The story of the three magi’s visit to Jesus used to be a mere Christmas tale to me until recently when the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to the reality of the story and it’s significance to our Christian walk.
History study tells us that the Magi came from ancient Persia or Babylon, out of a religious caste devoted to astrology, divination, and the interpretation of dreams. They were scholars, who believed in spiritual revelation as well as the scientific reason as a basis for truth. They were advisers to kings and highly respected in society.
However, the Bible tells us that these men came to Jerusalem not in search for a greener pasture, not for an advanced degree but to worship Jesus [Matthew 2:2].
This gets more interesting when we realized that the distance between Babylon and Jerusalem is about 2,700km. To put this in perspective, Lagos to Abuja is about 774.6km. If you do the maths, that’s like three times the distance from Lagos to Abuja not by Flight or bus but by road walk. This was how far they were willing to go just to worship Jesus.
On the other hand, the teachers of the law were in Jerusalem when the Maggi lost their way and came to the palace for direction. The teachers of the law were able to show them the direction from the scripture, although they were so close to where Jesus was, this teachers of the law never made any effort to see Jesus or to worship him.
What does it mean to worship God? To worship God is to express intense love for God. Deuteronomy 6:5 says, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” These Magi wanted to worship God. They had left their homeland, saying farewell to family members, and made a long and dangerous journey, spending much money, to find the one they could worship. Maybe the question we should be asking ourselves is what have we left behind to come and worship Jesus?
Let us learn true worship from these Magi. The Magi followed their desire to worship God. They were willing to sacrifice to worship God. They were hungry and thirsty for God; nothing less would satisfy them. On the outside, they looked noble and dignified. They were well educated and highly honoured. But things of the world could not satisfy them. Only God could satisfy them. Realizing this, they sought God with all their hearts and souls and strength.
Ask yourself today, how far are you willing to go in worshipping God?
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