What Was That Star?

What was the star in the night which the wise men had seen in the east? It occurs to many that the wise men were perhaps astrologers who studied the heavens in search of knowledge and guidance. If that Star was a common and familiar heavenly body, why would the wise men follow across the desert sands of the eastern terrain to follow such a common object of the night sky? Such a long journey upon their beasts of burden in the heat of the noonday sun and the cold of the night would not have been reasonable to them. That star could not have been a comet for a comet travels so swiftly and is soon gone from view. It would not have been a planet as the earth turns by night and day.

The Gospel of Matthew 2:2 reveals the truth. When the wise men reached the court of Herod, the false king of Israel, the wise men asked, "Where is the newborn king of the Jews? For we have seen His star in East and have come to worship Him."

What was that star? It was HIS star. That star was the star which pointed to and shone upon the Light of the World. Jesus is the one and only one who can redeem humankind from the bondage of sin and bring light to their souls with joy and eternal gladness.

No, Jesus was not that star but the star points humanity to Jesus even as we can point men to Christ, the Savior of all who receive Him.

Dr. Johnny Ashburn, Th.D.