Matthew 2:1-12 Pastor Nathan P. Kassulke
Epiphany Sunday, January 4, 2026 “The Wise Men Saw the Light”
Silent night, holy night! Son of God, love’s pure light radiant beams from thy holy face with the dawn of redeeming grace, Jesus, Lord, at thy birth, Jesus, Lord, at thy birth. That third stanza of a familiar Christmas hymn provides us with the theme of our service for Epiphany this morning. In a poetic way, keeping with the rhyme and meter of the hymn, this stanza suggests a special appearance unique to the Christ Child. It pictures a radiancy beaming out from his face. Hopefully we understand that is not a literal description. When the shepherds came searching for what the angel told them about on Christmas night, they weren’t looking for some otherworldly light shining off of a baby. They were looking for a newborn wrapped in strips of cloth and lying in a manger. They were looking for the opposite of bright and shining. They were looking for simple and humble. The Wise Men, sometimes called Magi, were the same. They did not bow down to the baby Jesus because they saw something in his face. They bowed down because they knew something about him that was not visible or obvious. The light shining from Jesus was not literal and visible, but it was real and significant. This light had long been promised—we heard an example from Isaiah 60, and the opening sentences contained the same picture. This light had long been necessary. The world was filled with the darkness of sin. This light was shining in and through that great darkness. And by God’s grace the Wise Men saw the light. As we briefly recount their journey today, we’ll remind ourselves of the importance and value of that light. We’ll continue to ask God for the wisdom of those men that we, too, may see and appreciate the same light. The Wise Men first saw the light of a special star. There is a lot we might like to know about these men that we don’t. Where exactly did they come from? How many of them were there? How much did they truly understand? How long did their journey take? What we do know is that they saw a special star and recognized it as a special sign. It’s interesting that assumptions have led some people to think that they know more than they do. The three kings came to Jerusalem and then Bethlehem because they saw a unique lining up of heavenly bodies in the night sky. The Bible doesn’t say three. It doesn’t say kings. And it doesn’t describe a conjunction of planets or something like that, even though many claim that is what the “Christmas Star” was. The Bible describes a star that behaved in a unique way. These men followed the star when it rose. They saw it go ahead of them and come to the very place where the child was with his parents. Stars don’t do that. This was special. This was miraculous. No one needs to calculate what the night sky would have looked like some two thousand years ago. We simply need to stand in awe of one more miracle of God. When he wanted to show certain people a sign, he made it very clear to them. They saw the light of that special star. At times, we may miss these sorts of truly special things because we are looking for signs to guide us. When I have an important decision to make, I want God to give me special insight. How do I know what house or car to purchase? How do I know if the person I am dating is the right one? How do I know what job I should do or what city I should live in? I want God to weigh in on the question, give me some direct guidance, give me a sign. What God has done for you is shown you this special, miraculous sign that he shared with the Wise Men. You get to see it by faith. You get to learn about it and recognize that it was a special sign connected with the most important era of the history of the world, the life of the Son of God and Savior. He is what is so special. God wants you to make your decisions to honor him. He wants you to base your decisions on what he has given you, his direction and guidance and principles of Christian living. He doesn’t want you to demand what he does not give, special insight into a future that will