Today is the celebration of the Feast of Epiphany in the Western Church, that day when the Magi from the East (aka. 'wise men') are to have finally found the infant Jesus. Writing on the events surrounding the journey and visit of the Magi, C.F.W. Walther writes:
God chose to lead the Wise Men to Bethlehem, not exclusively by the star, but also via a detour. The Jewish king, with his chief priests and scribes, first had to show them from God's Word that Bethlehem was the place where Christ could be found. We cannot imagine that the all-wise God would have done this without a most important reason. God wanted to show all future generations that He did not lead the Gentiles to His dear Son by miracles, by stars, by angels, or by some other extraordinary heavenly appearance. Instead, He directed them by means of men, His already existing church.
(fromGod Grant It: Daily Devotions from C.F.W. Walther, pp. 99-100)
I would only add to these words the observation that God not only lead the Magi to Christ by the means of his church but by the means of his word. Though these seemingly ordinary means tend to be marginalized or slighted in favor of the miraculous means to which Walther refers, and though God certainly can use the miraculous to draw others to Himself, we must recognize that the Word of God (sacramental, preached, and otherwise shared) proclaimed by the people of God (ordained and laity) has been and continues to be the usual means by which God leads us to Christ. Let us not forsake the simplicity of the means of grace for the sake of novelty or entertainment!
(Update: Rev. Cwirla has just posted an excellent piece on Epiphany here)