(This is not an original sermon, ideas from I believe, Jason Dexter. I have expanded main points and updated for my particular style)
TITLE: OH CHRISTMAS THREE
SCRIPTURE: ST. MATTHEW 2:1-12
I am excited and ready to begin our Advent Journey together as we march toward Christmas Day, which is on Sunday this year. How exciting is that! Some have already asked “Are we having Worship Service on Christmas Day?” Of course we are. And I anticipate a high worship experience. As I am accustomed every year, I will begin with the many characters and events that took place leading to the birth of our Savior.
Each character witness spoke of a particular aspect of Jesus’ glory.
• ELIZABETH gave testimony that Jesus is the Lord
• THE SHEPHERDS reported the words of the angel that he is the Savior
• SIMEON bore witness that Jesus is the Christ
• ANNA, the prophetess, spoke of him as the Redeemer
• Today we come to the narrative of the wise men, who very clearly bear witness that Jesus is the King
Gifts are an important part of Christmas. They demonstrate how we Love - Care For - And Value Others. In part, the tradition of giving Christmas gifts goes back to the Wise Men. In the original Christmas narrative, they are best known for the gifts they brought to the baby Jesus, as they recognized who he was and why his birth mattered.
This narrative found in our text of the wise men is a narrative that is shrouded in mystery. From tradition we seem to know all the facts and details. But as we study the scripture, we find there are a lot of questions we cannot answer about the wise men from the Biblical text. For example –
• How many were there? - We don’t know
• Where did they come from? - We don’t know
• How long did their journey take? - We don’t know
They seem to just show up mysteriously – and just as mysteriously they are gone. But one thing I am certain about is the number of wise men and women increases in every generation as people continue to seek the Christ. VS. 1 tells us they were “MAGI FROM THE EAST.” Nothing else is said about their origin here. THE WORD USED FOR MAGI IS THE SAME GREEK WORD FROM WHICH WE GET THE WORD “MAGICIAN.”
• A similar group of people is mentioned in the book of Daniel
• They are the group of advisers to the kings of Babylon and Persia
• The king calls upon them to solve difficult Mysteries – Riddles - Dreams
• Daniel himself belonged to this group
• And he was admitted only after he studied for three years in their university
Let’s look at a few facts that we can learn from the narrative of the wise men as we begin our Advent Journey this morning. My First observation - A WISE MAN’S JOURNEY IS ONE OF FAITH. "WHERE IS HE WHO HAS BEEN BORN KING OF THE JEWS? FOR WE HAVE SEEN HIS STAR IN THE EAST.” What would prompt someone to leave the comfort of their homes to go on a dangerous journey?
• Romance? - Yes
• Wealth? - Most definitely
• But faith? Yes – Faith
“WHERE IS HE WHO HAS BEEN BORN THE KING OF THE JEWS?” What a probing question – there is no doubt in their language that He had been born – the question is “WHERE IS HE?” They had seen the star – the evidence was real – now where is He? They had faith that He was alive – that He existed – now all they needed to do was to find Him. Their purpose was established – find him.
• So they were willing to risk everything to find Him
• They were willing to leave the safety of their homes – to risk a pearliest journey to seek a King
Can you imagine their neighbor’s reaction?
• Are you going on a journey? - Yes
• Where are you going? -- We don’t know for sure
• How far is it? -- Well we don’t know that either
• How long are you going to be gone? -- Well were not quite sure on that either
• Boy for wise men you guys sure don’t know much, do you?
But you know the same thing must have been said to ABRAHAM when he left his home for the Promised Land. They must have said the same things to NOAH who was building an ark – even though it had never rained in the history of the earth up till that point. They must have said the same kind of things to PETER, ANDREW, JOHN and JAMES when they left the fishing nets to become Fishers of Men.
• What are you crazy?
• Are you insane?
• Are you out of your minds?
• No not crazy – not insane – not out of their minds
• Men of Faith
God’s journeys always involve faith. HEBREWS 11:6 “BUT WITHOUT FAITH IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO PLEASE HIM, FOR HE WHO COMES TO GOD MUST BELIEVE THAT HE IS, AND THAT HE IS A REWARDER OF THOSE WHO DILIGENTLY SEEK HIM.” It’s impossible to please God apart from faith. And why? Because anyone who wants to approach God must believe both that He exists and that He cares enough to respond to those who seek Him. Christianity is a Faith Walk.
The wise men didn’t have a lot of information in front of them. Though there was evidence in Scripture and the star itself, there was no 100% proof that they would find the King they were looking for. but they believed. We see evidence of this in their journey and also in VS. 2 when they ask Herod “WHERE IS HE WHO HAS BEEN BORN KING OF THE JEWS? FOR WE SAW HIS STAR IN THE EAST AND HAVE COME TO WORSHIP HIM.”
• They believed that Jesus is the King of Jews and that this star would lead them to Him
• They were not the only ones to see the star, but most people ignored it while they took action
• They had faith that it was a sign from God announcing the birth of Christ
• They seemed to know some of the Scriptures and what the prophets had said about him and believed
This belief led to action.
• They were willing to sacrifice comfort and security to see and worship him
• They were willing to face the ridicule of their friends
• They were willing to leave their homes, their places of comfort
• It would seem they were also willing to forego their means of making money for this period of time
• Not only were they not paid, but they brought expensive gifts with them
• Why? - Because of Faith
The Second Point I want to make is -- A WISE MAN’S JOURNEY IS ONE OF WORSHIP.
When the wise men came on their journey it was for one purpose - the purpose of worship. They brought with them gifts of Gold - Frankincense - Myrrh. These gifts have a lot of symbolism associated with them.
• GOLD represents wealth
• It is a gift fit for a king - Jesus is the King of Kings
• FRANKINCENSE is the sap of a tree that was dried and hardened and used as incense to worship God
• Thus we see a gift for his Deity - Jesus is the Son of God
• MYRRH is a fragrant perfume that was used to anoint the dead – to embalm and preserve them - Jesus is The Sacrificial Lamb
But there is more to worship then Gold, Frankincense, or Myrrh.
• Worship always involves Sacrifice
• Was there a price to be paid for the wise men’s worship?
• They had given themselves to a journey
Travel in those days was not very comfortable – in fact it could be downright dangerous. The wise men had sacrificed their own comfort to find the king and worship Him. Listen to what DAVID said about sacrifice -
II SAMUEL 24:24 “I WILL NOT OFFER TO THE LORD MY GOD BURNT OFFERINGS THAT COST [ME] NOTHING.”
ROMANS 12:1 says it this way --
"I BESEECH YOU THEREFORE, BRETHREN, BY THE MERCIES OF GOD, THAT YOU PRESENT YOUR BODIES A LIVING SACRIFICE, HOLY, ACCEPTABLE TO GOD, WHICH IS YOUR REASONABLE SERVICE."
Yes, their journey was a journey of Worship. VS. 11 says, “AFTER COMING INTO THE HOUSE THEY SAW THE CHILD WITH MARY HIS MOTHER; AND THEY FELL TO THE GROUND AND WORSHIPED HIM. THEN, OPENING THEIR TREASURES, THEY PRESENTED TO HIM GIFTS OF GOLD, FRANKINCENSE, AND MYRRH.”
• After a long journey, they finally arrived
• Their action was very simple
• They fell to the ground and worshiped
What a great response! Jesus, the God-Man deserved their worship. PHILIPPIANS 2:10 says that “ONE DAY EVERY KNEE WILL BOW AT THE NAME OF JESUS.”
• The wise men were the very first in recorded history who ever did so
• No one told them to
• No one made them
• They chose to worship him
• They would be the first of many
To truly worship requires sacrifice. The greatest gift – the greatest sacrifice – you can give to God is yourself. You say but I have given nothing to Him today. I say yes you have! Even today you have given Him something of yourself. you have given him your time by being here. You prepared for a journey this morning by getting up and getting dressed and ready to seek a King. You got into your cars – used your gas and came to church. Some of you when the offering plate came around put money into the plate to help pay kingdom expenses of maintaining the church building – heat, water, electricity all have to be paid for. When you put your offering into the plate you helped support God’s program – which includes purchasing Sunday School material – purchasing Office Supplies - Ensuring Campus Insurance is paid– and paying the staff salaries – just to mention a few.
When you came today you came as a living sacrifice – even though you may not view it as that – even though you may not have realized it. The efforts you make to worship God is your sacrifice to him. But here is a fact I want you all to remember today --
• What God wants most of all – above everything else is YOU and ME
• He wants your heart
• He wants your attention – 24/7
• The question to ask is –
o What am I willing to give Him?
o Am I willing to give Him my best?
o Am I willing to go on a spiritual journey to worship Him?
o Am I willing to give up my comfort zone to follow Christ?
o The wise men were – are you?
I need to just pause and footnote for a moment - the inner essence of worship is to know God truly and then respond from the heart to that knowledge by
• Valuing God
• Treasuring God
• Prizing God
• Enjoying God
• Being satisfied with God above all earthly things
• And then that deep, restful, joyful satisfaction in God overflows in demonstrable acts of praise from the lips and demonstrable acts of love in serving others for the sake of Christ
My Third and Final Point I want to make this is morning is -- A WISE MAN’S JOURNEY IS ONE OF CHANGE. Look at VS. 12 with me -- "THEN, BEING DIVINELY WARNED IN A DREAM THAT THEY SHOULD NOT RETURN TO HEROD, THEY DEPARTED FOR THEIR OWN COUNTRY ANOTHER WAY." Isn’t it interesting after they worshiped Jesus they could not go back the same way that they had come?
• I find that to be a fact even today
• Once you have met God you will never be the same
• An encounter with God changes things – it changes you
It’s always been that way.
• JACOB wrestled with God and never walked the same the rest of his life
• ISAIAH stepped into the presence of God and proclaimed “WOE IS ME, FOR I AM UNDONE! BECAUSE I AM A MAN OF UNCLEAN LIPS, AND I DWELL IN THE MIDST OF A PEOPLE OF UNCLEAN LIPS; FOR MY EYES HAVE SEEN THE KING, THE LORD OF HOSTS." Isaiah 6:5
• He was never the same again
• JOB questions God over and over again concerning his suffering and when God shows up Job says -- "I’M SPEECHLESS, IN AWE—WORDS FAIL ME. I SHOULD NEVER HAVE OPENED MY MOUTH! I’VE TALKED TOO MUCH, WAY TOO MUCH. I’M READY TO CLOSE MY MOUTH AND LISTEN" Job 40:4-5
• Job met God and became a changed man
The fact that they “WENT HOME BY ANOTHER WAY” signifies to me they were profoundly changed. Whatever they believed or revered, whatever philosophies they had possessed – all was transformed by seeking Jesus. And, by humbling themselves in His presence.
• This is a picture of wise leadership
• God can use men and women who respond likewise
• When we seek Jesus, humble ourselves in His presence, and drink in all the joy and beauty of who He is, He can use us
That is what happens when we walk into the presence of God. We become changed. That is what happened to the wise men when they encountered Christ – they were changed. Gifts communicate how much a person matters to us. To give sacrificially takes us beyond mere lip-service to express an allegiance that cost us something. Of course, Jesus doesn’t need anything from us. But as King, we can give him our obedience and service.
• As our High Priest and God, we can bring him our worship
• The myrrh, by contrast, represents his gift to us
• He freely gave his life, as an act of pure mercy, to make us right with God
• In response, our greatest gift to him is to live for him
• To be changed and bettered because we have encountered Christ
--Jesus changes everything in us – things become different
--It’s Advent Season and we hear the narrative of the wisemen
--They were wise because they had faith
--They were wise because they worshiped, and they were changed forever – all because of a child
--How about you?
--Are you looking for a change in your life?
--Find Christ this Advent and Christmas Season and I can guarantee that you will be changed
--Things will be different
--Step out in faith and seek Him as the wisemen did
