Can You Relate – January 8, 2021

On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him.
Matthew 2:11

Can You Relate

The Bible story about the Wise Men’s visit to see Jesus introduces us to quite a cast of characters. The Magi—were highly educated men from the East. The teachers of the law—were supposed to be experts on all things related to the Bible. Herod—was an ambitious and renowned ruler.

Can you relate to any of these Epiphany people? Certainly not Herod! Isn’t he the one who, with evil intent, tried to locate the newborn King, and when his crafty plans failed, didn’t he order the killing of innocent babies? How could I possibly relate to such a monster? Maybe in this way: Herod used all his abilities to serve himself. That tendency isn’t foreign to us. We are guilty of using our God-given skills and smarts to advance and protect our self-interests, oftentimes stepping over others. Sadly, there’s a little “Herod” in all of us.

How about those teachers of the law? They had the words of everlasting life right there before them, but they failed to see how those words pointed to Jesus. We have God’s Word, the Bible, but how often it sits unopened on the shelf. The Magi traveled hundreds of miles to worship Jesus; sometimes, we struggle to drive the few blocks to church. God keep us from such indifference.

That leaves the Magi. Did they know the child who was born in a manger would one day hang on a cross? Did they know the child at whose feet they lay their gifts would one day take humanity’s sins upon his own shoulders?

We can’t be sure what the Magi knew or didn’t know, but they traveled many miles to see Jesus and to learn more about that child. While we can relate to all of these Epiphany people, the ones we’ll strive to emulate the most are the Magi. We want to see Jesus, worship him, and learn more about him.

Prayer:
Lord, forgive me for the times I’ve treated your words in the Bible with indifference. Keep my heart on fire for Jesus and move me to never tire of hearing and reading your Word. Amen