“THE STAR THEY FOLLOWED”
SELECTED SCRIPTURES

I. Introduction
Light is a fascinating phenomenon. We take it for granted just as we do most of God’s gifts to mankind but we seldom stop to think where light really comes from. Well, you say, “Natural light comes from the sun, the moon, and the stars.”

That’s almost right. The moon is not really a source of light. It’s simply a reflector of the light from the sun. But was there light before the sun, moon and stars existed?
*Genesis 1:1-5
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
2 And the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.
3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.
4 And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness.
5 And God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.

We say, “Sure, I get that. On the first evening the sun went down, the moon came up, and the next morning the sun came up again. No problem!” Yes problem! The sun, moon, and stars were not yet there. They did not exist until the fourth day of creation.
*Genesis 1:14-19
14 Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years;
15 and let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth”; and it was so.
16 And God made the two great lights, the greater light to govern the day, and the lesser light to govern the night; He made the stars also.
17 And God placed them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth,
18 and to govern the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness; and God saw that it was good.
19 And there was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.

So you see, before there was the natural light of the sun, moon, and stars, there was the supernatural light of God. It is the light of God in Genesis 1:3 that displaces the dark-ness of Genesis 1:2.
The day will come when this creation will go out of existence. The natural light, the light from the sun, moon, and stars we know so well, will one day be extinguished, and there will be a new creation. But the light of God will never be extinguished. That light has a name. We’ve been celebrating His birthday.
Revelation 21:23 (speaking of the New Jerusalem in eternity future)
23 And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine upon it, for the glory of God has illuminated it, and its lamp is the Lamb (of God).

Do you remember one of the things Jesus called Himself?
John 8:12
12 Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life.”

The light Jesus is talking about isn’t the light of the “s-u-n”; it’s the light of the “S-o-n”. The word “world” is the Greek “kŏsmŏs.” We often think of the world as another name for planet earth. But that’s not what kŏsmŏs means. Kŏsmŏs is the sum total of every-thing in the material universe, that is to say, all of creation. So in John 8:12 Jesus is saying He is The Light. All light, whether natural or supernatural, emanates from Him.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

II. Text
God has often revealed Himself in the form of light. The star of Bethlehem is one shining example.
*Matthew 2:1-2
1 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying,
2 “Where is He who has been born the King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east, and have come to worship Him.”

The so-called star of Bethlehem has intrigued men since the first century. What was it? Some have argued that it was just a normal astronomical event such as a conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn. (Such a conjunction actually did occur in 7 B.C.) Some have said it was a supernova, that is, an exploding star.

However, it could not have been either of those because it constantly moved. First, it continually led the magi from the east all the way west to Jerusalem. Second, when they reached Jerusalem, the star changed direction and led them to Bethlehem. (Bethlehem is six miles south of Jerusalem.)
*Matthew 2:9
9 And having heard (Herod, the magi) went their way; and lo, the star, which they had seen in the east, went on before them until it came and stood over where the Child was.

The confusion over east and west here is because when translated from Greek to English it can seem to say the star was in the east. But the words, “…which they had seen in the east,” don’t refer to the star. They refer to the maji, and from where they had come. The star was west of the maji. Now look at the second part of v. 9. The star “went on before them until it came and stood over where the Child was.” The star moved! Neither con-junctions of planets nor supernovas do anything even remotely like that, do they?

Our English word “star” is translated from the Greek “astar” (as-tare´) It can certainly mean star in the conventional sense, but the same word can also be used to describe any luminance or radiance. In fact, in Hebrew, with the exception of the sun and the moon, all heavenly bodies were referred to as stars. So what was the star of Bethlehem?

Well, we know what it was not. It was not a natural phenomenon. We know that the light of God has existed from eternity past. And we know that Jesus said He was the light of the world. In the OT the visible presence of God was called the “Shekihah.” Roughly translated it means, “He dwells among us.” (Think “Immanuel.”) The manifesta-tion of the glory of God was seen in the Shekinah. It was seen for the first time when the Israelites set out on their escape from Egypt.
Exodus 13:21-22
21 And the LORD was going before them in a pillar of cloud by day to lead them on the way, and in a pillar of fire by night to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night.
22 He did not take away the pillar of cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people.

When the Shekinah moved, Israel moved. When the Shekinah stopped, Israel stopped. And when the Shekinah hovered over them, Israel camped beneath it. Quite simply, they were led by the glory of God. Later, when King Solomon built the temple in Jerusalem, the Shekinah took up residence in the Holy of Holies.
2 Chronicles 7:1-3a (when the temple was completed)
1 Now when Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the LORD filled the house.
2 And the priests could not enter into the house of the LORD because the glory of the LORD filled the LORD’S house.
3a And all the sons of Israel, seeing the fire come down and the glory of the LORD upon the house, bowed down on the pavement with their faces to the ground, and they worshipped…

But then, about three hundred and fifty years later, a disobedient Israel was about to be punished for their rebellion against God.
He would allow the Babylonians to destroy the temple and take Israel into captivity. The Shekinah left Israel in stages as God removed His hand of protection from them.

To what degree God is punishing America for our national disobedience and rebellion against Him and His word is certainly debatable, but I don’t think you can miss seeing the
parallels between what happened to Israel then, and what’s happening to America now. God removed His glory from Israel in stages and I can’t help but wonder if He hasn’t begun to remove Himself from this nation due to our national disobedience and rebellion as well. Consider Israel.

In the first stage the Shekinah, God’s glory, moved out from the Holy of Holies.
Ezekiel 9:3a
3a Then the glory of the God of Israel went up from the cherub on which it had been (hovering over the mercy seat on the Ark of the Covenant), to the thresh-old of the temple.

In the second stage God’s glory left the area of the temple and moved away.
Ezekiel 10:18a
18a Then the glory of the LORD departed from the threshold of the temple…

And in the third stage the glory of God moved again, went through the eastern gate, and hovered over the Mount of Olives before leaving Israel altogether.
Ezekiel 11:23
23 And the glory of the LORD went up from the midst of the city, and stood over the mountain which is east of the city.

Is the Shekinah seen in the NT? Jesus ascended into heaven after His resurrection from the very place where Ezekiel watched God’s glory depart from Israel six hundred years earlier.
Acts 1:9
9 (He)…was lifted up while (the disciples) were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.

Was that cloud was a visible reminder of God’s glory? I think it was. And what about the church when she’s taken to heaven? What about the Rapture?
1 Thessalonians 4:16-17
16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and the trumpet of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first.
17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and thus we shall always be with the Lord.
The Rapture of the church will not be the last time the clouds of glory will accompany Jesus. What about the Second Coming, Jesus’ glorious appearing? When He stood before the high priest the night before the crucifixion, He said so Himself.
Mark 14:61-62
61 Again the high priest was questioning Him, and saying to Him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?”
62 And Jesus said, “I am; and you shall see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.”

Both the OT and NT repeatedly use clouds as a metaphor to speak of the glory of God that is found in Christ. Daniel speaks of it in his prophecy of the Second Coming.
Daniel 7:13-14 (speaking about Jesus)
13 “I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven one like a Son of Man was coming, and He came up to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him.”
14 “And to Him was given dominion, glory, and a kingdom, that all the peo-ples, nations, and men of every language might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away; and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed.”

Matthew 24:29-30 (speaking of Himself)
29 “But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be dark-ened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken,
30 and then, the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory.”

When the Lord Jesus returns in glory with the “clouds of heaven” He will be surrounded by the Shekinah, the matchless glory of God. When one compares Scripture with Scrip-ture you begin to understand many of the passages that, when taken out of context, seem confusing or irrelevant. So much begins to make sense.

But back to the maji. What would have caused them to set out on a journey of many hun-dreds of miles? Many believe these men were astrologers from what is today northern Iraq. If so, they would have had access to the Hebrew Scriptures from the Babylonian captivity. Therefore, they would have been familiar with The Book of Daniel.

Daniel’s prophecies regarding the timing of the Jewish Messiah’s coming to earth were very specific and very precise. Therefore the magi would not have been surprised by the timing of Jesus’ birth. If anything, they would have been looking for a sign.
Not only that, but they would have had an idea as to what kind of sign to look for. Why?
Numbers 24:17b
17b …a star shall come forth from Jacob, and a scepter shall rise from Israel.

What does that mean? The King of the Jews would arise and a star would announce His coming. See? Comparing Scripture with Scripture! No wonder we call them Wise Men.

So was the star of Bethlehem really the Shekinah glory of God? Was it really a visible manifestation of the glory of God? Well, natural astronomical phenomena simply do not conform to the actions of that so-called star.
*Luke 2:9-11
9 And the angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.
10 And the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which shall be for all the people
11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

Look again at v. 9. “…and the glory of the Lord shone around them…” The Shekinah?
I believe it was. When Jesus returns He will be coming surrounded by the glory of God.
We know that because Revelation 1:7 says, “Behold, He is coming with the clouds…”
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

III. Conclusion
“What was the star of Bethlehem?” It’s an interesting question to ponder, isn’t it? But in the final analysis, there’s a much more important question to be asked this Christmas and every other day, for that matter.

The question of infinitely greater importance is this: “Who is the Star of Bethlehem?” When we compare Scripture with Scripture we find out. When Simeon took the baby Jesus in his arms, He spoke truth for you and for me.
*Luke 2:30-32
30 “For my eyes have seen Your salvation,
31 which You have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
32 a light of revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel.”

Revelation 22:16 (Jesus speaking from heaven to John)
16 “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright morning star.”

The baby Jesus – the Light and the Glory! Our prayer for all of you this evening is this: May that light shine in your hearts today and throughout the years to come until we see Him face-to-face. Merry Christmas! ~ Pray ~