In today’s gospel we hear the account of how the Magi arrived from the east, to do homage to a new king whose star they had seen at its rising. I’m not certain they fully understood the kind of king that they were seeking to worship. They knew him to be the newborn King of the Jews, but it is not clear if they had any knowledge beyond that. As they were not of Jewish descent, they would likely not have had knowledge of the prophecies that surrounded the event of Jesus birth, and the true nature of his kingship. Yet despite this, they knew enough to seek Him, and to want to worship Him in the only ways they knew how. In many respects this is a humble profession of faith, in that being willing to seek what they did not fully know or understand, despite great hardship and a long journey, they still knew it was what they must do. They knew it was important, even if they didn’t have the full picture.
I think for a lot of folks who have not been brought up in the Christian faith, this is something that they find themselves sometimes pursuing in some similar fashion. They don’t have the full picture about whom they are seeking, they only know that something profound is missing from their lives, and they seek to fill the void that exists there. In that sense they are very much like the gentiles of whom Saint Paul speaks, and of whom the Magi themselves were a part. Those who seek the grace of the knowledge of our Lord have good reason to rejoice, because just as the Magi found Him, they too through our Lords acceptance of those who are not of the House of Israel have the hope of salvation through Jesus Christ. Our Lord is accepting of all who believe in Him. This is good news for all of us who seek Him, and who desire to worship him. We too may know the joy that the Magi felt when they found the baby Jesus and were able to worship Him. Like the Magi we too may bring Him gifts of, our love, our faith, and our witness, because our Lord seeks for all to know him, and to bring salvation to all. That is his desire, to save everyone and to have them with him in His kingdom.
It’s very important for us to always keep this in mind, our Lord seeks us, seeks our love, but also our help in bringing others to know Him. This is something we are specifically called to do as believers, to proclaim the news of His love and salvation to all. How could we not? If we truly believe; the news is entirely too good to not share. No fear of others reactions, no concern about what they will think, should ever stop us from sharing this news. What we should always remember, is that if it were not for others proclaiming the gospel message, and being bold in their faith, we too might not share in the knowledge and love of Jesus, we might still be those who are lost and seeking to find what will bring joy and fulfillment to their lives. We might still not have the promise of eternal life with our Lord to look forward to. Think about this for a moment, how tragic is it to not have this understanding, and to be able to love Jesus. This is something we must share with all, and we have the opportunity that a new year presents each of us, to start something new, or perhaps to focus even more on an effort that we should be making. Let’s make that our resolution this year, to show others how we live in Christ, and to share His message with them. I can think of no better gift we can give to those who are still not illuminated by a guiding star, or light, than to bring them out of the darkness.
Podcast Link
The Deacons Bench 