Christmas: Gifts Of The Magi (Frankincense) Series

The Gifts of the Magi (Frankincense)

Scott Bayles, pastor

Blooming Grove Christian Church: 12/17/2017

If you’re just joining us, we’re using the three Sundays leading up to Christmas to talk about Christmas presents. No, we’re not taking turns reading our Christmas wish-lists. Rather, we’re taking a thoughtful look at the first Christmas presents ever given—the gifts of the Magi: gold, frankincense and myrrh.

As I mentioned last week, the best gifts take into consideration the uniqueness and individuality of the recipient. These kinds of gift often tell us something about the one receiving the gift. And similarly, some gifts are intended to send a message.

Once again, the contents of my stocking are a good example.

Let me preface this by saying that I hate having a beard. Beards are hot and itchy. Its uncomfortable. And it makes me feel old because I keep finding an inordinate number of white hairs in my beard. If it were up to me, I’d shave the thing off. But it’s not entirely up to me. My wife loves my beard and threatens to divorce me whenever I shave. So, this year on Saint Nicholas Day, in addition to the obligatory chocolates and candy, my lovely wife stuffed my stocking with a few interesting items: beard oil, beard cream, and a beard comb! On an unrelated matter, my stocking also included a bottle of Poo-pourri, a woodsy scented bathroom deodorizer. These gifts certainly send an unmistakable message, don’t they? They say, “You better take good care of that beard and, by the way, you stink!”

Similarly, I believe the first Christmas presents—the gifts of the Magi—send an unmistakable message about Jesus. The story of the Magi is told in Matthew 2. If you have a Bible or an app on your phone, open it there. Once again, we read:

“The star they had seen in the east guided them to Bethlehem. It went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were filled with joy! They entered the house and saw the child with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh” (Matthew 2:9-11 NLT).

As I mentioned last week, these three gifts were valuable items intended to convey honor and great standing upon the recipient. But beyond that, many scholars think that these three gifts were specifically chosen for their special spiritual symbolism. In other words, these gifts tell us something about Jesus. They send a meaningful message about the baby in the manger and the man he would become.

Last Sunday, we examined the gift of gold, which symbolizes the kingship of Jesus. The value and preciousness of gold is universally recognized. Gold was a treasure befitting royalty, albeit royalty in the home of a young, poor family. The Magi came in search of a king and when they found the Christ child they immediately bowed in reverence and worship, setting an example for all generations. The Magi’s message was clear: Jesus is the King of Kings!

The next gift the Magi presented to Jesus, however, is significantly less familiar to today’s Christmas shopper: Frankincense.

I’m reminded of three small boys who were in a Christmas play at church. They played the three wise men and were supposed to give their gifts to baby Jesus. The first boy stepped forward, held out the gift in his hands and said, “Gold.” The second boy stepped forward, held out his gift and said, “Myrrh.” The third boy stepped forward, held out his gift and said, “Frank sent this.”

We can’t really blame the kid. After all, what the heck is frankincense anyway? Well, Frankincense is the dried sap of trees in the Boswellia genus, particularly Boswellia sacra. These trees grow in Oman, Yemen and the Horn of Africa, including Somalia and Ethiopia. Frankincense producers wound the tree using a traditional chisel-like tool, after which a milky white sap leeches out of the hole, forming "tears." The first sap is not collected, and is thought to cleanse the wood of impurities. Once this dries, the hole is enlarged and deepened, after which sap comes out, dries, and is collected about two weeks later. This tapping process is repeated several times at several points throughout the year. After the stone-like gobs are gathered, they are put out to dry. The highest quality frankincense is silvery and clear. Because it was not native to Judea, obtaining frankincense from the east was costly.

While the production of frankincense underscores its value, the purpose of frankincense is even more revealing. Frankincense was a key ingredient in Jewish worship. In the Old Testament, God instructed the priests: “Take fragrant spices—gum resin, onycha and galbanum—and pure frankincense, all in equal amounts, and make a fragrant blend of incense, the work of a perfumer” (Exodus 30:34-35 NLT). This incense was then ceremonially burned in the Tabernacle, and later the Temple, twice a day, every day.