Dr. Ron Sumners
December 21, 2003
My name is Balthasar. You probably don’t recognize my name. Do you recognize the names Gaspar or Melchior? They were my companions on a long journey, long ago. I am one of the men who came from the East to worship the Christ Child. I have returned to tell you the story of Christmas as I saw it and experienced it firsthand and to bear witness that Jesus is indeed the Messiah and the Son of God.
The newer versions of your Bible are correct when they call my companions and me astrologers rather than “wise men.” We studied the stars in order to attempt to predict the course of human events. Today you read the work of modern astrologers when you read your “horoscope.”
We came from Babylon where astrologers had been active for hundreds of years as special advisers to the king. We were trained in all the wisdom of the ancient world.
More than five centuries before I was born, the prophet Daniel was held hostage in Babylon. He interpreted many dreams and signs which my predecessors in Babylon were unable to do. This amazed the astrologers and led them to investigate Daniel’s writings and the other scriptures that he loved so well.
He spoke in one of his prophesies of a Messiah who would be sent from God. He wrote, “Know and understand that from the going forth of the message to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the coming of the Messiah. There will be 483 years.” (Daniel 9:25) Fortunately for me, I lived in the time when the number of years was near their fulfillment. So, I expected the Christ, this God in human flesh, in my lifetime!
Since I was an astrologer, I was especially interested in what the Jewish scripture had to say about the stars. My associates and I found particular interest in a passage which spoke of a “star which shall come up out of Jacob” (Numbers 24:17). Since this was a symbol for the Messiah, we concluded that a star in the sky would announce His coming. This is how we knew that the Christ had been born-when we saw the great star in the Eastern sky.
When that first bright star first appeared in the East, we assumed that the Messiah would be born in the Jewish capitol of Jerusalem. So, we made our way there, traveling over 500 miles through the hot, dry, desert. But our spirits were fresh. For we knew that the Savior of the world had been born! We were going to worship the One of whom the prophets wrote, and whom they longed to see.
When we arrived in Jerusalem, we were surprised to find an absence of excitement in the air over the birth of the Jewish king. We inquired, “Where is the newborn King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”
Much to our astonishment, no one could tell us where He was. Our questions troubled some of the people in Jerusalem, especially Herod, who was the reigning king of the Jews.
Herod soon called us in for a private interview. He was obviously disturbed, and he demanded that we tell him the exact time the star first appeared. He had already assembled the chief priests and scribes in order to learn from them where the Messiah would be born. They pointed him to a passage in Micah, which predicted that the Christ would be born in Bethlehem. So, Herod sent us there with these words, “Go and search carefully for the young child, and when you have found Him, report to me, so that I may go and worship Him.
But Herod thirsted for the blood of Jesus. He was jealous of the child we had come to worship, and his only desire was to destroy Him. He had plotted long and hard to secure his title of “King of the Jews,” and he wasn’t about to allow an infant to take it away from him. After we left him, he gave an order that all the children in Bethlehem under the age of two years were to be killed. How ironic that this man was called Herod the Great!
As we left Jerusalem and made our way to Bethlehem, the star which we had seen in the East reappeared. And as the Gospel of Matthew reports, we felt “exceeding great joy!” We followed the star as it led us to the place where the young child was. Of course, I had seen babies before, and I knew it was the custom to cuddle them, make funny faces and even speak some baby talk to them. But one look at this child, and I knew that He was unique. So, I immediately fell to the ground, as did my companions and we worshipped the King.
We then opened our treasure chests and presented gifts to the Lord. It was our privilege to first give Him gold. This was the most precious substance on earth and very fitting for a King. It also proved to be useful to the child and His family. When Herod attempted to kill Jesus, God warned them to escape into Egypt. It was the gold that we brought that financed the trip.
Our second gift was frankincense. This represented the sweet fragrance of Jesus’ entire life. It was a sweet perfume. Hundreds of years before we offered the gift, the prophet Malachi had written, “In every place frankincense is going to be offered to my name.” (Malachi 1:11) We were awestruck to ponder how we were the fulfillment of that prophesy.
Our third gift was myrrh. It was used as a perfume for embalming the dead. And as I placed it at the feet of this royal infant, I was signifying His mission to die.
I remembered that Isaiah had written, “All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned each one of us, to his own way. And the Lord had laid on Him the iniquity of us all . . . He poured out His soul unto death” (Isaiah 53:6, 12). Thus, I presented this harmless child with the gift of myrrh to signify His death. More than thirty years later, after Jesus died on the cross, the man named Nicodemus applied myrrh to His body for burial (John 19:39).
After our visit, God warned us in a dream to return to our homeland by a different route, thus avoiding Herod. When we reached our native Babylon, we told our countrymen the story of that first Christmas and prepared them for the Gospel message which the Apostles would bring later.
As I look back over this wonderful event, I notice three reactions to the Savior Jesus.
The first is that which came from Herod: the reaction of hatred. Herod was intimidated by the little child. He feared that Christ would interfere with his life and place of power. All his plans were threatened by the new born King of the Jews, and so he tried to do away with Him.
Maybe you feel threatened by Christ today. You may fear that He is interfering with your life and plans. And so, your one desire, whether you realize it or not, is to do away with Him. You try to do this by avoiding His people and neglecting His Word to you. You may even possess active hostility to the things of Christ. This type of response drove Herod into a state of restlessness and away from the only true Prince of Peace. You cannot have lasting peace by turning away from Christ. You will only find lasting peace by submitting to Christ.
The second reaction to Jesus was indifference, as displayed by the people of Jerusalem. It was their King who had been born, but no one seemed to care. We thought it strange that the citizens of Jerusalem didn’t know that their Messiah had been born! But it was stranger, still, that they didn’t want to know.
We gentiles had traveled over 500 miles to worship their King, but the Jews wouldn’t go the mere five miles from Jerusalem to Bethlehem to inquire about Him. Their chief priests and scribes were knowledgeable about the scripture. They pointed out that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. But they never did anything about it themselves. They told us where to find the Savior, but they never went to Him themselves! The people of Jerusalem were so caught up in their own interests that Jesus meant nothing to them.
Could this be true of you? Is your life so filled with personal interests, business affairs, and worldly things that you have no time and no room for Jesus?
The third response to the Christmas event was that of us “Wise men.” We worshipped the Lord Jesus. Now I want to leave you with a question which was first put forth by the ancient King Solomon of Israel. He asked, “Who is the wise man?” (Ecclesiastes 8:1) Will you be like this wise man and worship Jesus Christ? Will you be like me and travel the difficult road to reach Him?
Centuries ago I journeyed hundreds of miles from a far country to be near the Lord. For you, today, he is as close as a prayer. I walked by the light that God had given me, and I let it lead me to the feet of the Savior. Will you walk by the light of God’s Word, so that it may lead you into a closer knowledge of Him and a deeper love for Him?
Who is like the wise man? Long ago I brought the Christ child gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. My offering only began with these, for I gave Him my love and my worship. I gave Him myself.
Will you be like the wise man and give Jesus your life for Him to use as He wishes? When I gave Him my life, He gave me His. He will make that same exchange for you!
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