CHRISTMAS GIFTS
Tomorrow's the big day! We'll be diving into the mountain of presents and ripping and tearing and experiencing our moments of glee. The idea of giving gifts on Christmas originated with the wise men presenting gifts to Jesus. Today we'll look at what those gifts were and what they represented and see how we can give those same gifts to Jesus today.
1) Christmas legends.
Last week I shared the history behind some of our Christmas traditions. I shared the pagan roots behind the Christmas tree, the Yule log and mistletoe. Then I shared the history of the real St. Nicholas and how that transitioned into Santa Claus.
I want to start out today by sharing the legends behind some other Christmas staples. Candy cane. The candy cane had its beginnings in the 1600s when a candy maker and choirmaster gave the candy to anxious children during services. At this time it was just a white peppermint stick. The cane as we know it didn't evolve for another 200 years when a candy maker in Indiana introduced the red stripes and cane shape. He wanted to make a candy that could be a witness during the holiday season.
The white represented the virgin birth and the sinless nature of Jesus. You'll notice some candy canes have thin red stripes along with the thicker red ones. The thinner stripes represented the scourging he endured while the thicker ones symbolized the blood he shed for our sins. The shape of the candy cane represents the shepherd's crook, symbolizing Jesus as the great shepherd. Turn it upside down and you have the letter "J" the first letter in Jesus.
Wreath. The Christian symbolism behind the wreath is: since the circle has no beginning and no end, it represents God's love for us, which has no beginning and no end. God loves us through thick and thin, regardless of what daily challenges we happen to be struggling through.
The holly branches have red berries and thorns. The thorns represent the crown of thorns Jesus wore while the berries represent the blood Jesus shed for us when he was crucified. Evergreens are used in the Christmas wreath and live through winter, which shows the strength of life. And the fact that that the evergreen stays green all year round represents the hope we all need to live as joyously as possible.
The last legend has the modern meaning of receiving gifts. Each line of the song The 12 days of Christmas starts with the person's true love giving a gift on successive days arriving at the total of 12 days. However, the original meaning of this song has a spiritual history behind it. This song had its origins as a teaching tool to instruct young people in the meaning and content of the Christian faith.
It was also known to be a coded song for the persecuted church to teach and sing spiritual principles without being detected. It's good to know this otherwise weird song will make more sense to you once you learn of its original meaning and intent. Each of the items in the song represents something of religious significance.
The "true love" represents God and the "me" who receives these presents is the Christian. The "partridge in a pear tree" was Jesus Christ who died on a tree as a gift from God. The "two turtle doves" were the Old and New Testaments the gift of God's word. The "three French hens" were faith, hope and love - the three gifts of the Spirit that abide (I Cor. 13).
The "four calling birds" were the four Gospels which sing the song of salvation through Jesus Christ. The "five golden rings" were the first five books of the Bible also called the "Books of Moses". The "six geese a-laying" were the six days of creation. The "seven swans a swimming" were the "seven gifts of the Holy Spirit". (I Cor. 12, Rom. 12, Eph. 4, I Pet. 4).
The "eight maids a milking" were the eight beatitudes (Matt. 5). The "nine ladies dancing" were nine fruits of the Holy Spirit. (Gal. 5). The "ten lords a-leaping" were the Ten Commandments. The "eleven pipers piping" were the 11 faithful disciples. The "twelve drummers drumming" were the 12 points of the Apostles' Creed.
So, the next time you hear "The 12 Days of Christmas", consider how this otherwise non-religious song had its origins in the Christian faith. Knowing the deeper meaning behind this song helps us to better appreciate all the wonderful gifts our "true love" gave to us.
2) Giving wise gifts to Jesus.
The wise men gave some special gifts to Jesus. Let's take a look at what they gave him and how we can spiritually give those gifts to Jesus today.
Matt. 2:9-11, "After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh."
Vs. 10-when they saw that the star had stopped they were overjoyed. They were overjoyed that their journey had come to an end and they would now see the Messiah. When we realize that our search for what will truly fulfill us is found in Christ we are overjoyed because we have finally found what we've been looking for.
Vs. 11-they gave Jesus three gifts. Let's look at their significance.
The gift of gold was a gift to honor Jesus' royalty as the King of kings. Gold has always been valued as the most precious commodity and was often presented to kings.
The gift of frankincense was a gift for Jesus as the priest. Hebrews says that Jesus is our great high priest who has sacrificed himself once for all. From Albert Barnes’ commentary: “It was a white resin or gum. It was highly fragrant when burned, and was, therefore, used in worship, where it was burned as a pleasant offering to God.”
Myrrh was a product of Arabia. It was used chiefly in embalming the dead, because it had the property of preserving them from decay. Since Myrrh was a burial and embalming ointment, this gift would’ve been presented in recognition of Jesus sacrificing his life.
These wise men knew who they were in the presence of. They knew Jesus was to be the great high priest for all people (including gentiles like them). They knew that he would be sacrificing his life to save mankind from their sins. These gifts were tokens of respect and homage paid to the new-born King.
Their demonstration of high regard for Jesus teaches us that we should do likewise. Wise men came from far away to worship Jesus. They bowed down in humility and reverence and presented their best gifts and offerings. Now it’s our turn. What will Jesus get from you this Christmas? What are you willing to lay before the king? It's only right that we give him our best: our hearts; our all.
The gift of gold. 1st Peter 1:7 talks about our faith being more precious than gold. If we treat our faith as a most precious commodity then we will cherish it and protect it and keep it pure. If we honor the king of kings then we will present ourselves as living sacrifices and seek to build on our foundation of faith with the most precious works. We will invest in the lives of others by sharing the gospel and discipling them and by serving the less fortunate ones. These are the precious stones and precious metals of the faith.
1st Cor. 3:10-15, "By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.
If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames."
This is about the investment we put into the kingdom. When we serve wholeheartedly we are constructing a solid and lasting building. However, if we just go through the motions or do as little as possible or have a poor attitude then our building will consist of wood, hay or straw. And we saw what the wolf did to the houses of wood and hay.
Those kinds of houses won't last; they won't pass the test of genuineness or effectiveness. We might come away saved but only by the skin of our teeth. I don't want to take those risks and I don't want to go into heaven without having built up any treasures there. So we need to be wise like the Magi and present Jesus with spiritual gold.
As far as the incense is concerned, we should be looking to how we worship him. In John 4 when Jesus was talking with the Samaritan woman by the well, she made a statement that allowed Jesus to teach her a lesson about what true worship is.
John 4:19-24, "“Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.” Jesus declared, “Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.
You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”
It's like Jesus was telling her, “You’re focused on the wrong thing. You’re concerned about where you worship more than what you worship.” People can be like that today. Some people are going to church thinking they are giving true worship but they are not worshiping in spirit and in truth. Instead they are just going through the motions. Their worship doesn’t extend outside of the church walls.
They’re worshipers but they are not true worshipers; the ones the Father seeks. They are worshiping a god of their own desires, a god of their own making.
Matt. 15:8-9, “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.” Their worship is in vain because it’s not spiritual; it’s superficial.
So if we're going to present a spiritual offering of incense then we will present Jesus with appropriate worship which is in spirit and in truth.
When it comes to offering Jesus a spiritual gift of myrrh, since it was used in burial, we're talking about giving him the present of dying to self. Luke 9:23, "Then he [Jesus] said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." The cross represents death. Jesus is asking us to put to death the old nature.
Myrrh was presented to Jesus to honor his sacrifice so we respond with sacrificing ourselves in the sense of putting to death the misdeeds of the flesh. Paul told us in Col. 3:5 to put to death whatever belongs to our earthly nature.
Paul said in Gal. 2:20 that he had been crucified in Christ and he no longer lived but that Christ lived in him. As a result he no longer lived for himself but for Christ, recognizing that he died for him. Since Christ died for him he would respond to his sacrifice by dying to self and walking in newness of life.
That's how we need to be. If we're wise like the wise men then we will give Jesus the best gift we could-ourselves. Since he gave us the gift of life we need to give him the gift of our lives in service to him. He deserves this gift.
3) The greatest gift.
Everyone looks forward to receiving Christmas presents. But when we understand that the greatest gifts are not the ones you buy at a store then we understand what the most valuable presents really are.
“Marjorie Tallcott was married and had one child during the Great Depression. The family managed to scrape their way through, but as Christmas approached one year Marjorie and her husband were disappointed that they would not be able to buy any presents.
A week before Christmas they explained to their six year old son, Pete, that there would be no store-bought presents this Christmas. “But I’ll tell you what we can do” said Pete’s father, “We can make pictures of the presents we’d like to give to each other.”
Marjorie and her husband set to work. Christmas Day arrived and the family rose to find their skimpy little tree made magnificent by the picture presents they had adorned it with. There was luxury beyond imagination in those pictures-a black limo and a red speedboat for Dad, a diamond bracelet and fur coat for mom, a camping tent and a swimming pool for Pete.
Then Pete pulled out his present, a crayon drawing of a man, a woman and a child with their arms around each other laughing. Under the picture was just one word: “US”. Years later Marjorie wrote that it was the most satisfying Christmas they ever had. It took a present-less Christmas to remind Marjorie and her family that the greatest gift we can ever offer is ourselves, our presence.
The Jews had been waiting hundreds of years for their Messiah to come. The greatest Christmas present came in the presence of Jesus. 2000 years later Jesus is still the greatest present. The greatest present Jesus gave us was eternal life. Rom. 6:23, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord." Jesus was born that we might become born again.
What's interesting is that Mary received the wonderful gift of being pregnant with Jesus. She had the Son of God living in her. Ladies, can you imagine the unbelievable blessing of being pregnant with Jesus?! Guess what? Spiritually, all those who are born again are pregnant with Jesus! That's right. We have the spirit of Jesus living inside us.
And, as Mary gave birth, presenting Jesus to the world, we too, are to "give birth" to Jesus in allowing him to come out of us to be a blessing to the world. We allow the spirit of Jesus to flow out of us in word and deed as we do his work and teach his words so that others can experience his presence through our example.
When Christmas time comes around we often come up with a detailed ‘wish list’. We have in mind the perfect gift we’d like to receive. The fact is we have already been given that perfect gift. It’s not only perfect; it’s indescribable. Paul said in 2nd Cor. 9:15, “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift.”
The world was given the indescribable gift of Jesus. We have been offered the unequaled and undeserved gift of eternal life through Jesus’ sacrifice. Jesus isn’t just the baby in a manger. He isn’t just the man on the cross. He’s the Creator. He’s the Savior. If we have Jesus, we have it all.
Many years ago, there was a very wealthy man who shared a passion for art collecting with his son. They had priceless works by Picasso and Van Gogh adorning the walls of their family estate. As winter approached, war engulfed the nation and the young man left to serve his country.
After only a few short weeks, his father received a telegram; his son had died. Distraught and lonely, the old man faced the upcoming Christmas holiday with anguish and sadness. The joy of the season had vanished with the death of his son.
On Christmas morning, a knock on the door awakened the depressed old man. As he walked to the door, the masterpieces of art on the walls only reminded him that his son was not coming home. As he opened the door he was greeted by a soldier with a large package in his hands. He said, “I was a friend of your son. I was the one he was rescuing when he died. May I come in for a few moments? I have something to show you.”
He mentioned that he was an artist and then gave the old man the package. The paper gave way to reveal a portrait of the man’s son. Though the world would never consider it the work of a master, the painting featured the young man’s face in striking detail.
Overcome with emotion, the man hung the portrait over the fireplace, pushing aside millions of dollars worth of art. His task completed, the old man sat in his chair and spent Christmas gazing at the gift he had been given. The painting of his son soon became his most prized possession, far eclipsing any interest in the pieces of art for which museums around the world clamored.
The following spring, the old man died. The art world waited with anticipation for the upcoming auction. According to the will of the old man, the art works would be auctioned on Christmas Day, the day he had received the greatest gift. The day soon arrived and art collectors from around the world gathered to bid on some of the world’s most spectacular paintings. Dreams would be fulfilled that day.
The auction began with a painting that was not on anyone’s museum list. It was the painting of the man’s son. The auctioneer asked for an opening bid, but the room was silent. “Who will open the bidding with $100?” No one spoke. Finally someone said, “Who cares about that painting. It’s just a picture of his son. Let’s move on to the good stuff.”
The auctioneer responded, “Sorry, but we have to sell this one first. Now, who will take the son?” Finally, a neighbor of the old man offered $10 dollars. “That’s all I have. I knew the boy, so I’d like to have it.” The auctioneer said, “Going once, going twice…gone.” The gavel fell. Cheers filled the room and someone exclaimed, “Now we can bid on the real treasures!”
The auctioneer looked at the room filled with people and announced that the auction was over. Everyone was stunned. Someone spoke up and said, “What do you mean, it’s over? There is millions of dollars worth of art here! What’s going on?” The auctioneer replied, “It’s very simple. According to the will of the Father, whoever takes the son gets it all.”
Some of us are like these art collectors when it comes to Christmas. We’re not looking for the Son; we’re looking for the "real treasures" like the new gaming system or computer. We’re looking for the jewelry or clothes. We’re looking for the gift cards or money.
But if we're only focused on looking for these types of gifts then we’d be overlooking the greatest gift of all. Unfortunately, the gift of Jesus goes unopened by many people. The question remains, "Who will take the Son?"
