speak. Yet the star is visible.
The story of the three wise men is certainly a very curious story.
The story of the three wise men appear in the gospel of Matthew. This story is present only in the gospel of Matthew. It is not present in the gospel of Mark Luke or John. Mark and John do not contain the story of Christmas at all. Only the gospel of Matthew and the gospel of Luke contain the story of Christmas.
Why is the story of Christmas not present in the gospel of Mark and the gospel of John?
It is amazing that both gospels that do contain the story of Christmas highlight different aspects of the Christmas story. Thus Matthew includes the story of the three wise men, and also Joseph's unbelief. And the gospel of Luke includes the story of Elizabeth and zechariah and Mary. The Gospel of Luke does not talk about Herod at all. The Gospel of Mathew does not include the angels appearing to the shepherds.
If we read the Christmas story closely there is so much we can learn. There is intertwining of so many perspectives and so many groups of people's stories.
There are so many places. Nazareth
The hill country of Judah. Bethlehem. Galilee. The east. Jerusalem, and even Egypt.
Political and administrative events of the time give us the historical context of the true story of Christmas. They vouchsafe the real historical world where Jesus was born into. Caeser Augustus was the emperor of Rome. Jesus was born when Caeser Augustus was the emperor of Rome. Thus the census that caused Joseph to go to Bethlehem give context. The eastern wise people who approached Herod etc give context. Caesar Augustus was the emperor of Rome. Herod was the king of Judea. Caeser Augustus, the Roman emperor gave a decree that all the world should be taxed.
The heavenly events that happened were the angels appearing in the sky.
The angels told the shepherds to look for a sign. The sign was a newborn baby in a manger.
How often are we likely to see newborn babies in mangers. Not likely.
So the angel told the shepherds to look for something unusual. While it is usual to see a newborn lamb in a manger a newborn human baby is very unlikely.
I would like to have signs from angels.
The best part to me of the Christmas story is the message to the shepherds and the sudden appearance of angels singing in the sky. I wonder how that would have sounded like. Or looked like. Imagine a night sky being completely lit up with heavenly hosts.
I wonder if there is any other reason why God would have planned for baby Jesus to be born in a stable other than humility.
What else could be accomplished when baby Jesus was born in a stable, the humblest place a human can be born in.
Nazareth to me is a wonderful word. A wonderful name for a place to have. Mary was from Nazareth. Jesus is known as a Nazarene. The people who worship Jesus are nasranis.
The fragrance of Nazareth has spread all over the world. In a bustling town far away from the real Nazareth there are convents named Nazareth hospitals and schools and other educational institutions named after the little Judean town that Jesus called home.
Where does the Christmas story start?
In Luke the story starts with Zechariah. Although it is technically not part of the Christmas story it is in the same chapter as the section where the angel appears to Mary.
The angel appears to Mary when Elizabeth is 6 months pregnant. In fact the angel tells Mary about Elizabeth's story as well.
The story of Jesus, the son of God and the story of John the Baptist, the son of Zechariah and Elizabeth are intertwined.
Probably that is the reason Mary hurried to the hill country of Judah where Elizabeth lived soon after the being visited by the angel. Mary's magnificat is sung during the visit of Mary in Elizabeth's home. Mary would have hurried to the hill country of Judah because the angel told Mary about Elizabeth becoming pregnant in her old age. Imagine knowing about your cousin's pregnancy through an angel.
I really like Mary's song. My most favorite line is that God's mercy is upon all those who fear Him. God's mercy is for all generations.
The name of Jesus was decided before Jesus was born.
In the gospel of St. Matthew the perspective of St Joseph is given. St. Joseph was also visited by an angel just as Mary was. St. Joseph being a righteous man was considering breaking his engagement with Mary but doing so without causing any disgrace to Mary. However the angel appeared to St. Joseph and told him that he should not be afraid to take Mary as his wife.
The angel did not appear to Joseph in real life. The angel appeared to Joseph in a dream. But after being sure of the fact that Mary was blessed by the Holy Spirit Joseph showed life long commitment to Mary and the Christ child.
In the gospel of Matthew there are two prophesies concerning Jesus from the old testament. The prophecy about Mary and the prophecy about Bethlehem.
The wise men or magi or astrologers who approached Herod asked for the king of the Jews. Herod asked for a meeting with the wise men and asked them at what time did the star appear to them. The bible does not record the answer of the wise men. Later the wise men went their way and the star appeared to them once again. The star led them to Bethlehem. The star stopped over the place where the child was. The bible records that the wise men were filled with joy when they saw the star.
The star stopped over the place where the child was. The star was the gps. The star appeared in the east to the three wise men causing them the set out on a long journey. The star guided them to Bethlehem. The star stopped over the place where the Christ child was. The star had done it's duty. The duty of the star was to guide the three wise men to Bethlehem. The star accomplished that purpose. Over the holy stable in Bethlehem the star stopped. The star did not move further.
The three wise men were filled with joy at seeing the star. The star silently guided them to Bethlehem from a great distance.
The three wise men went to the stable and saw the Christ child and worshipped Him. They opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts that they had brought. They had brought gold frankincense and myrrh. Then they returned to the eastern lands. We do not know if the star guided them back home to the eastern land. We only know that they were told to avoid Herod and so they returned to the eastern lands another way. They did not go back to Jerusalem.
In the gospel of Luke Mary sings a song and so does zechariah.
Bethlehem is Joseph's ancestral town. He goes there with Mary to get the census done. Then Mary is about to give birth. And since there was no room for them in the inns of Bethlehem Mary and Joseph go to a stable and Mary gives birth to the Lord Jesus. Mary wraps the baby in swaddling clothes.
In Bethlehem itself in nearby fields there are shepherds guarding their sheep. That night an angel appeared to them and the radiance of the angel shined all around the shepherds. The angel told them that they were bringing to the shepherds a good news that will bring great joy to all people. The good news is this-- the saviour messiah has been born that day in the city of David. The angel further told them that they will recognize the Lord by a sign. The sign is this-- a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in a manger.
The angel gave the shepherd a clear sign. The Messiah or the Lord Jesus is a baby. The baby will be wrapped in swaddling clothes. The baby will be in a manger.
After this announcement the whole sky was filled with heavenly angels. The angels in the sky started singing. The angels song was as follows. -- Glory to God in the highest heaven and on earth peace to those with whom God is pleased. A popular Christmas carol there is a line join the triumph of the skies. Christmas was something our heavenly father wanted to happen for the salvation of humankind. When Christmas actually took place in Bethlehem 2000 years ago it was a great victory, and achievement for God. That is why the angels appeared in heaven and started singing. And that is the meaning of the line in the hymn join the triumph of the skies. During Christmas we are invited to sing with angels. Can anything be better than that?
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