Epiphany Sunday

January 5, 2025

Matthew 2:1-12

The Gift of God—

The Gift of God is for All People!

1After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.”

3When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. 5“In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:

6“ ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for out of you will come a ruler
who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.’”

7Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8He 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.”

9After 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. 10When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshipped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, and of incense and of myrrh. 12And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route. (NIV1984)

Dear fellow worshipers of the Christ-Child,

Have you ever stopped to consider the fact that the very first Christmas Eve was a very Jewish event? Joseph and Mary were Jewish. The Christ-Child was Jewish. The people who had come to the little town of Bethlehem in obedience to the decree issued by Caesar Augustus were Jewish. The shepherds keeping watch over their flocks at night on the hills outside of Bethlehem were Jewish. The Jewishness of that first Christmas Eve ties in very well with Jesus’ statement to the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well, “Salvation is from the Jews” (John 4:22).

Due to the Jewishness of that first Christmas Eve I can’t help but wonder if the announcement that the Christmas angel proclaimed to the shepherds seemed somewhat out of place. Scripture tells us that the angel said to the shepherds, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:10, 11). For centuries the Lord God had given special attention to His Chosen People— the descendants of Abraham. By the time the Messiah was born into this world there were Jewish religious leaders who were convinced that the Gentiles— especially people such as the Samarians— could not be saved. And yet, the message of the Christmas angel was clear: “I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.”

Today as you and I gather together to continue our celebration of Christmas we rejoice in knowing that God’s Plan of Salvation for this world centers on, “… good news of great joy that will be for all the people”— including both Jews and Gentiles! Today as you and I gather together to continue our celebration of Christmas we joyfully celebrate the Festival of Epiphany— which is also known as Christmas of the Gentiles! Using these words from Matthew chapter two let’s remind ourselves of this truth: The Gift of God is for All People!

Matthew sets the stage for us when he says in the opening verses of our text, “After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and said, ‘Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.’”

While these words of Scripture are very familiar to us, they contain a great deal of mystery! Who were these “Magi”? How many of them were there? Where did they come from? What did they see in the sky? How did it guide them? What caused them to connect what they saw in the sky with the birth of “the King of the Jews”? How long after Jesus’ birth did they come to Jerusalem and then to Bethlehem?

Since Scripture does not give us specific detailed answers to these questions, we need to be careful when it comes to answering them. Personally, I believe that these “Magi” came from the ancient country of Babylon— which is modern-day Iraq. When God allowed the Babylonians to conquer the Nation of Judah He saw to it that a prisoner of war named Daniel was given a very important position in the Babylonian government. In fact, Scripture tells us that King Nebuchadnezzar “… made him ruler over the entire province of Babylon and placed him in charge of all its wise men” (Daniel 2L48). Since we know that Daniel was openly dedicated to serving and worshiping the Lord his God (think of Daniel in the lions’ den), it’s very easy for me to envision that Daniel shared his faith with the “wise men” of Babylon— including Messianic prophecies such as the one recorded in Numbers 24:17, “I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel.” While we may not be able to answer every question this opening portion of our text raises, at the very least we can confidently say that these “Magi from the east” were Gentiles!

Why? Why did these “Magi from the east” travel so many miles to go to Jerusalem? The answer to that question is profoundly simple! Matthew tells us that when they arrived in Jerusalem they asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.” Notice how clearly these Magi understood God’s Plan of Salvation for this world! Yes, the Magi recognized that a Child had been “born king of the Jews.” But, by God’s grace these Magi also recognized that the One who had been “born king of the Jews” was also worthy of their worship— even though they were Gentiles!

That small Jewish event that took place in the little town of Bethlehem on Christmas Eve was about to go global! In other words, Epiphany changes everything! Epiphany was God’s way of unfolding His Plan of Salvation for this world and fulfilling the Messianic prophecy recorded by Isaiah and quoted by Paul. As we heard in our reading from the book of Acts, “I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6; Acts 13:46).

Just as we can confidently say that these “Magi from the east” were Gentiles, so also we can confidently say that their sudden arrival in Jerusalem caused quite a stir! Matthew continues, “When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.” King Herod was an evil, wicked, cruel and vicious man. He was so paranoid about keeping his throne that he executed anyone whom he thought might try to depose him— including his favorite wife and his son. Herod was so wicked and so depraved that when he was sick and knew he was going to die, he knew that no one would mourn for him. So what did he do? He had his sister assemble all the chief nobles of the Jews into one building, posted guards around the building and ordered that when he was dead the guards were to kill everyone inside that building! He goal was to guarantee that his death would lead to a great number of people weeping and mourning!

It’s also important for us to understand that Herod was not Jewish. Herod was an Idumean— which meant that he was a descendant of Esau. So when Herod heard that someone has been “born king of the Jews” his paranoia kicked into high gear. Herod’s paranoia led him to devise a diabolical plan. The Holy Spirit reveals that plan to us when He has Matthew tell us, “When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. ‘In Bethlehem in Judea,’ they replied, ‘for this is what the prophet has written: “But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.” Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 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.’”

Did Herod have any intention of worshiping the Child of Bethlehem? No he did not. While it is not a part of our text for today, we know that after the Lord thwarted Herod’s monstrous plan to kill Jesus, Herod ruthlessly sent his soldiers to Bethlehem with the orders, “Kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under” (Matthew 2:16).

Miraculously, the star that had suddenly appeared in the east, the star that had miraculously led the Magi to Jerusalem, suddenly re-appeared and “went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.” What did the Magi do? They joyfully followed the star! And when they came to the house into which Joseph had moved his precious family, these Gentile Magi joyfully did what they had been waiting so long to do! Matthew tells us, “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. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.”

Picture that scene in your mind! These “Magi from the east” were men of position and power and prestige! These were men who easily found themselves in the presence of the king or the emperor! But as soon as they entered that humble little house in the humble little town of Bethlehem they knew what they had to do! They had to fall to their knees, put their forehead on the ground and “worship”— “worship” the Child, “worship” the “king of the Jews,” “worship” the King of kings who came into this world to embody the “good news of great joy that will be for all the people,” “worship” this world’s only Savior from sin!

After these Gentile Magi had an opportunity to celebrate Christmas, they gladly and freely and humbly presented their King with the precious gifts they had brought with them: gold— a fitting tribute to the King of kings; frankincense— which was burned as a sweet-smelling sacrifice to God; and myrrh— which was a costly perfume made from the sap of a small tree and was used to deaden pain. The significance of these gifts given to the Child of Bethlehem by these Gentile Magi is both powerful and profound!

The Festival of Epiphany, also known as the Christmas of the Gentiles, is an extremely important festival for us for obvious reasons! While that first Christmas Eve was a very Jewish event, the arrival of these “Magi from the east” reaffirmed that while the Child of Bethlehem was indeed born “King of the Jews,” He was also born into this world to be the Savior of all people— yes, including you and me! As we celebrate the Festival of Epiphany we would do well to follow the two examples that the Magi have given to us.

The first example is found in the words of the Magi, “We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.” The Magi willingly traveled hundreds upon hundreds of miles because they knew how important it was for them to fall to their knees, put their forehead on the ground and “worship” the Child of Bethlehem. Do we have that same dedication when it comes to worshiping our dear Lord and Savior? What “sacrifices” are we willing to make in order to make sure that we come here to God’s house and worship the One who came into this world to save us from our sins? Are we willing to “sacrifice” the time that it takes to worship our Lord first and then go out and enjoy some time with our family and our friends? Are we willing to endure whatever negative comments we hear from people who do not understand how important it is for us to continually grow stronger in our relationship with Jesus by regularly gathering together around His holy Word and His holy Supper? The dedication and the commitment of these Gentile “Magi from the east” is something we would all do well to emulate!

The second example we would all do well to follow is found in the actions of the Magi— “Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh.” I don’t think there can be any doubt that the Magi consciously gave to the Christ-Child their very best gifts. Can we say the same? Do we consciously give to our Savior our very best gifts?

Before we answer that question let’s pause to remember the priceless gifts that the Child of Bethlehem has given to us! Because of His great love for us the Child of Bethlehem willingly shed His holy precious blood (Pointing to the cross) to give us the gift of full and free forgiveness of all of our sins, the gift of eternal life in His heavenly Kingdom, and the gift of everlasting salvation! These three gifts are literally the most priceless gifts that we could ever possibly be given!

In light of the gifts that He has not only secured for us but also given to us, what gifts can we now bring to Him? While the specifics will vary from one child of God to another, there are some general categories for each of us to prayerfully consider.

First, there is the category of time. As we enter into the year 2025 we have the opportunity to look back over the year 2024 and evaluate how we used the gift of time that our Lord and Savior gave to us. Did we use our time in a way that is pleasing to Him? (Pointing to the cross) Did we use our time in a way that openly reveals to those around us the importance we place on worship, Bible study and prayer? How could we improve on how we use God’s gift of time in 2025?

The second category centers on our talents— the skills and the abilities our God has given to us. We all know that the year 2025 is going to bring some big changes to our congregation. How can we use our God-given gifts, talents and abilities to help our congregation as we make these changes? What can we do to help make a positive impact on God’s Kingdom work right here in our own midst?

And finally, there is the category of the treasures that God has place under our care. We know that the Magi brought their very best gifts to present to their King. The possibility of giving Him their “leftovers” was incomprehensible! Can we say the same?

The Festival of Epiphany is the unofficial end of the Season of Christmas. Soon our Christmas decorations both here at church and at home will be packed up and stored away until next year. My prayer this morning is that as you take the Christmas star or the Christmas angel down from the top of your Christmas tree that you will take a moment to ponder the message that the Christmas angel announced to those Jewish shepherds that were keeping watch over the flocks at night, or the message that the Christmas star proclaimed to these Gentile “Magi from the east” and commit yourself to carrying the message of Christmas in your heart all year long!

To God be the glory!

Amen