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The following story was recounted by Gillian Garman in her sermon on 28th December 2008:
The Fourth Wise Man
There is a legend about a fourth wise man! We hear every year about the three wise men, but last year I heard, for the first time, about the fourth wise man.
Like the other three wise men, he too, had been following the course of the star that would lead to where the Messiah would be born. He was a colleague of the other three wise men but lived in a different part of the country so they had arranged that when the star reached a certain point in the sky they would meet up and continue their journey together.
Like the other wise men the fourth wise man had gifts ready to give to Jesus. He had a Sapphire, a Ruby and a Pearl. Great treasures of great value. He had already realised the greatness of the Messiah and was prepared to meet him as a baby and to humbly offer his gifts.
The time came when he knew the star was exactly in the right place for him to start his journey to meet his fellow wise men as arranged.
After some time on his journey, the horse on which he rode began to hesitate and the fourth wise man saw ahead of them a bundle of clothes lying in the road. He jumped down to push them aside only to find that the clothes were that of a man who seemed very ill and near to death. He felt an instant resentment as he fought within himself the need to carry on to make the rendezvous with his fellow travellers and the need to help this man. He went to leave the man, imagining his death was imminent, when he felt the man grasping his long coat, and, praying that God who would help him in making the right choice, he turned and tended to the man. He gave him food and water and gradually as the hours passed the man began to recover to a point where he encouraged the fourth wise man to continue with his journey.
The wise man reached the next town where he knew his fellow travellers would have been hours previously, he received a message that they had waited as long as they could but could wait no more and had continued without him. He would have to sell his sapphire to be able to buy more food and water to see him on his way and a train of camels as he would be travelling alone.
Some days later he arrived in Bethlehem to find that his three colleagues had arrived three days before him and that they had seen Jesus presented their gifts and worshipped him. Now they had left the town as had the Holy Family.
The fourth wise man was disappointed beyond words and needed a place to stay. He heard a child’s cry and a young mother with her baby standing in her doorway and asked whether she knew of a place he could stay. As they spoke a commotion was heard further up the road in the village, Herod’s soldiers had arrived and, under his orders, were seeking all young children to kill them in an attempt to kill the baby Jesus. The fourth wise man stood in the doorway to her home as the soldier’s approached.
“There is no young child here” He told them, and held out his ruby to them “Here take this ruby to your Captain and be on your way” And the house, the mother and the child were spared.
The fourth Wise man continued his search for the Messiah for years. His journey led him far and wide and he fed the hungry, comforted the oppressed, and clothed the poor.
After almost thirty-three years his journey led him to Jerusalem where a great commotion was going on, a Crucifixion was taking place. He heard people shouting “Crucify Him, the King of the Jews”. The fourth wise man knew then he had found the baby born to be the messiah, the King of the Jews.
So the fourth wise man, now an old man, followed the crowds. As he did so, a young woman being chased by soldiers rushed into his arms asking he save her. For a third time, as when he met the dying man, as when he arrived in Bethlehem, the fourth wise man felt his soul being torn in two. What should he do? Follow the crowds or recue the girl? He reached for his third stone, his precious pearl. “This is the last of my treasures which I kept for the King I give it for your ransom”
While he spoke what felt like an earthquake rocked the buildings and the sky darkened, dust clouds filled the air. It was three in the afternoon.
A tile from a roof struck the fourth wise man and he lay quite still as if dead. The girl looked at him and saw his lips move, he spoke softly
“Not so, my Lord. When did I see you hungry and fed you? Thirsty and gave you drink? When did I see you as a stranger and took you in? Or naked and clothed you? When did I see you sick or in prison and visit you? I have been looking for you for 33 years but never seen your face or ministered to you my Lord”
He sighed and then the voice came again and this time the girl heard it too, very faintly
“I say to you, that which you have done for anyone of the least of my brothers, you have done to me”
The wise man breathed his last. His journey was ended. His treasures were accepted. The fourth wise man had found his King.
(adapted from the book by Henry Van Dyke “The Story of The Other Wise Man” )
TM
smasch is delighted to support Street Pastors. There are now three Pastors from the parish working in the Orpington area.
What is a Street Pastor?... the following is from the Street Pastors web site:
'A Street Pastor is a Church leader/minister or member with a concern for society - in particular young people who feel themselves to be excluded and marginalised - and who is willing to engage people where they are, in terms of their thinking (i.e. their perspective of life) and location (i.e. where they hang out - be it on the streets, in the pubs and clubs or at parties etc).'
Go to the Street Pastors website for more information: http://www.streetpastors.org.uk/
Find out about the Orpington Team at http://www.streetpastors.org.uk/pages/orpington.html
