“Magi from the east came to Jerusalem” (Matthew 2:1)
It was our first trip back to Ohio for a visit after we had moved to Washington, D.C. Reid was driving. I was supposed to be the navigator. THAT was our first mistake. Back then there was no GPS, no Navigation on the car. No maps that lit up the dashboard. We didn’t even have air conditioning in our 1963 Chevy. So, my directions to Reid were filled with, “I think this is the way.” Sure enough, it didn’t take long until we were traveling down the Pennsylvania Turnpike and saw I sign that said, “Philadelphia 100 miles.” Philadelphia! We wanted to go to Cleveland! Philadelphia was east. We wanted to go west. I told you, letting me navigate was our first mistake!
Our wrong direction experience occurred in 1968. Now imagine being three priests from ancient Persia setting out to find a baby in the year 2 to 4 B.C.E. These pagan star gazers thought they were merely looking for a king who had been born to the Jews. In all probability they had no idea the baby they were searching for was the Messiah. They had no clue where their journey would take them. All they had to go on were shadows, glimpses, hints, traces, and that crazy bright star that kept shining in the sky over them. The star gave them a direction, but it gave them no instructions. Without really knowing the God of Israel, still all they could do was follow him.
But, seven centuries before these magicians arrived in Jerusalem, the prophet Isaiah had not only given a prophecy of the Messiah’s coming; he also said that visitors from the east would bring “gold and frankincense”. Frankincense was a white gum resin that came from the Boswellia tree. Now, who would bring gummy resin to a king? Only the Magi who were fulfilling a 700-year-old prophecy that they knew nothing about. All these men did was simply follow, and they ended up fulfilling their appointed destiny.
What a lesson there is for us in the story of the Magi. Do we always need to know our destination? Do we always need to know what’s going to happen in the future? Do we always need to have all the answers to our questions? The answer to these questions is no, no, and no! All we need to do is set our heart on seeking God’s presence. God has an adventure for each of us, and if we follow the light he gives us, we will end up at the destination he has for us.
Darlene