After Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of King Herod, wise men from the east arrived unexpectedly in Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?” For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.”
When King Herod heard this, he was deeply disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.   Matthew 2:1-3 HCSB

Wise Men seems like an odd name for a person or a group of people. These men were experts in the study of stars. They were also know as magi, which suggests magicians or astrologers. But perhaps what made them so wise was that they were seeking Jesus in order to bring Him gifts, praise and adoration.

Herod was troubled by their looking for this newborn king because he was the king. He feared that this child had been born to replace him. He simply didn’t understand what was going on. So, he wanted to kill this baby to be sure that his kingship was not being threatened. He told the Wise Men to let him know when they found this baby so that he too could go and worship him. He lied to them. He had no intention of worshiping the baby Jesus, but intended to kill him. Fortunately, the Wise Men didn’t fall for that and never let him know that they had found the baby.

As for the star that the Wise Men followed, there is nothing to suggest that this was a star formed by any natural occurrence in the planet. This was definitely a supernatural star, as we are told in Matthew 2:9. This star guided them to the exact location where they could find the baby Jesus. In verse 11 we are told that they fell to the ground and worshiped Him and presented Him with their gifts of Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh. These gifts are fit for a king, the gold signifies Christ’s deity, the frankincense his purity and the myrrh used for embalming. Frankincense is also an essential oil used today in treating wounds.

Then we are told in verse 12 that God appeared to them in a dream and warned them not to go back the same way they came so as to avoid King Herod, and they listened to God.

In the situation where the Wise Men came to honor baby Jesus with gifts, adoration and praise, we see that they were guided by the star that God provided. They sought baby Jesus and went through a great deal of  trouble to get to Him. They not only brought Him expensive presents, but those fit for a king. They praised Him and worshiped Him. And then they listened to God. They obeyed God when he told them to go another way. Now being Wise Men you would think they probably took the shortest, safest route to get there. It may have been difficult to go around Jerusalem, we are not told if it was or it wasn’t. But, one thing we do know is that either way the Wise Men did what God told them to do.

Do you consider yourself a wise person? We are told in Proverbs 3:7 not to consider ourselves wise, but to fear the Lord and turn away from evil. Isn’t this exactly what the Wise Men did. They didn’t think that they were smarter than God. They had a reverential awe and respect of God and obeyed and did what He told them to do. They turned away from the evil that King Herod was proposing.

So again I ask, do you consider yourself wise? Do you seek the Lord with all your heart, regardless of how difficult it may be at times? Do you give Him at least a tenth of your earnings? Do you give Him gifts like your whole heart? Do you praise and worship Him? Do you turn from evil and obey God in whatever He tells you to do? My friend if you answered no to any of these questions, you are not being wise. Sorry to bust your bubble.

I have lived as an unwise person and I can tell you that it brought me nothing but heartache and sorrow. I don’t want to see anyone suffer as I have in the past. I want to tell you that there is no need for you to suffer. You can cure your own stupidity by trusting in God with all your heart. I’m living proof. Isn’t that great to know?

You can turn to Him and give Him all that sorrow and heartache and pain and trust in Him. He will guide you. He will lead the way. You only have to trust in Him and obey Him. I pray that you will make the wise decision to do that today.

Have a great day!