Stress Test Devotional May 18
May 18, 2024
Matthew 2: 1, 12 | 1 In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 12 And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.
The wise men represent humanity acting under grace in one final way—by virtue of their origins. They are a preview of what God will do through this newborn child. They are outside of the purpose of the God of Israel, strangers to the covenant and the promises. Yet they are heroes and models in the salvation story, resourceful, generous, wise, and brave. The Jewish shepherds, who also attend the child, show God’s reach toward the unreligious and dishonored parts of the Israelite social map. The Magi show His reach beyond it! For Jesus would heal foreign children and befriend and teach
Samaritans. The Magi represent grace gone international, beyond boundaries and expectations.
Do you cross the invisible borders of identity, like race, culture, or ethnicity?
