Three Kings Church

THE MAGI

Who were the Magi? They were the first Gentiles to believe in Christ, and were guided by a mysterious star which led them from the East to the village of Bethlehem, where they found the Infant Jesus.

They are called "sages" or "wise men" in the New Testament, but the idea that they were kings first appears in Christian tradition in the writings of Tertullian, who called them "fere regis," or "almost kings." This became generally accepted by the sixth century, because of the implication of Psalm 72, which speaks of the kings of Tarshish, Arabia, and Saba, "who shall bring presents." The New Testament says nothing of how many there were, although the traditional number of three was first ascribed by Origen, based upon the gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Their names (Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthasar) are first mentioned in the sixth century, and are also included in the writings of the Venerable Bede. In the Middle Ages the Magi were venerated as saints, and there are relics enshrined in the cathedral in Cologne.

But what do the Magi teach us? Surely, the overwhelming lesson is the absolute importance of complete and utter adoration. These three had traveled great distances and risked both physical danger and the wrath of Herod himself just to kneel before the Incarnate Word of God. All we need to do is to go to the nearest Catholic Church, where the same Christ waits for us in the tabernacle. O come, let us adore Him: Christ the Lord!

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Pictured: "The Three Wise Men"
by Joseph Christian Leyendecker, (1874-1951)

https://frchristophergphillips.blogspot.com/2024/01/the-magi.html

𝐌𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐚𝐬

For behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which will come to all the people

Luke 2:10

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased!"

Luke 2:14

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government will be upon his shoulder, and his name will be called "Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

Isaiah 9:6

For to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

Luke 2:11

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

John 3:16

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, a young woman shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanu-el.

Isaiah 7:14

And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Then I said, "Here am I! Send me."

Isaiah 6:8

Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit;

Matthew 1:18

For that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit

Matthew 1:20

Who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

John 1:13

How shall this be ?

Luke 1:34

The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you

Luke 1:35

And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her from the Lord."

Luke 1:45

He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation

Colossians 1:15

"Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am."

John 8:58

I and the Father are one.

John 10:30

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 1:1

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and for ever.

Hebrews 13:8

For in him the whole fulness of deity dwells bodily,

Colossians 2:9

And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.

Luke 1:30

When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took his wife,

Matthew 1:24

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father.

John 1:14

He reflects the glory of God and bears the very stamp of his nature

Hebrews 1:3

The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shined.

Isaiah 9:2

The unfolding of thy words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.

Psalms 119:130

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

John 1:5

She brought forth a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron

Revelation 12:5

"Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!"

Luke 1:28

He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David,

Luke 1:32

Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.

Luke 1:35

She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."

Matthew 1:21

For to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a babe wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger."

Luke 2:11-12

And she gave birth to her first-born son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

Luke 2:7

All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel" (which means, God with us).

Matthew 1:22-23

Yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.

1 Corinthians 8:6

The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned."

Matthew 4:16

For mine eyes have seen thy salvation which thou hast prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to thy people Israel."

Luke 2:30-32

I will tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to me, "You are my son, today I have begotten you.

Psalms 2:7

But when the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law,

Galatians 4:4

"Truly you are the Son of God."

Matthew 14:33

Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying,

Matthew 2:1

And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshipped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.

Matthew 2:11

When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son.

Hosea 11:1

And he rose and took the child and his mother by night, and departed to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, "Out of Egypt have I called my son."

Matthew 2:14-15

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life

1 John 1:1

For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or comeliness that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him.

Isaiah 53:2

The gospel concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and designated Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord

Romans 1:3-4

And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him

Luke 2:33

A voice cries: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

Isaiah 40:3

There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.

Isaiah 11:1

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days.

Micah 5:2

And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, "Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is spoken against

Luke 2:34

And the child grew and became strong in spirit,

Luke 1:80

And he went and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, "He shall be called a Nazarene."

Matthew 2:23

And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.

Luke 2:40

And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature, and in favor with God and man.

Luke 2:52

"This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased."

Matthew 3:17

No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known.

John 1:18

Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority; but the Father who dwells in me does his works.

John 14:10

You have been born anew, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God;

1 Peter 1:23

If he called them gods to whom the word of God came (and scripture cannot be broken),

John 10:35

See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

1 John 3:1

For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.

Galatians 3:26

Examine yourselves, to see whether you are holding to your faith. Test yourselves. Do you not realize that Jesus Christ is in you?--unless indeed you fail to meet the test!

2 Corinthians 13:5

Eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of us all, who is above all and through all and in all.

Ephesians 4:3-6

The LORD says to my lord: "Sit at my right hand, till I make your enemies your footstool."

Psalms 110:1

Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this which you see and hear.

Acts 2:33

That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him,

Ephesians 1:17

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

2 Corinthians 13:14