Friday 06/01/2023
Matthew 2 v 1-12
When you were a child did you ever play a party game called “Follow my leader?” One child was picked to be the leader and for a period of time everyone else had to follow them. And of course you didn’t know if you would end up in the kitchen, the bathroom or the next-door neighbour’s house!
I often think about that game when I read our passage for today. Sometimes we get the impression that the Magi followed the star just like in the game and they ended up in Bethlehem worshipping Jesus. However that’s not what actually happened, they ended up not in Bethlehem, but in Jerusalem some 6 miles to the North. They then went to the evil, paranoid King Herod and asked him where the King of the Jews was to be born (how these men ever become known as “wise” is completely beyond me!)
If the Wise men had really followed the star as they were meant to why did they end up in Herod’s Palace? I wonder if it was because they took their eyes off the star, ignored God’s guidance and followed their own inclinations and instincts. They were looking for a King and of course conventional wisdom required that Kings were to be found in palaces hence their arrival in Jerusalem and Herod’s Palace. It was only when God pointed out their mistake to them that they turned to Him once again and made it eventually to Bethlehem.
Lets keep our eyes on God’s guidance in the year that lies ahead and not head off on our own directions, we might end up getting very lost!
Revd Robert Legge
