2018/12/23 A.M. The King's Gift

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The King’s Gifts

Matthew 2:1–12 NIV
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: “ ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’” Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.” After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose 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, frankincense and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.
Matthew 2:1-
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They worshiped The Christ as King.
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Matthew 2:11 NIV
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, frankincense and myrrh.

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Gold is the metal of Kings

Gold is the metal of Kings
The Right to rule
Gold is the king of metals.
When the wise men brought gold to the infant Jesus, they were being used by God to provide the funds necessary for Joseph to take the young child and his mother to Egypt to escape Herod’s attempt on Jesus’ life. However the gift is significant in itself. Jesus was a king, as the wise men knew and acknowledged

Incense the worship of God

Incense is a significant and symbolic gift.
It was used in the temple worship. It was mixed with the oil used to anoint the priests of Israel, and it was blended into the meal offerings that were presented to the priests by the people to be offered as thanksgiving and praise gifts to God.
Incense was never mixed with sin offerings, which were meat or wine offerings. Only the meal offerings, which were not for sin, contained incense.
The incense was offered to Jesus Christ who was without sin.
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Myrrh the gift of death

Myrrh was used in embalming making Myrrh an important item of commerce in the ancient world. For instance, for Jesus’ burial Nicodemus used one hundred pounds of myrrh and aloes to prepare the body.
myrrh was an important item of commerce in the ancient world. For instance, for Jesus’ burial Nicodemus used one hundred pounds of myrrh and aloes to prepare the body.
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Boice, J. M. (2001). The Gospel of Matthew (p. 32). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.
Not knowing the reason myrrh was given in God’s plan it was a gift of faith. “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from my cries of anguish?” (, NIV)
says, “Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.” Jesus came to suffer for our sin, and his suffering was symbolized by the Magi’s gift of myrrh.
Boice, J. M. (2001). The Gospel of Matthew (p. 32). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.
Just as gold spoke of Christ’s kingship and incense spoke of the perfection of his life, myrrh spoke of his death.
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Boice, J. M. (2001). The Gospel of Matthew (p. 32). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

The Wisdom of the Magi

Matthew 2:1–6 NIV
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: “ ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’”
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The Wisdom of the Magi

The Wisdom of the Magi

The wisdom of the three kings:

They were wise enough to seek Jesus:

The were informed
They prepared for the trip
They learned that Jesus birth was not a common topic of conversation. The wisemen didn’t talk to Herod first. They must have been asking everyone about Jesus and only came to Herod when he heard of their search.

They were wise enough to seek information

They were wise enough to learn from others.
In their own country, they were the ones who had the answers. Some would be hindered by pride. They learned from the Scriptures. Being nobility it would follow that they would look for a king in a palace or as a king of the Jews in Jerusalem.
They would have recognized that the teachers of the law had head knowledge but lacked the interest to worship Christ. They sent the Magi on their way but didn’t enough interest to join them.

They were wise enough to worship him when they found him.

Some people seek even though they do not want to find the truth and embrace it
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The Advent of Christ was anticipated by the world
Mary and joseph
The shepherds
The Wisemen

They followed

Why did the wisemen respond?
The uniqueness of the star (Shekinah) glory of God)

A Lesson from the Kings

The point of the King’s Gift is not to seek entertainment. The goal is to find Jesus like the wise men, to worship Him and to offer our gifts too.
Like the Wise men we are to seek information from God
Determine in your heart
If you already have found Jesus, give your offerings to Him. Commit once again to make him king of your life, to live a life that is a pleasing aroma, and to die to self and live for Christ.
John 3:16 NIV
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
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Gold is the metal of Kings
Incense the worship of God
Myrrh the gift of death
In OneNote: I did a key word search for gift

the gift of Christ is most certainly his greatest gift. For it is through Christ that we come to know God’s love and love God.

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“God (the greatest Lover) so loved (the greatest degree) the world (the greatest company), that he gave (the greatest act) his only begotten Son (the greatest gift), that whosoever (the greatest opportunity) believeth (the greatest simplicity) in him (the greatest attraction) should not perish (the greatest promise), but (the greatest difference) have (the greatest certainty) everlasting life (the greatest possession).

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We call them the wise men, or Magi. They came from the distant East, probably Persia, and they were so distinguished even by the worldly standards of that day that their arrival in Jerusalem caused a stir. “King Herod was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him” (v. 3).

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They came to Jerusalem asking, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him” (v. 2).

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It is likely, in view of their long journey and of Herod’s command that all children under two years of age be killed, that they arrived after Jesus had already become a young child.

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More than likely, however, the “star” was a miraculous phenomenon, possibly an appearance of the Shekinah glory that had accompanied the people of Israel in their desert wanderings, signifying God’s presence with them. Only something like the Shekinah could have led the wise men over the desert to Jerusalem, reappeared after their meeting with King Herod, guided them to Bethlehem, and then “stopped over the place where the child was” (v. 9), which is what the most straightforward reading of the story seems to indicate.1

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Gentiles came to worship the Jewish Messiah. He was also interested in the significance of the gifts they bore.

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This is probably true, but it is not as important as the significance of the gift itself. Jesus was a king, as the wise men knew and acknowledged (v. 2). He was the King of Kings. The wise men confessed his kingship when they presented their gift of gold.

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In presenting incense, the wise men, either intentionally or unintentionally, pointed to Christ as our great High Priest, the one whose entire life was pleasing to his Father.

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