CHRISTMAS GIFTS FOR JESUS Matthew 2:1-11
December 9, 2007 SUN a.m. Andres C. Guevara Jr.
Most household spent lot of money for Christmas gifts and the amount they spent expected to get higher and higher as the years past that resulted to spend the first six months of every year paying off the holiday debt from the previous year.
When it comes to Christmas gifts, there is One who is often left out. We will buy gifts for family and friends but forget about the One who is most deserving of a gift and that is the Lord Jesus.
If there is anyone who should receive a gift at Christmas it is the Lord Jesus. After all, Jesus is the reason for the season. Christmas is all about Jesus. Christmas is above all things a celebration of the birth of Christ. Again, if there is anyone who should be on our Christmas list it is the Lord Jesus.
The question is what would you give the Lord Jesus for Christmas? What kind of gift does He desire or deserve? I believe the story of the wise men gives us an idea of what kind of gift we can give Jesus at Christmas.
Most believe the wise men were from Persia. They are sometimes called the Magi. As Magi or wise men, they would have been skilled in philosophy, medicine, and natural science. They would have been greatly interested in astrology, thus the reason why they were so interested in the star that led them to the Christ- child.
As we look at these wise men we see them bringing gifts to present to the Lord Jesus. Verse 11 says “they presented unto him gifts.” I would like to suggest unto you that the gifts they brought symbolize the kind of gift you can give the Lord Jesus for Christmas.
Let’s look at the gifts of these wise men and let us know what the kind of gift or gifts we can give Jesus for
Christmas.
First, we read in verse 11 they presented unto him “gold.”
I- THE GIFT FOR A KING
Gold was the gift for a king. In Persia, where these wise men are commonly believed to have been from, it was a custom that no one could ever approach the king without a gift. And gold, the king of all metals, was a fitting gift for a king.
These wise men recognized that the child they presented gifts was a King. We read in verses 1-2, “Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.” They recognized Him as King.
A Recognition of His Kingship
The wise men recognized that Jesus was the “King of the Jews,” so there is a personal recognition that
Jesus is King of kings and Lord of Lords. Do you this Christmas season recognize that Jesus is King? Here are some bible passages that confirmed His Kingship and Lordship:
1. There was placed on His cross an inscription that read, “THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.”— Matthew 27:37
2. Nathanael said to Jesus, “Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.”
We read in John 12:13 that as He entered Jerusalem they, “Took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord.” – John 1:49
3. Paul declared in 1 Timothy 1:17, “Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.” He also said in 1 Timothy 6:15 that He is “the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords.”
4. Future scenes in which the Lord Jesus will be magnified and worshipped as King. We read, “And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints.”—Revelation 15:3. We also read, “These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings.”—Revelation 17:14
5. About the glorious hour when He will return to this earth, “And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.” –Revelation 19:16
Jesus is King of Kings and Lord of lords! Have you recognized His Kingship and Lordship?
B. Submission to His Kingship
Here are some reference about submission to His Kingship and Lordship:
1. Thomas bowed at His feet and said, “My Lord and my God” –John 20:28.
2. Each of us should bow at Jesus feet and confess Him Lord of our life, “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,..and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God.”— Philippians 2:10-11
3. In verses 5-6 of our text we see that the wise men informed Herod of the words of the Prophet Micah concerning the birth of the King of the Jews. We read, “And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.”
Underline the word “rule.” As a King He is a ruler. To accept His Lordship is to submit your life to His authority and rule. Charlemagne was crowned emperor of the Holy Empire on Christmas day. William the Conqueror was crowned king of England on Christmas day. Should not every Christian crown Jesus as the King and Lord of their life as a Christmas gift to Jesus?
Do you know my King? David said the Heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows His handiwork. He is the everlasting God. He is the Alpha and Omega. He is infinite. He is omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent God. He is the Creator and redeemer. He’s God Son. He’s the sinner’s Saviour. His grace is sufficient, His love never changes, His mercy is everlasting, His burden is light, His Word is enough, He is indescribable, incomprehensible, invincible and irresistible. He is the author and finisher of our faith. Everything is nothing without Him. That is my King. Do you know Him well?
Again in verse 11 the wise men also presented Him with “frankincense.” In this gift we see:
II- THE GIFT FOR A PRIEST
Frankincense was a gift for a priest. Frankincense was used in the Temple for worship and in the Temple sacrifices. Frankincense was the sweet perfume that rose up to God as a sweet-smelling savor. It is a symbol in the Bible of our prayers and worship ascending to God. It symbolizes the time we spend in fellowship with the Lord and the praise we offer to Him during that time.
In verse 2 the wise men told Herod that were “come to worship Him.” In verse 11 we read that “when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him.” What can we give to Jesus at Christmas? I submit unto you that worship would be an excellent gift
to give Him.
A The Lord is seeking the Gift of Worship
The Bible says in John 4:23, “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.” If there is a gift the Lord desires it is worship. He is seeking those who will spend time worshipping Him. The word “seeketh” speaks that the Lord wants us to worship Him.
What does it mean worship God?
A.W. Tozer said, “Worship is to feel in your heart and express in some appropriate manner a humbling sense of admiring awe and astonished wonder and overpowering love in the presence of that most ancient mystery, that majesty which philosophers call the First Cause, but which we call our Father which art in heaven.”
J. Oswald Sander’s said, “Worship is the loving ascription of praise to God for what He is in Himself and in His providential dealings. It is the bowing of our innermost spirit before Him in deepest humility and reverence. Worship is the adoring contemplation of God has He has been pleased to reveal Himself in His Son and in the Scriptures.”
Evelyn Underhill said, “Worship is the total adoring response of man to the one eternal God self revealed in time.”
Worship is responding to who God is and what He has done with a heart full of praise and thanksgiving. God seeks those who will praise Him for who He is and what He has done.
B) The Lord is suited for the Gift of Worship
A great example of worship is Hannah’s response to God answering her prayer for a son. When God gave her Samuel, we read in 1 Samuel 2:1-10 (READ) of Hannah’s prayer and praise to God:
In Hannah’s prayer she is occupied with who and what the Lord has done. Our God is great and glorious. Being Who He is, He deserves our worship.
I think of the beloved hymn How Great Thou Art. It expresses a soul occupied with the greatness, goodness, and grace of God:
O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder, Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made; I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed.
And when I think, that God, His Son not sparing; Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in;
That on the Cross, my burden gladly bearing, He bled and died to take away my sin.
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee, How great Thou art, How great Thou art.
Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee, How great Thou art, How great Thou art!
Turn with me to Psalm 8.
• We read in verse 1, “O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy
glory above the heavens.” The excellence of the name of the Lord is seen in how His glory is higher than the heavens.
• In verse 3 the Psalmist gives us one example of His greatness and glory. He says, “When I
consider thy
heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained.”
Example: He mentions the stars. Think with me about the stars for just a moment. If we take only a quintillion [that’s 1 with 18 zeroes after it] of the stars and simply count them from 0 to quintillion, one count per second, day and night, it would take 32 billion years. That is how long it will take to just "count" them; but God "created" them. Such is the greatness of God.
Example: We can appreciate the vastness of our universe if we imagine going on a space odyssey. When we leave the planet Earth towards the sun, at the speed of light, we reach the sun after 93 million and 8 minutes. It will take us more than 50,000 years at the speed of light to exit our galaxy.
We would have to spend more than 2 million years at the speed of light to reach our next-door galaxy. At least 10 billion years, at the speed of light, must be spent to reach the outer limit of our universe. From the outer limit of our universe, even the Milky Way is like a speck of dust in a large room.
• The Psalmist said in verse 4, “What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou
visitest him?” More amazing is that this great God would have an interest in someone like you and me. That God would love us, save us, and make us His children is more than one can comprehend.
Worship is an excellent gift to give to the One who is AMAZINGLY GREAT!
III. THE GIFT FOR THE SAVIOUR
Myrrh was used to embalm the bodies of the dead. What a strange gift to give to a new baby, but then, what a fitting gift to give to the Lord Jesus. Jesus was born that He might die. He died that we might have life—eternal life.
In this gift we are reminded that Jesus is:
A The Provided Savior
The angel said to Joseph in Matthew 1:21, “And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.” The reason Jesus came was to save sinners from their sins. That is the real message of Christmas. Jesus became one of us that He might die for us.
There are many names of Jesus that we hold dear and near to our heart:
(Rev 1:8) Alpha and Omega, (Psa 2:2) Anointed One ,(Acts 3:15) Author of Life,(Rev 22:16) Bright and Morning Star, (Matt 1:16) Christ, (2 Pet 1:19) Daystar, (Isa 9:6) Everlasting Father, (John 10:14) Good Shepherd, (John 8:58) I Am,(Rev 19:16) King of King, (John 1:29) Lamb of God, (Rev 5:5) Lion of Judah, (Rev 19:16) Lord of lords, (Isa 9:6) Mighty God, (Matt 2:23) Nazarene, (Isa 9:6) Prince of Peace, (John
1:38) Rabbi, (Isa 11:10) Root of Jesse, (Matt 15:22) Son of David, (Mark 1:1) Son of God, (Matt 8:20) Son of Man, (John 15:1) True Vine, (Isa 9:6) Wonderful, (John 1:1) Word
These are but a few of His precious and glorious names. Yet, the most precious and special name is
SAVIOR. Jesus is God’s provision for salvation.
B) The Personal Savior
He is not just a Savior. He is MY Savior. Can you say that He is your Savior? He is not just the Savior of the world. You can call him your own Savior. Don’t just call Him “Jesus” if you are not 100% sure when you die you will go to heaven, because the name Jesus means Savior. If you cannot call Him your Savior, then a great gift to give Him for Christmas is your heart. Come to Jesus this day and let Him become your own personal Savior.
Do you have Jesus on your Christmas list? Do you plan on giving Jesus anything for Christmas? How about gold (Submit to Him), or frankincense (spend time in prayer and be faithful with a right heart in worship) or myrrh (Be save today)? Any of these gifts would be an excellent way to say MERRY CHRISTMAS MY LORD JESUS!