The Magi Asked for Help

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi[a] from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:

“‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’ ”

Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.” After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. - Matthew 2:1-9

The Magi in the Christmas story didn’t have it all figured out. From their best guess of how the night sky was looking, and perhaps with some echoes from some old books (Daniel, the only Old Testament prophet to give timing for the Messiah), they figured that a great king was about to be born. So they took a risk to go find him.

They got the general direction more or less right, ending up in Jerusalem. That was close enough to Bethlehem to ask directions the rest of the way. So after asking around town and running into Herod and some religious leaders, they set off again and got to Bethlehem, thrilled that the star showed up again.

But think about it - they travelled a thousand miles on foot (or, traditionally, on camel) on a hunch and had to get all sorts of extra guidance to get to where they were going. What a great reminder to how God directs our lives - often allowing us room to take steps of faith towards our best guess of where God is leading, and often needing to stop for more guidance along the way.

How does this picture of following God’s plan strike you? Have you experienced this? Does it frustrate you? Do you have a sense of a next step for you (even if it’s not perfectly clear)?