How about a little Christmas trivia? After Jesus was born, who paid him a visit? Was it three wise men, three Magi, both, or no one knows?
If you answered, “no one really knows,” you would be correct. Although Jesus was visited by wise men sometime after his birth, the Bible doesn’t tell us exactly how many there were. And to be honest, it doesn’t really matter. What matters is what the wise men came to do.
The Bible says, “After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him… After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 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, frankincense, and myrrh.” (Matthew 2:1-2, 9-11)
Ready for Christmas trivia question two? Why would the wise men travel so far to see Jesus as a baby? Is it because they loved road trips, bought tickets ahead of time, didn’t want to be late, or believed Jesus was the true king?
If you answered, “they believed Jesus was the true King,” you would be absolutely correct.
It was no accident that the wise men (Magi) came to worship Jesus with reverence and generosity.
What they knew is what we need to know.
Christmas is about the king being born.
In the Bible, the prophet Isaiah foretold this when he said, “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.” (Isaiah 9:2-7)
Proclaiming Jesus as the king in your life is an important distinction. If you reject him as king, you choose to live outside his kingdom. But if you receive him as your king, you decide to be part of his kingdom.
The Bible says, “For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” (Colossians 1:13-14)
Last Christmas trivia question of the day. Is Jesus your king?
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