His Star

Star gazers at Kathmandu : photo Gopal Chitrakar / Reuters

The magi said to Herod, "We have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him."—Matthew 2:2.

Contrary to popular thought, the Christmas star was not some startling, new sight. In fact, you can see His star tonight. What made it significant to the magi were its movements among other heavenly bodies. They knew from the prophecy of Daniel, chief of the magi more than 500 years previously, that the time was close for Messiah to come (calculated from Daniel 9:24-25, counting a week as 7 years, and 2 Chronicles 36:22-23).

His star, the planet Jupiter, was always held to be the planet of kings. Leo, the constellation of kingship, was connected with the tribe of Judah. Jupiter's four conjunctions within Leo, three with Regulus, the kingly star, and one with Venus, the mother planet, as well as a spectacular, rare conjunction of Jupiter and Venus above the setting sun in which they appeared to be one splendid object—all within one year's time, signaled the magi.

Jupiter was called by the Jewish people tsedeq—righteous—a term also applied to Messiah:

"Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of your kingdom."

"Behold a king will reign in righteousness."

"Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins."

"For Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until her righteousness goes forth as brightness and her salvation as a burning lamp. The Gentiles shall see your righteousness, and all kings your glory."

Mankind has proved beyond doubt that even those who desire to live righteously are unable to do so. The world left to itself is without hope. Messiah came to bring God's righteousness to mankind. Those who receive Him receive God's righteousness.

How does that happen? Partly, it's an exchange. Messiah took on himself our sins, and receiving Him by faith we take on His righteousness: "For He [God] made Him who knew no sin [Messiah] to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him," 2 Corinthians 5:21.

Partly, it's because Messiah's death satisfied God's wrath against sin: "Without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin," Hebrews 9:22.

And partly, it's because Messiah alone—and fully—satisfied the righteous requirements of the law: "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes," Romans 10:4.

We can appropriate His righteousness for ourselves in only one way—by faith:

"But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe," Romans 3:21-22.

"For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation," Romans 10:10.

This is why His star is so important to us. He is the answer to for mankind's need for righteousness.