“Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”
After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.”
In Matthew 2:7-11 you can see the three responses to the coming of Christ. Herod stands for the bloodthirsty, cruel, vindictive side of the world system. A world where human life is cheap. A world threatened and immediately offended by Jesus.
The scribes represent the religious indifferent. They know all the facts and do nothing about it. They don’t care enough to get excited. When asked by Herod where the baby was to be born, they knew the answer. They told him where to look, but didn’t care enough to investigate for themselves even though Bethlehem was only six miles away.
Of the two, who looks worse? The scribes look worse because Herod, for all his excesses, is at least acting consistently with his basic nature. By contrast, the scribes knew the truth and did nothing about it.
The final group, the wise men, sought out the child and upon finding Him bowed down and worshiped Him.
These three responses have been the same for centuries. Some will always be hostile; some will always be indifferent; and some will always worship Him.
