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And when they [came] into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and [they] fell down and worshiped Him.

᛭ INI ᛭

(Intro, Historical: THEY CAME; THEY “SAW”; THEY WORSHIPED.)

The Magi, the Wise Men, come. They journey from the East all the way to Jerusalem. Where are they from? We don’t actually know. Why do they come? That’s easy. They saw the star.

The star was prophesied. Balaam, the pagan diviner or medium, is used by the LORD to issue a prophetic Word. “The utterance of Balaam the son of Beor…I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; A Star shall come out of Jacob; A Scepter shall rise out of Israel.” (Num 24) How do the Magi know of such an utterance? We don’t really know. (Maybe Daniel?)

All that we do know is that THEY CAME—came to Judea, came to Jerusalem, came to Bethlehem. They SAW a star, the SAW Christ, but they only got there because THEY “SAW,” that is, they heard the Word of God. “The star, which they saw in the East, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.” THEY “SAW” that the King was in Bethlehem because THEY HEARD the Word of God.

When they got there, we all remember what they did: And when they [came] into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and [they] fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Gifts that bespeak all that Christ is and would do. He is their God, thus they Worship Him. He is their Priest who makes intercession and Sacrifice for them. He is their Sacrifice who would died for them. So Christ is FOR YOU and for all: God and Priest and Sacrifice.

Actually, the journey of the Wise Men really can be summed up even more simply than all that.

THEY CAME; THEY “SAW,” THAT IS, THEY HEARD; THEY WORSHIPPED.

(I. Symbolic: We follow the same path of the Wise Men.)

We do the same thing they did, as do all those who believe and trust the holy Child of Bethlehem. Whenever we gather, we come into the presence of the Lord. “Where two or three are gathered in My Name, there I AM in their midst.” (Mt 18) As Hebrews 12 puts it: “You have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem … to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant.”

We also see, that is, we hear the Word of the Lord. When we hear any Scripture it is not anyone else speaking but the Lord God Himself who used whichever author it is to write His Word. The wise men heard Micah the Prophet, but it wasn’t Micah alone—the Lord through him. So also we hear the Lord through Isaiah and Paul and Matthew. We also hear His Voice Holy Absolution. We hear His Words of Institution. We see bread and wine but believe His Word, “this is My body…this is My blood.” The Sacraments are simply a visible word, a word you can see.

As the wisemen offered their gifts and worshipped, so also we gather and hear and then pray, praise, and give thanks. That’s the only proper and true order. “Our Lord speaks and we listen.” The Lord gives, we receive. “Faith that is born from what is heard [and received] acknowledges the gifts received with eager thankfulness and praise.” So we have our liturgy…our gathering, coming…our hearing His Word…our worshipping…

That’s what the Wise Men did.

THEY CAME; THEY “SAW,” THAT IS, THEY HEARD; THEY WORSHIPPED.

Each of us can say the same thing each Divine Service.

I CAME; I “SAW,” THAT IS, I HEARD; I WORSHIPPED.

(II. Practical: We must be driven properly, like the Wise Men, by the Word.)

That the Wise Men CAME and “SAW” and WORSHIPPED calls us to be like them, for to be like them is to obey the Third Commandment. Obedience to the Third Commandment is seen when one’s daily life flows from and toward the Word of God. For that is what Third Commandment is really all about. “We should fear and love God so that we do not despise preaching and His Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it.”

To have eyes and ears attuned to the Lord’s Word is a rare gift from the Lord. The wise men’s eyes were star-ward, but there’s a prophecy about that. But the Lord calls each of us to seek guidance from His Word rather than the stars or creation. Creation will only tell us that God exists and is powerful, so that man is without excuse. Creation will not preach to you that Christ was crucified for the forgiveness of all your sins.

“The heavens [do] declare [His] glory” (Ps 19), but all the heavens, earth, sky, and see tell you is that He’s almighty, you’re not; that He’s high and you’re low; that He’s holy and you’re not; that He’s life and you’re worthy of death. Hunting in the woods or climbing a mountain or swimming the ocean, are good gifts of Creation, but they will not preach or nor can they deliver that Christ was crucified on cross at Mt. Calvary, and blood and water flowed from Him for you. Woods and mountains and beaches might be peaceful but it’s a peace even unbelievers enjoy. So, it’s not true and lasting peace.

Besides, let us be driven properly like the wise man. Had they not heard Micah, the star, it seems, wouldn’t have gotten them there. The star got them to Jerusalem only. Only after the Word of Micah did the Lord start moving the star. He does this to show how to properly order our lives: by His Word alone.

For it is only through the Word that we will COME to the right place. Only through the word will we truly HEAR him. Only through the Word will we WORSHIP rightly, by faith in Him alone.

(Conclusion, Heavenward: You will come and see worship forever.)

THEY CAME; THEY “SAW,” THAT IS, THEY HEARD; THEY WORSHIPPED.

So it was for the Wise Men in Bethlehem. So it is for all of us as we gather for worship. So it is for us as we live our entire lives guided by the Word of God alone. And so it shall be when we are brought into Christ’s eternal presence. There we who trust in Him alone SHALL COME to Him. There we finally SHALL SEE Him. There we SHALL WORSHIP Him forever.

At death we shall depart to be with Christ, which is far better. We shall come to His nearer presence. Even though we do come into His presence right now today, hearing His Word and receiving His Sacraments.

Yes, we shall then see Him face to face. We do see Him now by faith, but we only see as if in a dirty mirror. As inspired St. Paul says, “For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.”

We shall WORSHIP Him forever and ever. We shall worship with angels and archangels and the whole company of heaven, not just for a little bit like now, but forever! As John sees in Revelation: “Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne.” Look at that, eternally casting gold before Him, always wafting the incense of praise before Him, before Him who was slain and buried and covered in myrrh for you, raised for you, who now lives and reigns with His Father and Spirit forever.

Yes, the Wise Men

CAME and “SAW,” (HEARD) and WORSHIPPED.

So you do today. So you shall forever.

᛭ INI ᛭