Matthew 2:1-12
Introduction to Scripture:
Today we are celebrating Epiphany, a day when something new was revealed. As we read this familiar text today, let us look for something to be revealed that we had not seen before. There is a rabbinical story that can help us in this task. “It is the story of the burning bush in the Hebrew Scriptures in which Moses sees a bush on fire, but the bush is not consumed. The rabbis say that the important thing about this story is not that the bush is burning but that Moses notices, because every bush is burning, every bush is on fire with the divine presence, everything in the universe shines because God is at the heart of it. So it is in our epiphany story. It is a story that invites us to open our eyes to the light that is everywhere.” 1
In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.” 3When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; 4and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 5They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet: 6‘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.’” 7Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. 8Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.”
9When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. 11On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.
For a number of years now, my bucket list of places to visit is Yosemite National Park. 2017 looks to be that year. My son, Stephen, heard of our plans and gifted me with a book of John Muir’s wilderness essays. Muir was a 19th century naturalist, His activism not only helped to preserve the Yosemite Valley but played a part in it becoming a national park. Among the essays in the book is one titled, “A Near View of the High Sierra.” There was something about the Yosemite Valley and the High Sierra that fed his soul. It just so happened that it was Epiphany day as I was reading about his travels in the High Sierras. Epiphany day is the day we as Christians celebrate the travels of the Magi to Bethlehem to pay homage to the new born king. As I enjoyed Muir’s gift for prose, I wondered if one of the magi had had the same gift for prose as Muir did and had recorded his or her travels, what a gift that would be to those of us who also in a vicarious way long to have the same experience as those magi did almost 2,000 years ago.
What story would the Magi have told? How would they have described their journey? How did they explain to skeptics their willingness to invest more than two years of their lives and a significant amount of money to follow a star that supposedly might lead to a new king. To invest this amount of time and capital, there had to be something special about that star that they were following.
As I was thinking about Muir’s devotion to the wilderness that gave him a focus for his life, and as I was contemplating what it might have been like for the Magi to devote several years of their lives to follow a star, I came across a poem by William Stafford that I believe gives voice to what it means to devote one’s life to a specific purpose. Stafford’s poem “The Way It Is’ takes a poetic image that William Blake used, that of a golden string, and builds upon it.
Blake said this of the golden string,
"I give you the end of a golden string,
Only wind it into a ball,
It will lead in at Heaven's gate
Built in Jerusalem's wall."
Stafford takers that thought and writes,
“There’s a thread you follow. It goes among
things that change. But it doesn’t change.
People wonder about what you are pursuing.
You have to explain about the thread.
But it is hard for others to see.
While you hold it you can’t get lost.
Tragedies happen; people get hurt
or die; and you suffer and get old.
Nothing you do can stop time’s unfolding.
You don’t ever let go of the thread.”
For Muir, something in the wilds of the High Sierra’s contained that golden thread. Clearly when one read his writings, one can tell that Muir is never lost for he is always holding on to that thread that binds him to heaven’s gate. For the magi, there was something about that star that became for them the golden thread. I am sure that the Magi had a difficult time trying to make people understand what it was that they were pursuing.
Just like we wonder what they were pursuing, surely people then wondered just as well. Why would the Magi give up so much of their life to follow this star? In many ways, many of us here in this room are on a similar journey as that of the Magi. We caught a glimpse of that vision of what could be when the Christ truly enters our world and we became intrigued enough to follow that vision to see where it would take us. As we journeyed, as we followed that star, the vision unfolded before us was one that declared that all people, regardless of nationality, race, gender, sexual identity, etc..etc., that all people are children of God. The golden thread revealed to us that all creation is a gift to be cherished.
Sadly as the biblical story suggests, not all people catch this vision, not all people grab hold of that golden thread. In the gospel story, we read of two groups of people that missed out of heaven for lack of eyes to see what was right before them. One group, those with power, this group was embodied by that of King Herod. Herod had no interest in any new King to come. He was all about holding onto the power that he held. Power had become his god. He could not imagine giving up any of his power or riches to consider joining the magi on their quest, even if, as Blake writes, it would lead him to heaven’s gate.
The other group was the wise people of that day. The magi inquired of them as to where they might find the Christ, the light of the world. The wise people of that day, the chief priests and scribes, knew scripture and were able to tell the magi where to find the Christ. It is interesting to note that the magi went where the wise ones had told them, but not a single learned person went with them. It makes me wonder why not. What about their wisdom kept them from seeing the Christ in their midst? What about our wisdom keeps us from seeing the Christ that is in our midst? What is it about our understanding of faith that keeps us from grasping hold of that golden thread that will lead us to Heaven’s gate?
Just as Muir saw in the wilds of the High Sierras something magical that fed his soul, and just as the Magi caught a glimpse of a star that not only held their gaze but beckoned them to leave the comfort of home and venture into the unknown, as we enter this season of Epiphany, we too are being called to grab hold of that golden thread that will lead us to Heaven’s gate. Granted, that thread may take us places that are out of our comfort zone. That thread may very well challenge us to love those whom others say not to love, or it may challenge us welcome those whom others exclude. That thread may very well pull us to give more of ourselves, our time, and our treasures than we had earlier planned.
Despite the challenges that thread will lead us to Heaven’ gate if we are willing to follow it. The question is now before us. Will we be like Herod, and miss out on what could be because we are afraid to give up our power? Or, will we be like the learned ones of that day, full of knowledge but unwilling to step out in faith to truly place our trust in the truth. If we follow in the way of Herod and the learned ones of that day, we may very well miss out on what God is doing in our midst. But if we are willing to let go of those things and to grab hold of that “golden thread” that is before us, Heaven’s gate is waiting. The choice is ours to make. Will we hold on to it or not.
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1From Day1.org, “The Light Within All Life,” by The Rev. Dr. John Philip Newell, January 06, 2013
