Epiphany: Understanding Jesus' Birth from Joseph's Family, Herod, and the Magi

Brother Duane Parker
Christ's Birthday 2020  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  45:34
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 The Visit of The Magi Matthew 2:1-2 Scripture After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him." Introduction In studying the early life of Jesus, we discover that he was born in Bethlehem in Judea. Now, his parents were not living there, but by God's providence, a Census was being taken by the Roman Government, and this particular census required everyone to go to their ancestral homes to be counted. Joseph (Of David) Joseph, the husband of Mary, and the adoptive father of Jesus, was from the family of David, the tribe of Judah. His ancestral home was Bethlehem. He had family there. His parents were probably still living at the time. There is not much information about Joseph in scripture, but it is sufficient for us to know these facts. Additionally, Joseph's would have owned property in the area. According to the law of Moses, according to the division of the land under Joshua, land was given tribe by tribe and passed from father to son and grandson, forever. Now, we don't know Joseph's status in the family. As a first born son, he would have inherited more, and as a second or third born son, less. And if his father was a first born or second born son, there may have been less to inherit, but there was something. When they travelled to Bethlehem, it was likely that they stayed with family and not in some public boarding house or inn. In fact, the word that is translated "inn" more generally refers to a guest room, not to a guest house. It is highly likely, then, that Joseph's family was large enough that all of the rooms were full in the house. The Birthing Room We also know from archeological and sociological studies that have been conducted that many houses of the era were two story dwellings. The upper story was where the family stayed and the lower level was where the animals stayed. It was not unusual for a manger to be present in that place because the cow, the goat, the cat and the dog would spend the night in the stable. This is another possible interpretation of the place where Jesus was born, rather than a barn out back or a cave that was used as a stable. The Magi Luke skips over this event in the life of Jesus, but Matthew explores it fairly well. In fact, if you read Luke's version of events, Mary and Joseph leave the temple on day 41 and having completed all that was required by the law, settled in Nazareth. And they did, eventually, but we have to look at Matthew's account to see what else transpired. (Some people will look at that differences between Luke and Matthew and use that as a reason to discredit the scripture as infallible. However, just because one author has chosen to describe a different aspect of Jesus' experience, does not disqualify or discount another one. And only Luke tells us anything about Jesus' childhood, but that does not mean that they were hiding anything, it simply means that they have chosen to focus on a different part of the story.) When the Magi visit, Matthew tells us some important details, but he leaves out others. For instance, we don't know that exact nature of the star that they saw, except that it appeared to them at home, and then reappears again on their journey to Bethlehem. This is not the normal way that stars, supernovas, or planets move through the night sky. One of the things we don't know about this event, is the exact timing of the event. When did the star appear? All told, it may have taken the Magi a year to make preparations and travel from their home, in the east, to Jerusalem. If you were preparing for a royal visit, you would certainly want to make sure that everything was in order. Did the star appear when Jesus was born? Did the star appear before he was born? If it appeared before he was born, then the Magi could have arrived on the night of his birth, but that is highly unlikely. The gifts that they brought to Jesus and to his parents were very valuable. This would have meant that Mary and Joseph could have very easily offered a lamb at his dedication on day 41. But, because they did not, it appears much more likely that the Magi arrived later, much later. Herod's Role Herod's response to the news about a baby being born indicates that there was possibly up to two years between the time of the star and the arrival. After the Magi were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, this malevolent ruler orders all of the male children two years old and younger to be sought out and killed, thus eliminating the competition. Many people believe that Jesus would have been a toddler, others presume that Herod was simply overreacting to the news and had little care about the children of Jewish parents. Let's look at Herod's reign for just a few moments, and what we know about the Censuses that he took. Again, Luke tells us that the Census was called for during the reign of this evil ruler. History records that Herod died sometime near the end of 4 BC. This means that our calendars are incorrect, that Jesus had to have been born a year or perhaps two before Herod dies. (All that means is that Gregory miscalculated the year of Jesus' birth by 4-5 years. The Gregorian calendar, by the way, was developed in 1582. It replaced the Julian Calendar, which had been used since BC 46. The Gregorian Calendar was widely adopted by Catholic countries, but resisted by Protestant rulers. It was not finally adopted by Britain until 1752.) So, we are uncertain of the exact year Jesus was born, and we don't know the actual date he was born (not Dec. 25th), but we do know that he was born. The early church, however, took great care to separate the birth of Jesus and the visit of the Magi, thus Christmas and Epiphany are separated by 12 days. Epiphany (January 6th) celebrates the arrival of the Magi and gives them special remembrance. Matthew v. Luke When we read the accounts of Jesus' life, we must also recognize that they were written from different perspectives and for different purposes. Dr. Luke writes to a largely Greek/Gentile audience. He was a companion for Paul on many of his missionary journeys. Matthew (Levi), by contrast, was writing to a largely Jewish audience and his introduction to Jesus is punctuated by references to Old Testament prophesies. In particular, Joseph had to take Jesus to Egypt, if Hosea 11:1 were going to be fulfilled, "Out of Egypt I called my son." And it helps Matthew in his attempt to correlate Jesus as a new, greater, Moses for the Jewish people. Jesus' Home Town Finally, Matthew adds another tidbit that gives us reason to believe that Joseph and Mary would have been happy to stay an extended period in Bethlehem after Jesus' birth. When Herod died, Joseph considered returning to Judea to live with his family. But, Herod's son was given the throne and this concerned Joseph so he moved back to Nazareth. Additionally, this move fulfills yet another prophesy concerning Jesus, that he would be called a Nazarene. Believe On Him The exact timing for Jesus' birth is not as important as the nature of his birth. The order and timing of events isn't given in the precision that we generally have today. It's fine. What is important is that we recognize and realize that Matthew and Luke are complimentary not contradictory. They both give us enough detail to inform us as seekers, and remind us, as often as we read them, that Jesus was born, Jesus was special, Jesus was the Son of God. Jesus was the fulfillment of countless numbers of prophetic messages, some of them over 750 years old. But in him, we find them all. In him, we find the fulfillment of God's plan. Finally, Jesus seeks to be born in your life and in your heart. He longs to fulfill your greatest, highest destiny, by helping you be all that you were created to be. But it can only happen through him. Won't you receive him today? Jesus literally changed the world. And, he wants to transform your world as well. 3
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