“How Do You Respond to King Jesus?” (Matt 2:1-12)

Epiphany?

Today we celebrate Epiphany Sunday. Literally, Epiphany means “manifestation,” or “striking appearance.” Epiphany always falls on January 6. In early centuries Epiphany was one of the three major festivals of the Christian calendar, along with Easter and Pentecost. So on this special day we celebrate the revelation of God the Son as a human being in Jesus Christ to his people, especially to the Gentiles. Today’s scripture is about how the people responded to King Jesus. It is well known that how the wise men responded to the Christ child. But in fact, in this passage we see at least three different responses to the manifestation of Jesus Christ. C. S. Lewis, in his book Mere Christianity, said that people often say: “I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse.” Who do you say Jesus is? How do you respond to Jesus? That is the driving question of today’s passage.

Hostility: Herod’s Response (vv. 3-4, 7-8)

After Jesus was born, a special star was placed in the sky as a “sign” for his birth. When King Herod heard of this star, he was “troubled” (KJV), “disturbed” (NIV), and “frightened” (NRSV). He became very angry and deeply threatened by the fact that another king, a greater King was born. Historians tell us that in Herod’s last years he grew increasingly paranoid to protect his throne. He even murdered his wife (Miramne I) and later her two sons (Alexander and Aristobulus). When Herod learned that he had been tricked by the wise men, he became furious and ordered to kill all the boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under (v. 16). Across the ages and in all countries of the world Christian persecution has been always in existence. According to the United States Department of State, Christians in more than 60 countries face persecution from their governments or surrounding neighbors simply because of their belief in Jesus Christ. Each month 322 Christians are killed for their faith. Each month 214 churches and Christian properties are destroyed. Each month 772 forms of violence are committed against Christians. Not only in hostile countries, but also here in the United Sates many people are hostile to Christianity. When I lived in Boston, I used to evangelize on the streets after class on a weekly basis for about a year. And I met so many different kinds of people, especially college students. When we had small talk, they were nice and friendly, but when I started talking about Jesus and his cross, their attitude toward me changed suddenly. Many of them were troubled and disturbed and even hostile. This is the first kind of response to Jesus.

Indifference: Religious Leaders’ Response (vv. 4-6)

The second kind of people is represented by the chief priests and scribes. They are the people who simply do nothing about Jesus. According to verse 4-6, these religious leaders had scriptural knowledge about where the Messiah would be born. They even accurately quoted from Micah 5:2, “And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.” But that was it. They went back to business as usual. Their biblical knowledge did not lead them to accompany the Magi to Bethlehem to worship Jesus. In fact, they were not interested in the arrival of the Savior because they were contented with their present life. They did not need a Savior. Like these religious leaders, there are many in the church who have scriptural knowledge and affirm its teaching. They regularly attend church and pray a prayer. But in reality, deep down in their hearts they feel indifferent towards Jesus. Pastor and theologian Michael Horton, in his book Christless Christianity, said, “In short, the spirituality of American is Christian in name only…We embrace preferences rather than truth. We seek comfort rather than growth…We have enthroned ourselves as the final arbiters of righteousness, the ultimate rulers of our own experience and destiny.” John Wesley called this kind of people “Almost Christians.” Many of us fall under this category. We see God’s sign, but we don’t want to go there. We hear God’s message, but we don’t want to change patterns of our lives because then we need to give up our preferences and comfort. We find ourselves in the religious leaders.

Worship: The Wise Men’s Response (vv. 1-2, 9-12)

Then we meet the third kind of people, the Magi, who were the true worshippers. In today’s passage we learn from the Magi what it means to be true worshippers. First, true worshippers come to the light. Scholars assume that the Magi came from the environs of Babylon. If so, they would have traveled about nine hundred miles. It would have taken at least several months. When they saw the star, God’s sign, they spared no efforts to leave their country and come to Jerusalem. They admitted that they lived in darkness and that they needed a Savior. They came to investigate the arrival of the Savior for themselves. John 3:21 says, “But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light…” The Magi came to the light. Second, true worshippers ask, seek, and knock until they find the truth. The term “Magi” originally referred to a priestly caste in ancient Persia, perhaps followers of Zoroaster. The Magi were court magicians or astrologers. They were gentiles. They were unclean pagan worshippers. They didn’t have accurate biblical knowledge unlike the Jewish leaders. But deep down in their hearts they were seeking the truth. They were seeking a Savior. So they came and asked Herod and the religious leaders, “Where can I find the newborn King of the Jews?” And finally, they came face to face with King Jesus. Third, true worshippers do their ascribing with sacrificial gifts. The Magi didn’t come to Jesus empty-handed. Instead, they brought their precious and valuable gifts – gold, incense, and myrrh – to Jesus the King. They worshiped Jesus with sacrificial gifts.

God’s Love, Our Love

Probably, many of you have read “The Gift of the Magi” a short story written by O. Henry. Jim and his wife, Della, are a couple living in a modest apartment. They have only two possessions between them in which they take pride: Della's beautiful long, flowing hair and Jim's shiny gold watch, which had belonged to his father and grandfather. On Christmas Eve Della was desperate to find a gift for Jim, but she had only $1.87 in hand. She decides to sell her hair for $20 to a wigmaker, and eventually she finds a gold watch chain for $21. She buys that chain with joy. Without knowing what she has done, Jim sells his cherished watch to buy expensive hair accessories for his wife. At 7 o’clock, Jim walks in and gives Della her present. Della then shows Jim the chain she bought for him. Both Jim and Della are now left with the gifts that neither one can use, but they realize how priceless their love really is. The very act of sacrificial giving defines what it means to love each other.

God showed first his sacrificial love by not sparing his own Son but giving him up for us. In Romans 5:8 Apostle Paul tells us, “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” God has entered our lives in Jesus, and we have never been the same. By God’s sacrificial giving, we experience a fundamental transformation, and now we give ourselves to King Jesus. When the Magi gave their gifts to Christ, I think they would have given with this in mind, “Lord, I have not come to you for your things, but for yourself,” Lord, you are my treasure, not these things!” If the Magi knew this song, I think they would sing along their journey:

Lord, You are more precious than silver.

Lord, You are more costly than gold.

Lord, You are more beautiful than diamonds.

Nothing I desire compares with you.

I think that's what it means to worship God with gifts of gold and incense and myrrh. While I was meditating on today’s scripture, I had time to prepare my own gifts to King Jesus. I prepared three gifts: (1) Lord, I offer “my money and possessions” to you. You are more costly than gold. (2) Lord, I offer “my family” to you. You are more important than anyone else. (3) Lord, I offer “my dreams, my plans, my preferences, my ambitions and my life” to you. You are more precious than anything else. True love requires a mutual self-sacrificial giving. Jesus was already born in Bethlehem and in us. He has already entered our lives as our King and Savior. He already laid down his life for us. He already gave everything that he could give. And now it’s our turn. How do you respond to King Jesus? What gifts would you bring to him?