He was God, in Power, and Glory

“And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary, his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold, and frankincense and myrrh.” (Matthew 2:11 ESV)

In Matthew’s Gospel, we begin by seeing the birth of Jesus through the eyes of Joseph. It is later in Matthew’s writing that we see that view change to the wise men. We followed their journey to Jerusalem, where we witnessed God’s providence. We saw the revealing of the prophecy of the prophet Micah and the appearance of the star. We saw them continue to follow the star in faith.

The wise men arrived at a specific house in Bethlehem. Probably one of the most printed Christmas cards is Mary holding Jesus, also called the Madonna and Child. But Matthew does not portray this scene that way. He tells us what the wise men saw with their eyes, “the child with his mother.” Matthew was deliberate in this portrayal. We know this because he used this four times in his portrayal. He is small and helpless, but he is the focus. Matthew also points to the prophecies of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Hosea, as well as Micah. Undoubtedly this was done to remind us of the words of Isaiah, probably one of the most quoted Christmas verses:

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given;

and the government shall be upon[a] his shoulder,    

and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,   

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace

there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom,   

to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness   

from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.”

(Isaiah 9:6-7 ESV)

This is the child the magi saw with their own eyes. I wonder if they asked the new parent if there were other prophecies about the child. Did Mary and Joseph even consider the prophecies they most certainly knew from studies? Did they see the future of their child in the scriptures of the prophets? There are so many things to consider about each and every view of those involved in this story.

Maybe Paul thought of this when he wrote about the light of the gospel shining in the darkness in the face of Christ. This child, so small and helpless, was the child who was God in the flesh. He was full of the power of God, the wisdom of God, and the mercies of God. It did not come to him later. He did not grow into becoming God. He was born endowed with all the power of God. He was God. I cannot help but think of 1 Corinthians 1:25, “The foolishness of God is wiser than men.”

I imagine all of this was more than the wise men could take in. They still did not know all about this child, his purpose, and who he was. The wise men brought gifts. They did not come to feed this child; their gifts were not gifts for a child but for a king. They came to worship. Even though this child was visited in poverty, in scraps of clothing, they gave their gifts out of the faith they had established, and God had cultivated over their journey. They gave their gifts to the child, not the parents. They laid their gifts before him.

The message for us is obvious, is it not? When we see Christ, we meet Him for the first time; when we recognize who He is, we, too, will fall down before Him. We, too, will worship Him. We will lay not tangible treasures, but the treasures of our life before Him. A life of devotion, a life of sacrifice, a life of our love and forgiveness for others. All of the things we hold dear, we will lay before Him.

Do you do that? Have you done that? Have you thought about that?

Peace and Grace!

Sinclair Ferguson, The Dawn of Redeeming Grace”, The Goodbook Company, 2021.