The Real Wisdom in the Gift of the Wise Men!
“And behold, the Star that they had seen in the East
went before them, until it came and stood over
where the Child was.
And seeing the Star they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.
And entering into the house,
they found the Child with Mary, His Mother,
and falling down, they adored Him;
and opening their treasures they offered Him gifts:
gold, frankincense and myrrh.”
Luke 2:9-11
But are we? Do we really understand the profound symbolism to this?
So many times we are confronted with that cry: “Where in God’s Word does it show us Mary’s special and unique role? Show me that in the Scriptures! I don’t need to have a relationship with Mary! She has no place in my dealings with Jesus!”
Well, it is in the Scriptures; but first, one must take one’s blinders off.
Here is this most amazing story of the Wise Men.
Through the miraculous sign and wonderful symbolism of the Star, they knew “He that is born King of the Jews” (Luke 2:1) was also the “Christ” (Luke 2:4), the “Anointed” One of God, the “Messiah” of Israel; the long-awaited Savior of mankind!
In their hearts, though they were from a faraway land, they also knew the Child was not only the King of Israel, but the King of All Nations!
And through Divine Inspiration, they understood -- and rightfully so -- what they were to do before this great King even though He was but a babe: and “falling down, they adored Him”!
And that’s it; that’s the end of the story. They snuck out the back way, went home to their own country and lived happily ever after!
WRONG!
That is the beginning of the story — His story -- not the story of the Wise Men, but the story of the Child and His Mother, and their relationship.
In what way?
Simple. Every one, it is said, loves a secret and has one. This is His!
Remember, Jesus, the Second Person of the Most Holy Trinity, God Almighty Himself, of His own free will, came down from Heaven to redeem His precious creation. And to do so, according to His own plan, He took the form of a Man, being born of a Woman.
Big deal, you say. We all know that. What has this got to do with Mary and my relationship with Her?
The Incarnate Son of God, for our salvation, was born as a Child in a manger!
And as a Child, while He could exercise all the authority of Heaven and Earth, He chose NOT to do so. Instead, He chose to remain as any newborn would — helpless and dependent upon his mother.
So let’s examine the story again from the perspective of a newborn child.
The Wise Men have offered the Christ Child gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.
And after they leave, while no one is watching, Jesus gets up out of the manger and says to Mary, “Okay, Mom, get the scales out and let’s see how much this hunk of gold weighs! What’s the going price in the market today? Is it up or down?”
Then turning His attention to the frankincense, the Lord, careful to avoid setting the hay in the manger on fire, gets out a match and lights the resin so He can get a good whiff of it!
With the myrrh, He dips a sponge into it so He can bathe Himself with the perfume, paying particular attention to the hard-to-get areas of His newborn body.
Pretty stupid, right?
Of course it is! No self-respecting believer would accept such nonsense!
So what happened with the gifts the Wise Men left with the Holy Child?
Well, we don’t know about you, but our Bible clearly indicates there was someone there with Jesus when He was presented with these beautiful and kingly gifts. Someone whom He depended on — not that He had to, but chose to. According to our Scriptures that someone was His Mother.
And the Wise Men left their gifts with HIS MOTHER!
And what do you think She did with those gifts from the Wise Men?
Do you think it enhanced the pleasure of the Gift to the Lord when His Mother lit the frankincense for Him (or do you think the Wise Men only brought enough supplies of it for one night)?
Do you think His Mother incensed the manger as He lay in it (just as the priest does when he incenses the Altar as the Lord resides in the Tabernacle)?
Do you think His Mother bathed His body with the myrrh bringing a pleasant fragrance to the Holy Child as He lay in the dank of the stable?
Did His Mother, in deference to Joseph as the head of the Holy Family’s household, present the Lord’s foster-father with the gold the Wise Men brought so that they may, later, under God’s Wisdom, use it for the journey to Egypt to flee Herod’s murderous soldiers?
Do you think Mary had nothing to do with the gifts given to Jesus and She, just like a good little girl, went into a corner to hide after the Wise Men left?
Or do you think Mary was the caretaker of the gifts given specifically to the Holy Child for His own personal use?
Do you think the gifts given to Jesus became all-the-more pleasing to Him because they were presented to Him through the hands of His Mother?
So now, we can hear the protests of the protest-ants who will say, “That was when Jesus was a baby — it has nothing to do with Him as an adult!”
And we respond with the very Scriptures they claim show no special and unique role for Mary:
“Christ the same yesterday, today and forever!”
If it was good and pleasing to the Lord then, it is good and pleasing to Him NOW!
Take a tip from some Wise Men — the real Wise Men; the Wise Men of the Bible, not some guys who think they're wise because they read the Bible! Want to give Jesus a gift — a gift HE will really appreciate and use personally?
Then you need to have a relationship with His Mother!
This, in reality, is His not-so-secret secret.
And when you honor Her as the Wise Men were required to do by custom in order to enter His household, you can give Him your gift through the hands of His Holy Mother — a gift that He will be more pleased with and, we can guarantee, it will NEVER be rejected.
It is the real wisdom in the gift of the Wise Men!
And don’t worry, if She needs help with your gift, Mary will be the first to call upon Her most chaste spouse, St. Joseph!
© 2002 Agnus Dei Presents!
