Friday, November 13, 2009

You think that the Star of Bethlehem could still be out there just not in all of it's shining glory?

or it came and went?

You think that the Star of Bethlehem could still be out there just not in all of it's shining glory?
Isn't it still there??? Bright as ever. Pops
Reply:Yes
Reply:That's an interesting question, with arguments appropriate to both sides. Do you know that the Creator set each star in its place and knows every one by its name? I guess I think He conjured up a very special star for Jesus' birth, and maybe it's over His throne right now. I'll ask when I get up there.
Reply:It is in a museum far away.
Reply:Have you guys even READ the bible? The star of bethlehem was shown only the three wise men. They were looking for the newborn messiah. Why? They were sent to find him by King Herod. Why? Because he viewed the messiah as a threat to his sovereignty and wanted to kill him. He told the wise men that he wanted to pay homage the the newborn king, but he actually wanted to kill him. The wise men were supposed to find jesus and then report his location back to Herod. Before returning, Herods true intention was revealed to them and they went home by a different route. That is the story, if you dont believe me, pick up a bible and read it for yourself. Now, we have a problem. Either god sent a star to guide the assassins to Jesus, or the star was caused by satan....to guide the assassins to Jesus.And you christians honor it like it is a good thing! Another example of people blindly following what they are told to follow instead of actually reading for themselves.
Reply:Supernovas don't last that long kiddo..!!
Reply:It should still be there. The bible says all stars are the same age and rotate around the Earth, right? LOL
Reply:yes it is out there watching!
Reply:No, it never came or went. Sorry.
Reply:I myself believe the Star of Bethlehem was in possibility, an angel. But, not just an angle but a mighty angel, as in arch-angel, in his splendor and glory. Of whom brightness of glory had the appearance to that of a star.





Star is a term used in the Bible for various beings of the Angelic Realm.





Notice in Matthew 2:9, concerning the wise men that the star "came and stood" over the place where Jesus was.





And when they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was.





Notice also how the star was able to move from one place to another.





It could have been a celestrial star. But, I think it might have been an angel. But, this is nothing I teach. Just a personal feeling.
Reply:I'm Christian, but I think that the star happened to be a super nova. When the earth was created, God planned the star to be a super nova at a specific time, to tell those people where Jesus was born. Right now, it probably is a smaller used up star.
Reply:The Star of Bethlehem is associated with the visit of the Magi (Wise men) from the East as recorded in Matthew 2:1-12. From this passage we see three things of interest.





First, the text implies the Star appeared only to the Magi in the East (the “East” most likely being the area of Persia, or modern-day Iran). There is no Biblical record of anyone else observing this phenomenon. While we cannot be dogmatic regarding this point, it is clear that the Magi observed something in the heavens that no one else observed that alerted them the Jewish Messiah was to be born (Matthew 2:2 refers to the Star as being “His Star”).





Second, the Star prompted them to travel to Jerusalem, the Jewish capital. This would be the logical place to start looking for the birth of the King of the Jews.





Third, when the Magi were told that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, not in Jerusalem, they left. Upon their leaving, the Star that appeared to them in the East re-appeared and led them to Nazareth, and stopped once it was over the place Joseph and Mary were then staying (Matthew 2:9).





Now, the Greek word that is translated “star” in the text is the word aster, which is the normal word for a star, a celestial body. The word is used 24 times in the New Testament, and in the majority of the uses it refers to a celestial body. It can be used to denote angels as it does in Revelation 12:4, when it is used to describe the fallen angels that followed Satan’s rebellion. However, in the sense it is used in Matthew 2, it is referring to a celestial body. Basic rules of Biblical interpretation state that we should take the normal sense of the word unless there is compelling evidence to suggest otherwise. In fact, many Biblical interpreters have done as much by suggesting a natural explanation of the Star of Bethlehem. Their suggestions range from calling it a supernova or a comet to saying it was the conjunction of several celestial bodies which provided a brighter-than-normal light in the sky.





However, there is compelling evidence to suggest that what we see in Matthew 2:1-12 is not a natural stellar phenomenon, but something inexplicable by science. That evidence lies in the three things noted above. First, the fact that the Star only appeared to the Magi indicates that this was no ordinary stellar phenomenon. Furthermore, what led the Magi to travel to Jerusalem was the fact that they were looking for the sign of the Messiah. How would Persian Magi know about the Jewish Messiah? They would have been exposed to the ministry of the Jewish prophet Daniel who was the chief of the court seers for Persia. In Daniel 9:24-27, we see a prophecy that gives a timeline for the birth of the Messiah. Second, they would have been aware of the prophetic utterance of the pagan prophet Balaam (who was from the town of Pethor on the Euphrates River near Persia) in Numbers 24:17 (a prophecy that specifically mentions a “star coming out of Jacob”). Finally, celestial bodies normally move from east to west due to the earth’s rotation, yet this Star led the Magi from Jerusalem south to Bethlehem. Not only that, but it led them directly to the place where Joseph and Mary were staying; stopping directly overhead. There is no natural stellar phenomenon that can do that.





So if the normal usage of the word “star” doesn’t fit the context, what does? What we likely have here in Matthew 2:1-12 is a manifestation of what the Jews call the Shekinah Glory. The Shekinah, which literally means “dwelling of God,” was the visible presence of the Lord. The most notable example of the Shekinah can be found in Exodus 13:21. The Shekinah was the pillar of cloud that led the Israelites by day, and the pillar of fire that led them by night.





The Shekinah fits all of the Biblical evidence available in Matthew 2:1-12. The Shekinah can appear to specific individuals, it can disappear and re-appear, it was seen frequently in connection with Christ’s ministry (e.g., Matthew 17:5; Acts 1:9), and it can lead people to specific locations. It shouldn’t surprise us that God would use a miraculous sign to signal the advent of His Son, the Messiah, into the world.

daisy

1 comment:

  1. I agree that star in this case means angel. The word star is used elsewhere in the Bible to mean angel.

    ReplyDelete