When you buy things, how carefully do you look at the packaging?

A large-scale investigation by the Consumer Policy Research Centre…

has found that…

in many cases…

the use of terms like “sustainable”, “green”, “environmentally friendly”, or even “recyclable”…

especially in combination with certain images…

and colours—

like that natural-looking, neutral, beige-brown—

may be misleading.

For example, in its advertising, one cosmetic company had the words “sustainable packaging” alongside images of its product.

But, upon investigation, the “sustainable packaging” referred to the materials used to ship the packaged product…

not the packaged product itself.

Or, a certain food producer claimed that its packaging was made from recycled ocean plastic.

But, in reality, it was made from plastics collected from coastal areas in Malaysia…

not from the ocean itself.

In many cases… 

it seems…

advertisers are giving the impression that something is more environmentally friendly than it actually is.

 

But, ultimately, that’s what advertising does… 

doesn’t it?

It tries to convince us that one product is better than another;

or that we really need what it is they’re trying to sell us.

Of course, the more outlandish the claims, the more sceptical we are.

But the more that there’s a ring of truth to it—

and the more that we hear it—

the more that we seem to take it at face value.

But there are probably times when we take it on board—

when we buy the hype—

without really thinking or investigating.

Because, in a way, that’s human nature.

So often, we see what we want to see;

we hear what we want to hear;

we believe what we want or need to be true;

we imagine what we want to see happen.

And, so often, we make unwarranted assumptions—

or we simply take things at face value—

because of our past experience or our conditioning.

So often, we only see and hear what we want to…

or only what our traditions…

our culture…

and our upbringing…

allow us to see.

 

And we see that clearly in our reading from Matthew’s Gospel this morning.

It’s the story of a group of foreigners—

we don’t know how many of them there were.

The author casts them as Magi.

Despite how they have often been portrayed, they certainly weren’t kings;

and the term “wise men” doesn’t really fit either.

Historically speaking, the Magi were Zoroastrian priests from the Persian court.

They were astrologers­— 

not astronomers—

regarded by most first-century people as magicians or wizards.

And, although the Magi served the Persian kings…

they were also treated with some suspicion…

given their claims to supernatural knowledge and power…

and their penchant for predictions that threatened royal power.

Which, effectively, is what happens here—

naïvely or subversively arriving in the capital of Palestine… 

and in Herod’s palace—

when they announce the birth of a new king…

because they had seen a “new” star.

As I have said before… 

such phenomena were believed to accompany the birth of great rulers and leaders—

men like Alexander the Great or the Emperor Augustus.

So, in Matthew’s story…

when those astrologers saw that big, bright, new star, that’s what they would have thought.

And, supposedly, that’s what would have led them to set out…

on a journey of more than two thousand kilometres…

lasting many months…

through dangerous and inhospitable land. 

And, having followed that star to Palestine, they made their way to Jerusalem… 

assuming that such a great leader would have to be born in the capital city.

And they went and asked King Herod…

whom, they naturally assumed, would be in the know…

because it was most likely that he would be the father.

And it’s only after speaking to Herod—

who consulted the priests and scribes—

that they learn they should have gone to the sleepy, little backwater of Bethlehem;

where, it turns out, the star was pointing all along.

But they failed to recognise that at first…

because of their expectations and assumptions.

Yes… 

it was because of their expectations and assumptions that they saw the star in the first place;

they thought they understood its significance;

and they embarked on their quest.

But their expectations and assumptions also led them astray.

And, in the end, despite the lengths that they went to… there’s nothing in Matthew’s story to suggest that they really understand what was going on. 

There’s nothing to suggest that they recognise Jesus for who he was.

Once again, they saw only what they wanted to see;

or, they saw only what their culture…

their experience…

their beliefs…

and their expectations…

allowed them to see. 

And, as a result, they didn’t actually perceive that God was there…

in their midst.

 

On the other hand, we have the people of Jerusalem.

Who, it seems, didn’t even notice that big, bright, new star…

right over their heads.

It’s only when the foreign astrologers arrive…

pointing it out and offering an explanation…

that they react.

And their reaction is curious.

As the author crafts it, they’re afraid.

But more than that—

the original Greek suggests that they’re deeply shocked…

disturbed…

or even agitated.

Why?

Because they’re busy going about their everyday lives—

raising their families;

running their businesses;

having dinner with their friends;

going to the Temple and the synagogues—

and they simply didn’t expect that anything special;

that anything different;

that anything unusual…

would ever happen.

Like the foreign astrologers…

they only saw what their experience…

their beliefs…

and their expectations…

allowed them to see;

or not to see.

And when they did see—

when they did understand its significance—

they were deeply shocked and afraid…

because they realised that something huge was taking place.

They realised that the world as they knew it was going to change…

and that they were going to have to change with it.

They didn’t see the star because they didn’t expect anything to change.

They didn’t expect God to do anything.

They just expected to go about their lives as they always had.

Or, in a sense…

deep down…

they didn’t really want things to change.

 

So Matthew’s story is a timely reminder… 

that God often catches us by surprise…

and that God frequently confounds our expectations.

We don’t always recognise God’s presence among us.

We don’t always perceive what God is doing.

We don’t always see where God is leading us.

And, to be honest, we don’t always like what God does—

it can be frightening or unsettling—

because it can disturb our ordered world and our comfortable lives.

 

But, in the end… 

the message of Matthew’s story is… 

that if we don’t see beyond our experiences…

our memories…

our expectations…

and our habits…

then we’ll miss out on discovering where God is to be found and worshipped.