January 9, 2026

The days after coming to Bethlehem…

…journeying as magi back into the world.

GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

“And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.‘” (Matthew 2.12)

TODAY’S REFLECTION ON GOD’S WORD:

If not for the intervention of God, the fate of the magi would have been at risk. That is a thought to be considered for our own lives. God’s intervention on our behalf is intended to be a lifesaving and life-fulfilling act. Without God’s intervention through Jesus Christ, we would never be free from the ravages of sin this world intended to control our lives on earth nor of the consequences of sin as it pertains to our eternal lives. As the saying goes, “Save for the grace of God, there go I.” Perhaps, this is something we can learn from the brief mention of the magi in Matthew’s gospel concerning Jesus as the Christ.

Where would the magi have gone if not for the grace of God intervening in their plans to return home? Magi were independent individuals, a sect of mystics and scholars found in every country. These magi, perhaps akin to the Qumran Community in the desert across the Jordan, were representatives of the ruling court of one or more nations. It has been suggested that such a sect of magi lived in the mountains east of the Sea of Galilee with ties to such communities like that of Haran. Having completed their intentional journey of finding “the One born King of the Jews,” they were bound to return home with news of what they had found and to further execute the duties of their office in the countries they served. But while their goal would have been to return home to share the good news of a great joy, their path would have led back to Jerusalem and King Herod’s court. They were obliged to honor the sitting King of Israel who had directed them with the news of Bethlehem as the place where Jesus was to be found. Herod did not know this himself but only as a revelation found by his own “magi” searching in the word of God.

It is said, “There are none so blind as those who refuse to see.” The evidence of that saying could be found in the story of Helen Keller. Because of an illness contracted at 19 months old, possibly meningitis, she was left deaf and blind. It was not until the diligent work of Annie Sullivan, who herself suffered from the diminishing of her own eyesight, did Helen begin to experience life in a greater fullness. She saw and heard the world but not with her eyes and ears. In some ways, she saw and heard it in greater ways than those who had functional eyes and ears. Until Ms. Sullivan endured the hardships in Helen’s life created out of the frustration built in her by sightlessness and the absence of sound, Helen was a seemingly impossible person to deal with unless absolutely catered to her sense of entitlement. That is an ailment many sighted and hearing people suffer from today. It was something King Herod suffered from as well. His illness was of the soul but he refused to see it and blamed others for his discomfort. He murdered his own family in the attempts to sate his thirst for a self that was dying from the inside out. This leads me to reflect on that state of the world and Herod’s court. While the “star of Bethlehem” was visible to the magi, it was because they had eyes to see it: physical, intellectual and spiritual. Herod, his court of advisors, indeed all of Israel and the world, were blind to the ultimate reality which literally hung over their heads. No other mention of the star is heard anywhere except in the gospel recollection of Levi, the one whom Jesus called Matthew.

Do you think for a moment that Herod would have allowed the magi to leave his court with the news they had found “the One born to be the true King of the Jews” or perhaps “the King of the world beginning in Jerusalem, Judea and to the four corners of the earth”? You know it would have been a fate of death, horrible and tragic, without regard to the consequences of foreign nations seeking revenge or recompense. The Good News was given so it could be shared. It was the theme given to the shepherds of Bethlehem. It was the theme empowered by God for the magi of distant lands. God intended for the word of hope, faith and love to endure to all generations and for all people everywhere. It wasn’t about riches and a future of comfort in this world. God’s purpose was to proclaim a truth out of His own heart for those whom He loved. He was, is and will always be the Good Father who gave the best gift which money could not buy. He gave of Himself and it filled the lives of those who had “eyes to see and chose to see; ears to hear and chose to hear” even if it meant changing the course they would travel as expected by the world to do what God had called them to do.

Read tomorrow as we consider the road most have taken!

TODAY’S PRAYER IN RESPONSE TO GOD’S WORD:

Father, in these days we are finding the need to believe even more than ever before. We all have known trouble, some in greater ways than others, but You are offering us the assurance that we will not be consumed by it forever. Regardless of the “time” we are in and the “time” we have been given, we ask for Your Holy Spirit which Jesus asked You to share with us, to lead and guide and direct us in the paths we should go. Teach us what we still need to learn. Empower us to put that learning into action. Bless our actions not as a works righteousness but as righteous works of faith, hope and love in Jesus’ name. AMEN.