Well, here we are. It's the middle of July. School supplies should begin hitting the shelves soon, and school year planning starts in earnest. High school football teams are having morning practices and high school marching band programs are drawing up half-time shows. Soon it will be time for preschool practices and rehearsals to begin. We find ourselves slowly getting back into the annual nine-month routine that begins after a summer filled with nonschool events like vacations and maybe a summer job. Hopefully, this edition of Tuesday's Musical Notes finds you having the summer of your plans, a respite if you've needed one, and maybe even a new adventure you've enjoyed. 
So welcome to Tuesday! It's time for Tuesday's Musical Notes!! We are here to assist you with a needed diversion amidst your preparation for the up and coming school year. Perhaps the school year is not the center of your universe, we're here for you too as all of us transition slowly out of summer!!!
Don't get me wrong. I'm not attempting to hurry time. I just love the fall and have a great disdain for cutting the grass and other outdoor activities when temperatures are above 100 degrees. (No judgment for those who disagree. You are loved here...) That being said we are fortunately in a time when the summer solstice has passed providing days that are beginning to get shorter. The cooler temps and the earlier twilights give us more time to spend on fun outdoor endeavors like...counting stars.
OneRepublic spent 5 years honing their craft until they could get a solid label signing. The culmination of 5 years well spent was their debut album, 2007's Dreaming Out Loud. The lead single "Apologize" went to #1 in 16 nations and received a Grammy nod. The band followed up with an equally successful second single, "Stop And Stare" from the album setting up the continual success with subsequent records.
Success defined 2009's sophomore offering Waking Up as OneRepublic released 4 singles from the release. The final single, "Good Life" reached the top ten on Billboard's Hot 100.
Today's featured song comes from the band's third studio effort, 2013's Native. This album would be the band's highest charting record, peaking at #4 on the Billboard 200 chart. "Counting Stars" was the record's second single and the band's most successful song to date. It peaked at #2 on the Hot 100 and spawned a video that became the first music video to receive 1 billion views. It has since been viewed more than 3.6 billion times on YouTube making it the 16th most viewed on the site. Just in case you were curious and wanted a glance at the list...Top 1000 Most Viewed YouTube Videos of All Time - updated March 7, 2022
Have you ever been so anxious and stressed that you couldn't sleep? The old advice to count sheep has never worked for me nor for "Counting Stars" songwriter/lead singer Ryan Tedder. He says about the song that it comes from the inclination to stress our lives. So many folks are wrapped up in the struggle to make ends meet or make their relationships work. All of this activity piles up on folks and causes sleepless nights. So much so that counting sheep isn't enough. Their apprehension is so high that they turn to count stars to entice sleep and rest. This wouldn't be the first time that folks gazed at the stars...
One of the most misrepresented stories of the Bible comes to us in today's passage, the visit to Jesus by the Wise Men, Magi as Matthew calls them. Tuesday's Musical Notes has provided perspective on this story before: Tuesday's Musical Notes - "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen/We Three Kings" (Barenaked Ladies with Sarah Mclachlan) Today, we wish to reinforce some of the assertions we made in the previous blog and perhaps provide more enlightenment to the beloved story that has many ideologies that don't align with the Biblical narrative truth.
The first artistic license that must be eliminated is the timing of the magi's visit. They were NOT present at the manger. Only the shepherds, Mary, and Joseph were at the grotto at the time of Jesus' birth. The Magi appear on the scene sometime after. The Bible doesn't address specifically how long after, but it was enough time for Mary and Joseph to be settled in Bethlehem. Movies would be far too long to be accurate. Let's face it babies are always much cuter than 2-year-olds...just sayin'.
Next, the Magi first go to Jerusalem, the capital city of the region, not straight to Jesus They thought that the birth of a king would certainly be heralded there. What they found was Herod the Great seated on the throne. Herod had no clue about a "King of the Jews" and sought out the chief priests and scribes on the matter. They took to Scripture, specifically Micah 5:2 NASB/AMP/KJV/ESV, and responded to Herod that Bethlehem was the place the King was to be born.
To affirm Jesus was already alive at this point, the Bible points out that Herod then proceeded to determine the birthdate of the King by inquiring of the Magi, deceptively we might add, as to when the star first appeared to them. He sent the Magi to Bethlehem to scout things out and bring him a report so that he (Herod) could avail himself to "worship" the new King.
The star reappeared to the Magi in Jerusalem. The Bible says they rejoiced at the sight of the star. This gives us the indication that God wanted them to stop off in Jerusalem and perhaps they had lost sight of the star. We see later that this delay served to fulfill prophecy. The star led them to Bethlehem and stopped. It is easy to see the miraculousness of this event even if you have only a cursory knowledge of astronomy. Stars typically don't move much from day to day, and they certainly don't move positions in the sky to the point of "resting" over a specific spot. This star first appeared in their homeland, the region of Babylon and Persia in their time, and what is probably modern-day Iran, Iraq, or Afghanistan in the modern world. Just in case you were wondering "In the east" refers to where the Magi were, not the part of the sky in which the star appeared. (I wondered, thought you might...) The Magi would have known to be looking for such a star because of their ancient literature. In Numbers 24:17 NASB/AMP/KJV/ESV we read about an ancestor to the Magi, Balaam (Yup, he's the one that had a conversation with his donkey, Tuesday's Musical Notes - "Talk to the Animals" (Rex Harrison as Dr. Dolittle)). Oral tradition and the occasional manuscript would have been passed down from one generation to the next. Balaam's prophecy regarding a King and a star that points the way to Him would surely have lasted the test of time.
Also, after the fall of Israel and Judah in 587 BC, 2 Kings 25 NASB/AMP/KJV/ESV, many of the populace were taken into exile in Babylon and Persia. God gives the exiles instructions on how to face the 70 years they will be away from Israel. Jeremiah 29:5-7 NASB/AMP/KJV/ESV gives us the indication that the Jews were to make a life in their exilic status. It stands to reason that there was influence by the exiled Jews in the land of Babylon and Persia. This influence reached the highest levels as evidenced by Daniel and his friends rising to power in the government. Daniel would have easily been considered a Magi in his day and his many writings would have certainly been preserved. The Magi of Jesus' time would have had these texts as well as a part of their overall prophecy literature.
Another misconception is that there were three magi. While the Bible does not indicate the number of Magi, the assumption is made because there were three gifts, gold, frankincense, and myrrh given to Jesus. Gold served as a symbol of royalty and could also have been used to finance Jesus' family's escape to Egypt. Remember Joseph's trade was a carpenter. Only shepherds were seen as lower on the Jewish social status totem pole. One would imagine that Mary and Joseph's resources were limited and the finances were tight. This gift of Gold could have served as God's provision for the journey that lay in their future. Frankincense was an incense usually reserved in the worship of Jehovah and symbolized Jesus' service to the world as the ultimate sacrifice for our sins. Myrhh was used as one of the spices applied to the body upon death. The Bible doesn't say that Mary held on to this gift through Jesus' life, but it isn't too hard to imagine that she did and it was one of the spices applied to Jesus' body before being placed in the tomb. (Again, no Biblical evidence to that fact, supposition on my part!)
Some Biblical scholars suggest there is some Biblical precedent to 3 Magi, however. In Psalm 72:10-11 NASB/AMP/KJV/ESV, the Bible hints at three kings. This reference could be interpreted as an indication of three Magi representing all nations as the descendants of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth have been thought to have settled in these regions. This assumption is however NOT ever substantiated through the Biblical text.
The next portion of the Magi's interaction with Jesus and His family IS usually given proper artistic treatment compared to the narrative. After providing the gifts to Jesus, the Magi prepare to embark on the journey home. Their hearts are full as they have been witness to the fulfillment of their own, pagan land's, Jewish-influenced prophecy regarding the King of all kings. God shows up in a dream to them and tells them not to return to Herod. One thing that is rarely pointed out in this circumstance is that the Magi, who were probably some of the most inquisitive folks of their time and were considered pagans to the Hebrews of their day, didn't hesitate to obey God.
When the Magi don't report back, Herod, who is intimidated by the possibility of the birth of a King in the line of David (He was not genealogically linked), has all of the male children in Bethlehem under the age of two (as determined again by the timeline of when the star appeared to the Magi) killed, thus fulfilling yet another prophecy: Jeremiah 31:15 NASB/AMP/KJV/ESV
The story of the Magi, even the one that is misrepresented in TV and Movies, provides some illustrations that believers should embrace and pre-believers should study. 1) Be watching for God. He can use anything or anyone He wants to show you what His will and plan are. Including things that are not easily associated with Him. The Magi would have been considered pagan and unclean, yet God used them to give us this beautiful illustration of how He draws ALL to Him. The Gospel of Jesus according to the fisherman John, chapter 12, verse 32 NASB/AMP/KJV/ESV 2) God will lead you to where you need to be if you are obedient to how He leads you. That process should cause you to rejoice. 3) Worship Jesus. Seek Him out and you will find. Bring to Him the gifts that you have at your disposal. Those could be your time, talent, or as in the case of the Magi, your treasure.
If lately, you've been, you've been losing sleep, these are lessons we all could learn as we lie awake at night counting stars...
'Til Tuesday,
Loving HIM by Loving You,
randy
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