The Wise Men

Nativity scenes are a staple of the Christmas holiday. They are in our houses, on street corners, in church services, and made to come alive with animals, angels, and even a stand-in baby Jesus. They help us to physically see a picture of what it was like when our King humbly entered the world.

The wise men are quite the mysterious crowd in this scene. Who exactly were they? Where exactly did they come from? How did the stars tell them about this new King? 

Matthew 2:9-11 says of them, "After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was.  When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh."

My favourite part of this passage is one which snuck up on me while teaching kids. I asked the kids to point out what the wise men did when they first came to Jesus. The first child to answer said, "They rejoiced!"

I don't know why, but I had totally skipped this part of the story. I'm not sure when exactly they rejoiced - when they saw the star and began their journey or right before they enter the house - but they rejoiced. We often see somber and calm pictures of the wise men, but they were apparently absolutely ecstatic about this new King.

We can be excited about Jesus, too! It will do us well to think about the greatness of our King. Then, we will want to offer the best we have to our King - our gold, frankincense, and myrrh.