Sunday January 5th, 2025 Worship

One of my favorite Disney movies growing up, and honestly still today is Hercules. Now, I know it is full of historical inaccuracies, as many Disney movies are to make them palatable and appropriate for young children, but between the music and the comedic one-liners of Hades and the other characters, it’s got my heart. For those of you who haven’t seen it, it’s very loosely based on Greek Mythology and the main premise is that Hades, god of the underworld, is trying to do everything he can to stop Hercules from becoming a god because it has been prophesied that this baby, Hercules, is going to stand in the way of his plans of ruling the cosmos. And, everything that can go wrong for Hades, does, in his quest to kill young Hercules. I know we’re talking Greek Mythology versus Christianity here, but I can’t help but see some resemblances to our story today, i.e. a powerful man threatened by a baby who is out to disrupt his control and influence.
Which brings us to today’s story. There are some people that are incredibly bad at lying, and King Herod is one of them. Honestly, I’m amazed that it takes the magi receiving a dream to warn them that they shouldn’t go back to Herod because Herod clearly doesn’t want to pay homage to this little baby Jesus. He is threatened and afraid, especially when the magi come asking for more information about this one who has been born “King of the Jews” (Matthew 2: 2). When you’re the ruler, you don’t particularly want other people to be taking on the title of “King,” especially when it is going to threaten your rule and your control in the land. To make matters worse, this “King” is a tiny baby, born to unimportant parents, in the middle of nowhere? Herod is going to do everything he can to stop this child from growing up to become a king because there is no way that this one is going to take away his control, or so he thinks. And, Herod also thinks these magi are going to be on his side, as he sends them off to do his dirty work and find where this child is so that he too can go pay him homage… For people we often call “wisemen,” they aren’t very wise if they can’t see through Herod’s plot right here.
Yet, everything about the way the magi react in today’s Gospel story sets the stage for Jesus’ Kingship, a mark of respect to Jesus, not King Herod. The magi come to him bringing these lavish gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh (Matthew 2: 11). Just the gold alone is probably worth more than Mary and Joseph have ever had in their lives; remember, they were not the wealthy elite but rather a carpenter and his soon-to-be wife who would be responsible for taking care of things around their home. But then you also get frankincense and myrrh, which when burned would have acted like perfumes. They had both a practical use, especially to help with the stench of travel and living in a manger, but also were symbolic in what they represented, with scholars often saying that frankincense represented prayers rising, while myrrh was often used in embalming and therefore had a connection with death. So, while these gifts represented something in the present, they were also thought to symbolize the role that Christ’s death would play for the salvation of the world, despite the fact that the magi had come to honor his birth. Their visit is a testimony to who Jesus is and who Jesus will become. And while their gifts are probably not things that Mary was hoping to receive, they still represent one of these first witnesses to Jesus’ kingship, especially by a group of people who were prominent members of society and who didn’t live in the region. For them to travel so far tells us a great deal about the importance of Jesus.
And, as we know, his rule is going to be vastly different from anything the people have ever known before. Again, this is a big threat to Herod, so he doesn’t really want to pay him homage. Instead, he’s going to seek out a way to kill this child before he even gets the chance to challenge his power. Great idea, right?! Except, the magi are warned in a dream not to return to Herod, and they finally realize that his intentions weren’t quite what he had said they were when they met with him in Jerusalem. This would mean taking the long way back home, but it was worth it if it foiled Herod’s plans, even for just a little bit, because they have witnessed who this one is and who he is to become for the world. Despite the fact that this means they are overtly disobeying the orders of a vengeful King and making their journey longer and more dangerous for themselves. It’s another way that their action testify to the importance of this child born in a manger.
Their homage is an important witness to us today as we continue to wrestle with what it means to be a Christian in the midst of our world, as well as what it means to not be a Christian. It would have been easy for the magi to return to Herod, spill all the details, and continue on home without thinking too much about what the consequences would be. After all, Herod was the King, and who are they to disobey the King? But, doing so would have been in direct opposition to the homage that they were paying to Jesus by kneeling before him, bringing their gifts, and recognizing him as the true King, despite what Herod and the rest of Jerusalem would like to say about that. The magi made their decision, despite how difficult it probably was for them, including the fact that it likely extended their travel time and took them through more remote and dangerous roads, not to mention made them an enemy of Herod. But, they recognized that they could only honor one king; they made their choice when they knelt before Jesus and didn’t return to Herod. Although, they had the benefit of not being as easy to track down later.
In our world today, it is easy to go along with what other people want. And, there are a lot of assumptions and expectations about what it means to be a Christian. The world will lift up leaders that it claims we should follow, even going so far as to make the claim that these ones are ordained by God for their roles of leadership. While our choice won’t lead to the literal murder of Christ, as the decision of the magi would have, we are still left with the choice of do we forsake Christ by following the rulers of today instead. Even in a place of fear, do we stand up for who and what we believe in, even when society tells us that it’s pointless and we should just follow along? When we look at our world today, who or what are we going to pay homage to? In what are we going to put our trust? There are so many things and people we can trust in instead, but just as the magi had to choose between Herod and Jesus, so too are we left to choose. And, may we have the courage to pay homage, even in the face of fear and doubt.