The Gifts Redeemed

By Ray Eichenberger

Celebrate the Christmas season with this novel which focuses on what may have happened to the three Wise Men and Jesus, Mary and Joseph after the Gospel narratives of the Nativity and the
birth of Christ. The work then dives into what may have occurred during the lost years of the youth of Jesus, as well as what may have happened to Joseph to cause him to disappear from the pages of the Gospels after Jesus was age 12. Entertaining, informative, and thought provoking, this book will provide you with a spiritual boost as you celebrate the Birth of Jesus this coming holiday season.

The Christmas story and the Gospels themselves are often silent as to major portions of the lives of Jesus, Joseph, Mary, and the three Wise Men after the Magi came to worship baby Jesus.

If you ever wondered just who the Wise Men were, and what their personalities were like, where Jesus spent his lost youth and early adulthood during the period of time not covered in the Bible, and what happened to Joseph after Jesus was age 12, this is the book for you.

The work is respectful and reverent in tone, while still answering some of the unknown facts of the Gospels in a fun and historically feasible manner.

The end of the story demonstrates the Gifts of the Magi redeemed, and how those gifts served as metaphors for the true mission of Jesus as He came to live with us on earth that first Christmas morning.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ray Eichenberger
• Release date: Oct 20, 2022
• ISBN: 9781005549282

Ray Eichenberger

Ray is a life-long Christian, having been raised in the Lutheran Church and then attending a Grace Brethren Church. Ray is a long time member of New Life Community Church in Gahanna, Ohio.A graduate of Miami University, Oxford, Ohio witha B. S. in Education and a B. A. in History, Ray also holds a Juris Doctor degree from Capital University Law School, Columbus, Ohio.Ray is a self-employed attorney, with a general civil practice, including trial work and probate and estate planning.An avid golfer, Ray has officiated high school football, basketball, baseball and fast pitch softball for over twenty (20) years. Ray also enjoys coaching youth sports and travel.

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THE GIFTS REDEEMED

Published by Ray Eichenberger at Smashwords

Copyright 2022, Red Foot Racing Stables, LLC

All Rights Assigned to: Red Foot Racing Stables, LLC

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Cover design by Joleene Naylor

Cover images used by permission of Canstock

Any Bible verses quoted herein are from the King James Version

Smashwords edition, License Notes:

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please visit Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author

To: Connie- my muse, and Kyle, Stephanie, Hallie, Cole, Leda, Austin and Ellie- May your best gifts be spiritual ones.

TO THE READER:

I begin this work in the aftermath of the 2021 Christmas holiday, while my mind and spirit still glow in the beauty and wonder of the Christmas story- a mindset I usually encounter during this time of the year.

I am an avid reader and studier of my Bible. One of the things that my reading points out to me is that there are very many unanswered questions in the Holy Book, especially about Jesus and His Family. For example, what happened to the gifts of the Magi at the conclusion of the Nativity story? And, a much larger one in my mind, where did Jesus spend the lost years of his adolescence and young adulthood? And, finally, what happened to Joseph, the earthly father of Jesus, as he is not mentioned at all in our Bible after the story in Luke of Jesus’ discourse with the priests and scribes when He went to the Temple at age twelve and stayed behind unbeknownst to his parents.

As I begin this work, it has become apparent to me that its progression requires Jesus to speak at several different times of my intended story. Since putting words into the mouth of my Lord and Savior is a very daunting and seemingly difficult task, please know that I begin writing with a type of angst as to how to do exactly that. In this particular tale, Jesus may be a man of few words.

Finally, please check out my author’s notes at the end of this work for some hopefully interesting background facts I used while I wrote, and for some insights into my thoughts.

I hope that you enjoy my very whimsical story of the three Magi, their gifts to our Lord, and what happened to those gifts.

* * * *

When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him, and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts: gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. Matthew 2: 11-12.

Forasmuch as ye know that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by the traditions of your father, But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. I Peter 1: 10-11.

* * * *

PROLOGUE

A rather stout man snored loudly as he laid in a tent in the Arabian desert, sleeping very soundly. He quite often dreamed, but his were the dreams of most men- daily activities, interactions with friends and family, and maybe reliving weird situations from the past.

But this night was to be different.

The sonorous sleeper found his mind drawn to the most unusual scene that he had ever encountered in one of his nighttime adventures. In his mind, he arose out of his sleep, grabbed a robe to cover himself, and left his tent to go into the darkness. There were no other lights in the sky, but a brilliant, multi-faceted white beam appeared in the heavens above him. The beam of light stood still, but as he moved forward, the dazzling object in the sky also inched forward along with him.

The dreaming dozer did this over and over, and each time the cache of light would move with him.

Suddenly, a booming voice rang out to him in the middle of his dream. The voice, of unknown origin, loudly told him, Follow the star- go where it leads you. Find my Son.

The man suddenly awoke, felt sweat dripping off of his body, and sat up with a dazed and startled expression on his face. He thought to himself, Such a quest should be interesting- legends say that brilliant stars portend the arrival of the birth of a great leader and prophet.

CHAPTER ONE

Three men sat on the peak of a sand dune in the cool of the Arabian night, and reclined silently, staring at the brilliance of the night time sky.

One of the men, Melkie, finally broke the long silence and said, The summer sky is alive with stars again tonight- there is much for us to see once more.

Baltie, the man to his right, nodded his head in agreement and said, Even in such brilliant of a display, it’s there yet again this evening, putting on a show for us.

Caspie, usually the quiet one of the lot, said, I looked at my notes and charts from past years. It’s definitely not a star. Look how big and full it is. My star map records for this time of year never mention anything like this ever appearing before.

The three men, fast friends, were wealthy beyond most men’s wildest dreams, and were sometimes called kings. Caspie came from India; Baltie came from Persia, and Melkie lived in Arabia. In reality, the three were astronomers, and sometimes astrologers, who studied the night time sky for spiritual signs and wonders. They each possessed wealth because of property rights passed down to them by their fathers and grandfathers. All three were followers of the one true God, unlike their neighbors and subjects who were pluralistic and worshipped many different Gods.

Melkie, a rather large man and usually the outspoken leader of the group, uncomfortably shifted his position but kept staring at the star as it glimmered and pulsated in the sky.

The always acerbic Baltie noticed his friend’s discomfort laying on the ground and said, Melkie, my brother, if you keep gaining weight, one of these days you are going to roll off this sand dune and we will never see you again- perpetual motion.

Caspie, the body build opposite of Melkie with a slender and light frame, chortled and said, And, I’m certainly not going to help clean the sand out of your many bodily crevices if we should even happen to find you after that occurs.

Baltie guffawed at the friendly humor, and Melkie gave him a sharp glare which the other two probably didn’t notice in the dark of the night.

Melkie crossly said, "Enough of your attempts at humor. I have been praying about this star. God told me in a dream last night that we should follow the blazing light in the sky and see where it will take us. We will search for a new King and a powerful Prophet- God somehow revealed that to me. I’m departing tomorrow- are you going to join me?

Baltie, never an intrepid soul and rather timid, softly replied, The star is in the western sky from us. Such a path will certainly take us into Roman territory. You know how much I loathe the Romans- they are pigs and violent infidels.

Melkie said, A little danger has never stopped you from traveling with us in the past, Baltie. If indeed this star is a sign from our God and a command to find its point of origin and the new King, He will guide us and protect us along the way.

Caspie said, The Romans may be violent infidels, but they are also rather stupid and ignorant fools. I will meet both of you at the outskirts of town, but in two days time. I’ll bring my servant to tend to our camels and to take care of our provisions for the trip.

The star glowed even brighter in the night sky, and still seemed to pulsate and increase in size as the three friends agreed to begin their journey.

CHAPTER TWO

Several months later, the caravan of the four men went up and down yet another sand dune, and Caspie complained from the rear of the row of travelers, "This camel is rubbing my legs and my posterior into screaming, red sores. How long is this trip going to go on?

Melkie gleefully replied, You two criticize my ever-increasing girth. At least I have plenty of padding to make my trip on this beast a little more comfortable and enjoyable.

Baltie chortled and said, I guess there are advantages to you becoming as fat as that heifer waiting in the field for me to return for our celebration feast at the end of this trek.

The trio usually travelled at night on their many trips together, to avoid the heat of the day, but this time also did so to be able to permit the star to guide them along their way. The star, now appearing to be like a multi-pointed flame in the sky, didn’t falter in the least, seemed to move ahead of them, and was taking them directly west towards what they knew was the Mediterranean Sea.

Melkie called back to Caspie, the acknowledged expert on stars and planets of the group, and said, "Caspie, what have you finally concluded this thing is that we are following? An alignment of many stars? A convergence of a planet or planets and several stars? I’ve