Nativity Thoughts
One of the more commonly used slogans in this time of year, seen on countless bumper stickers, repeated ad nauseam on well-meaning ‘Christian’ radio programs, as on one I recently heard while driving, is “Wise Men Still Seek Him.”
Yep. Because being a Christian is all about our wisdom and our good sense to seek out Christ, isn’t it? Sarcasm aside, it does trouble me to hear this phrase for a number of reasons, not least of which is that God’s wisdom is not man’s wisdom. God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, the apostle Paul tells us.
And then there’s the whole thing about the “wise men” in the first place. Culturally, we give these men a lot of credit for figuring out the fact that the King of the Jews was born. But, ‘wise’ as it may seem, they were quite simply following their religion–searching the stars for the answers.
If what we are trying to convey by the phrase “Wise Men Still Seek Him” is meant to equate those who would follow Christ with the Magi, I’m not sure that’s a place I would like to go. Babylonian astrology was indeed impressive, but I’d rather not base my life on the movements of the stars. If it is meant to point out how wise we are to seek Christ, I am afraid that we are barking up the wrong tree. For did our Lord Himself not say in John 15, “You did not choose me but I chose you”? Does not Ephesians 1 speak of God’s eternal election of His people? What credit is there to our wisdom? How arrogant are we Christians that we always want to turn the focus off of Christ and onto us?
Much better to focus on the Child in the manger than our wisdom, purported or otherwise. For our wisdom will fail. The history books are littered with brilliant scholars who missed the greater truths, be it in philosophy, science, literature, whatever. The wisdom of man is still only that. But the Wisdom of God is that Wisdom which knew we needed a Saviour, not a guru, not a therapist, not a dynamic leader, not a political genius. The Wisdom of God is to send His only Son to take on flesh, be born of a Virgin in a backwater village in rural Judea, to live the life of a common labourer, and to die on the cross to take away our sins.
The wise of Jesus’ day never would have gotten that. They were looking in the palace for the king. The Wise Men, the Magi, after all, went to the palace to find the king. That was where you would find one, after all, not in a stable. The chief priests and scribes knew the Messiah would come from Bethlehem–but they too didn’t understand what God had in mind, in spite of their great knowledge and learning of the Holy Scriptures. The Jewish masses were largely, though not exclusively, looking for a king to lead them. Think of the acclamations on Palm Sunday–Hosanna to the Son of David. And yet God’s Wisdom confounds all that by sending His Son to be the lowest of the low so that we–the ones who think ourselves wise, the ones whose sin caused the need for Jesus’ death in the first place–could be heirs of His great eternal kingdom.
That’s wisdom of an order no earthly philosopher could think up. It’s not rational. It’s not logical. But it is God’s way. And in this Christmastide, I am truly thankful that God’s way won out and not ours. I am truly thankful that Jesus’ wisdom still confounds us, that His parables and teachings are still fresh and new. Most of all, I am truly thankful that my salvation does not depend on me or my wisdom but is purely an unmerited, undeserved gift from God to me–the greatest Christmas gift of all.
I wish all of you who read this blog a blessed Christmas season–may the Christ be the centre of your celebrations!
What else does God require of us but that we believe? Trust in the Lord only, and *He* will make straight your paths.
I for one am glad to know that I don’t have to paddle or steer my own canoe, that my Creator can be trusted to take care of all my needs w/out me having to comprehend everything.
That doesn’t stop me from trying, mind you, but my faith & trust is only re-inforced by the understanding given by the Holy Spirit, it doesn’t rest on intellectual “understanding.”
To God alone be the praise!
December 22nd, 2006 | #
Merry Christmas to you and your family, Pr. Klages.
December 22nd, 2006 | #
Dissertations like the above are precisely why I never have bumper stickers.
December 23rd, 2006 | #
Although I do have one of those ichthus-type fish on one of my cars… feel free to comment on that sometime, Alex!
December 23rd, 2006 | #
Oh, and we could discuss “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God…”, but I’ll shut up now and quit flooding your blog.
December 23rd, 2006 | #
Is there something wrong with trusting God to look out for you and leading you in the way you should go?
Or do you think the creator of the Universe and all humanity can’t be trusted with taking care of you?
December 23rd, 2006 | #
Just a quick note… I don’t mind ichthys-fish. They’re cool with me. And I’m equally not against “Jesus is the Reason for the Season”. It’s just the misnomer of the “wise men” thing that irks me, through having studied the passage in some detail. And it just got me thinking, that’s all. We should have a good-natured blog debate sometime, Opie. Have a blessed Christmas.
December 23rd, 2006 | #
Jesus tells his disciples to seek his kingdom and righteousness in Matthew 6. God’s redeemed people then and now can seek the things of God, because God has revealed himself to them. But no one seeks or acknowledges Jesus without already having the Holy Spirit (i.e. 1 Cor. 12:3, Romans 3, etc).
December 24th, 2006 | #
Yay, Kelly… thanks for putting my thoughts into words. We are called to seek Him … we cannot be passive in our faith and accept whatever happens in our life as God’s divine plan…. His plan is also to use the talents and gifts He has given us, seek His word and with His divine guidance, do His will.
Merry Christmas Klages family!!!! We’ll miss you on the 30th at Keady, but our thoughts and prayers are with you!!!
December 24th, 2006 | #
I think God has a well-honed sense of irony; after-all He allowed these eastern mystics to find Christ while the priests and experts of the law who spent their whole lives dedicated to understanding God missed Him completely. Surely there is a timeless truth bound up in there somewhere?
December 24th, 2006 | #
Yep, the great message of Epiphany… God shows himself to us crazy pagan Gentiles who, in spite of ourselves, manage to get the Word of God delivered to us.
December 26th, 2006 | #