1. Wise men still seek Him. After al l have been said and done, and after all the dust had settled the words of Jesus Christ will begin to echo and again ring loud and clear with a divine clarion call unmatched by anything else ever heard on earth and in history … Jesus Christ has promised: “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.” [Matthew24:35].
2. Where true wisdom comes from. Why,
in the Gospel narrative about the birth of Jesus Christ, were the wise men called the ‘wise men’; what
constitutes wisdom and where does wisdom come from? The answer is clear:
“And unto man he said, Behold, the
fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is
understanding … The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge:
but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” [Job28:28; Proverbs1:7].
3. What the Bible teaches about those who do NOT fear the LORD. The Bible warns:
“Fools despise wisdom and instruction … It is as sport to a fool to do mischief: but a man of understanding hath wisdom … The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise … A wise man feareth, and departeth from evil: but the fool rageth, and is confident … Wherefore is there a price in the hand of a fool to get wisdom, seeing he hath no heart to it? … He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered … The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.” [Proverbs1:7b; 12:15; 14:16; 17:16; 28:26; Psalm53:1a].
4. Gifts of the Wise Men. The Bible says: “And when they were come into the
house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and
worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto
him gifts; GOLD, and FRANKINCENSE, and MYRRH.” [Matthew2:11].
“As to the
significance of the three gifts, it is said:
The three gifts had a spiritual meaning: GOLD as a symbol of kingship
on earth, FRANKINCENSE (an incense) as a symbol of deity,
and MYRRH (an embalming oil) as a symbol of death. This dates back to
Origen in Contra Celsum: ‘gold, as to
a king; myrrh, as to one who was mortal; and incense, as to a God’ … Sometimes
this is described more generally as gold symbolizing virtue, frankincense
symbolizing prayer,
and myrrh symbolizing suffering.” [Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biblical_Magi].
5. The Divine Mission of Jesus Christ. The Prophet Isaiah prophesies centuries before the birth of Jesus Christ:
“The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; o proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified. [Isaiah61:1-3].
6. The Heavenly Gifts of God to Mankind. Centuries after this prophecy by Isaiah, Jesus of Nazareth went to the synagogue one sabbath as was His habit; the Bible says:
“The
Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel
to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance
to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them
that are bruised,” [Luke14:18].
“Come now, and let us reason together, saith
the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow;
though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” [Isaiah1:18].
“For the
wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ
our Lord.” [Romans6:23].
“And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is
with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
"I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.” [Revelation22:12-13].
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