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Most of us know of the three wise men who follow the guiding star, and visit the child Jesus with gifts.

In 1895 Henry Van Dyke wrote this beautiful short novel called “The Story of the Other Wise Man.”

What’s the story about? This fourth wise man also sees the same signs in the heavens and sets out to find the Child Jesus; carrying his gifts of a Sapphire, a Ruby, and a very precious Pearl. But nothing goes as planned. He misses his rendezvous with the other three wise men because he is delayed helping a dying man. Now, to cross the desert alone he needs camels and supplies and sells one of his treasures to buy them. He arrives late in Bethlehem after saving the life of a child using another of his treasures. In the meantime, the child Jesus has left Bethlehem.

And after many years looking for Jesus and many acts of charity, he spends his last treasure to save a girl from being sold into slavery. He dies without ever finding Jesus, but as he is dying, he hears the Divine voice saying, “…as you have done for them…you did for me”. His gifts were indeed accepted [by Jesus], and, in a sense, he found God in a deeper way than even the other wise men.

It’s a powerful story! And for me it offers some insights for the Christmas season:

1) When things don’t go our way, when we struggle, feel lost, when we endure hardships and delays, when the goal seems out of reach… This story is a reminder that, in fact, we may be closer to our goals than we think. That we may have traveled further than we realize, and that every delay and set back may be working in our favor in profound and wonderful ways. At the end of our journey, we may see all the hidden miracles which were disguised as hardships. But to see them now is a miracle of faith. And the Christmas story invites us to such a kind of faith.

2) The highest rewards call for sacrifice, patience, endurance and goodwill. We all know that nothing worthwhile comes easy. And as this wise man found his great reward after what seemed like an endless struggle, he stayed true to his cause, persisted, and nurtured within him the desire to do good in spite of every struggle. This is a story of hope. And Christmas urges us to look at any aspect of life where we have lost hope or are losing hope. Can we choose to hope even when everything seems lost, and seek the courage to endure?

3) The greatest gifts the wise man gave God were his acts of Charity. Giving without measuring. Giving repeatedly. Giving even though it cost him dearly. If Christmas is about anything of significance…it’s about giving. It’s about God giving us everything. And about how we continue that cycle of giving by sharing what we have. Perhaps we ask ourselves this Christmas how we can give others our time, our resources, our talent, our listening ear…or maybe just a small gesture to tell people we care about that they are not alone in their struggles. A message of love.

To me, it’s really about these three things. Faith. Hope. And Love. And I believe this Christmas, like every Christmas, can become significant when we become bearers of the Divine light…by choosing faith, daring to hope, and committing to love others…even if in the smallest ways.

Mat 25:40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

Die meisten von uns kennen die Geschichte der heiligen drei Könige oder Weisen aus dem Morgenland, die dem Leitstern folgen und das Jesuskind mit Ge-schenken besuchen.

1895 schrieb Henry Van Dyke diesen schönen Kurzroman mit dem Titel „The Story of the Other Wise Man“ (Die Geschichte vom anderen weisen Mann).

Worum geht es in der Geschichte? Dieser vierte weise Mann sieht ebenfalls die gleichen Zeichen am Himmel und macht sich auf den Weg, um das Jesuskind zu finden; im Gepäck hat er einen Saphir, einen Rubin und eine sehr wertvolle Perle. Aber nichts läuft wie geplant. Er verpasst sein Rendezvous mit den anderen drei Weisen, weil er aufgehalten wird, um einem Sterbenden zu helfen. Um die Wüste allein zu durchqueren, braucht er Kamele und Vorräte und verkauft einen seiner Schätze, um diese zu kaufen. Er kommt erst spät in Bethlehem an, nachdem er mit einem anderen seiner Schätze das Leben eines Kindes gerettet hat. In der Zwischenzeit hat das Jesuskind Bethlehem verlassen.

Und nach vielen Jahren der Suche nach Jesus und vielen Taten der Nächstenliebe gibt er seinen letzten Schatz aus, um ein Mädchen vor dem Verkauf in die Sklaverei zu retten. Er stirbt, ohne Jesus je gefunden zu haben, aber im Sterben hört er die göttliche Stimme sagen: „... was du für sie getan hast, das hast du auch für mich getan.“ Seine Gaben wurden in der Tat [von Jesus] angenommen, und in gewissem Sinne fand er Gott auf eine tiefere Weise als die anderen Weisen.

Das ist eine beeindruckende Geschichte! Und für mich bietet sie einige Einsichten für die Weihnachtszeit:

1) Wenn Dinge nicht so laufen, wie wir wollen, wenn wir uns abmühen, wenn wir uns verloren fühlen, wenn wir Schwierigkeiten und Verzögerungen ertragen müssen, wenn das Ziel unerreichbar scheint... Diese Geschichte erinnert uns daran, dass wir unserem Ziel vielleicht näher sind, als wir denken. Dass wir vielleicht schon weitergereist sind, als uns bewusst ist, und dass jede Verzögerung und jeder Rückschlag auf tiefgreifende und wunderbare Weise zu unseren Gunsten wirken kann. Am Ende unserer Reise werden wir vielleicht all die verborgenen Wunder sehen, die als Schwierigkeiten getarnt waren. Aber sie jetzt zu sehen, ist ein Wunder des Glaubens. Und die Weihnachts-geschichte lädt uns zu dieser Art von Glauben ein.

2) Die höchsten Belohnungen erfordern Opferbereitschaft, Geduld, Ausdauer und guten Willen. Wir alle wissen, dass nichts, was sich lohnt, einfach zu erreichen ist. Und dieser weise Mann fand seine große Belohnung nach einem scheinbar endlosen Kampf, während er seiner Sache treu blieb, durchhielt und in sich den Wunsch nährte, trotz aller Schwierigkeiten Gutes zu tun. Dies ist eine Geschichte der Hoffnung. Und Weihnachten fordert uns auf, jeden Aspekt unseres Lebens zu betrachten, in dem wir die Hoffnung verloren haben oder dabei sind, sie zu verlieren. Können wir uns für die Hoffnung entscheiden, auch wenn alles verloren scheint, und den Mut finden, durchzuhalten?

3) Die größten Geschenke, die der weise Mann Gott machte, waren seine Taten der Nächstenliebe. Geben, ohne zu messen. Er gab immer wieder. Geben, auch wenn es ihn teuer zu stehen kam. Wenn Weihnachten etwas von Bedeutung ist …, dann ist es Geben. Es geht darum, dass Gott uns alles gibt. Und darum, wie wir diesen Kreislauf des Gebens fortsetzen, indem wir teilen, was wir haben. Vielleicht fragen wir uns dieses Weihnachten, wie wir anderen unsere Zeit, unsere Ressourcen, unser Talent, unser offenes Ohr schenken können ... oder vielleicht nur eine kleine Geste, um den Menschen, die uns wichtig sind, zu sagen, dass sie mit ihren Problemen nicht allein sind. Eine Botschaft der Liebe.

Für mich geht es wirklich um diese drei Dinge. Glaube. Hoffnung. Und Liebe. Und ich glaube, dass dieses Weihnachten, wie jedes Weihnachten, bedeutsam werden kann, wenn wir zu Trägern des göttlichen Lichts werden ..., indem wir uns für den Glauben entscheiden, Hoffnung wagen und uns verpflichten, andere zu lieben ..., und sei es auf die kleinste Weise.

Mat 25,40 Und der König wird antworten und zu ihnen sagen: Wahrlich, ich sage euch, insofern ihr es einem der geringsten dieser meiner Brüder getan habt, habt ihr es mir getan.

The fact that Jesus lived on this earth and that he died by crucifixion is academically well established also by ancient sources outside of the Bible. There are historical evidences, dating back to just a little over 20 years after His death, which is much less time than the first biography of Alexander the Great, written about 400 years after his death!

What about the resurrection?

Perhaps the most remarkable reference to Jesus outside the Bible can be found in the writings of Josephus, a first century Jewish historian. In the “Testimonium Flavianum”, the relevant portion declares: About this time, there lived Jesus, a wise man, if indeed one ought to call him a man. For he ... wrought surprising feats.... He was the Christ. When Pilate ...condemned him to be crucified, those who had … come to love him did not give up their affection for him. On the third day he appeared ... restored to life ... And the tribe of Christians ... has ... not disappeared.[1]

Some of the greatest proof of the resurrection is the change that it brought to the people who followed Jesus for three and half years during His time on Earth until His death. Yet something made them keep believing in Him subsequently. Were there any eyewitnesses who saw Him being alive again?

Eyewitnesses

There are multiple early first century accounts in the documents that make up the New Testament with eyewitnesses such as:

Mary Magdalene: She turned around and saw Jesus standing there… Jesus said to her, ‘Mary!’ (Jn 20:14 & 16).

Peter: The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Peter (Simon Peter) (Lk 24:34).

Two Disciples on the Emmaus Road: And behold, two of them were going that very day to a village named Emmaus, which was about seven miles from Jerusalem. …And it happened while they were conversing and discussing, that Jesus himself approached them, and began traveling with them (Lk 24:13-16).

The Disciples (first without Thomas) On the evening of that first day of the week, the disciples were together. They had locked the doors because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders (who crucified Jesus). Suddenly Jesus came in and stood among them. He said, ‘May peace be with you!’ Then he showed them his hands and his side. Thomas, one of the 12 disciples, was not with the other disciples when Jesus came. (Jn. 20,19-24)

All of the Disciples: A week later, Jesus’ disciples were in the house again. Thomas was with them. Jesus came in and stood among them. He said, ‘May peace be with you!’ Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here. See my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.’ Thomas said to him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Then Jesus told him, ‘Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen me but still have believed.’ (Jn 20:26-28)

Seven Disciples at the Sea of Galilee: After this, Jesus appeared to his disciples again. It was by the Sea of Galilee. Simon Peter and Thomas were there together. Nathanael from Cana in Galilee and the sons of Zebedee were with them. So were two other disciples (Jn 21:1-2).

Over Five Hundred People: After that he was seen by over five hundred people at once, of whom the greater part are still alive (1. Cor. 15:6).

James (son of Joseph and Mary, brother of Jesus): Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles (1. Cor. 15:7).

How long was Jesus on Earth before He went to Heaven?

After his suffering and death, he appeared to them. In many ways he proved that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of 40 days. During that time he spoke about God’s kingdom (Acts 1:3).

Summary

These appearances convinced His disciples, beyond any doubt, that He had risen from the dead. And billions of Christians throughout the centuries have testified of personal encounters with Jesus and the power of prayer ever since.