“Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.” (Matthew 2:10)

Scene 15: “Wise Men Visit the King”

Fade in slowly, as scene opens a small, one-room home in Bethlehem can be seen. Three Magi, otherwise known as We Three Kings of Orient glide into the frame. Dressed in brightly jeweled, lavish robes of silk and ermine they have wandered from Afar, a region in the East. Parking their camels in the nearest lot, they now bear tiny treasures they will give two-year-old Jesus.

Our modern minds like to clean things up a bit. Led astray with the pictures we form from songs, paintings and our own fickle minds, we see a scene with our “Hollywood” eyes. Reality seldom exists in our vision.

Scripture doesn’t tell us how many wise men there were. We only know they brought three gifts. It was more likely to have been a caravan of several magi and servants. Historians record they followed the star for two years.

Magi were often sent as ambassadors of good will. It was customary to honor a king with gifts. Lavish gifts. The gifts they brought would not have fit in a two-year-old’s treasure box or little genie bottles.

God reveals His character in every story and picture we are given throughout the Old and New Testaments. In the very gifts the Magi present we see a God who provides. Mary and Joseph were about to pull up roots and flee to Egypt. Even in those days, moving wasn’t cheap. God provided gold for their move and exile.

The frankincense and myrrh weren’t just to make things smell good. Frankincense was used for sacrifices. Myrrh was frequently used for burials. God shows us how the story will unfold. The birth of Jesus will always point to the death of Jesus.

Through Adam and Eve’s disobedience and sin in the garden, our world became broken. Through the birth of Jesus, God provided a way for restoration. In the same way God provided for Mary and Joseph, Jesus sacrifice, His death and resurrection provide a way for me to be restored. God’s plan from the beginning was to bring restoration to the world. He restores all things broken. Marriages. Friendships. Neighbors. He takes our broken pieces and makes them whole again. He has already provided the way for you.