Christmas Gifts: Gold

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

the Jews understood this to be speaking of the coming Messiah

They show up in Jerusalem and King Herod finds out and is troubled

another message for another Christmas

Herod lies to the wise men that he desires to go and worship Jesus too but secretly plans to kill Him

fortunately they were wise and were not fooled by Herod

Matthew 2:9–11 ESV

After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.

All 3 were given as acts of worship

symbolizing something specific about Jesus

Gold, Frankincense, & Myrrh

Last week we talked about Myrrh

symbolized the price that Jesus paid for you and me

and the hope of eternity that we can receive through a relationship with Jesus Christ

it is a symbol for us that Jesus is the Savior of the world

#BestGiftEver

Gold

is a sign of kingship and authority

thats why young men present a gold ring to young women for marriage

we love to think of our relationship with Christ in terms of Him saving us from our sins

and I want to encourage you to continue remembering the mercy and grace involved through Christ

BUT NOT AT THE EXPENSE OF US FORGETTING

that Jesus is also our King and Lord

He has full authority and dominion over us

The wise men knew that they were coming to see the king

came into Jerusalem

Matthew 2:2 ESV

saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

then they brought Jesus the gift of GOLD

Paul spoke of Jesus

Philippians 2:8–11 ESV

And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Phil 2:

so we see the servant and Savior side of Jesus

then we see that the Father exalts Jesus

where His Name is above every name

that’s why we don’t use the Lords Name in vain

because even His Name is exalted

people saying OMG so freely

but you can’t derail His power

just your relationship with Him

in v. 10

Philippians 2:10–11 ESV

so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

because He is King we will bow before His authority

who will?

those in heaven

on earth

under the earth — in hell

FROM THE LOWLY TO THE WEATHY AND POWERFUL

those who are wealthy and their servants

you and your neighbor and the people in the big cities of Japan and those living in a small African village

those alive in 2018, those who have gone on before us, and those who are yet to be born

It will be the same with confessing that Jesus is Lord

we can do it in this life

then rejoice in heaven over that for eternity

OR we can deny to do it in this life and profess Jesus as Lord at the time of judgement and regret that we did not place Him in His proper place during our short time on earth for all of eternity

WHY SUCH A DRASTIC CONTRAST?

Because His Lordship and authority are just as real as our need for Him being our Savior

WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE FOR JESUS TO BE LORD?

We don’t just believe in Him but we also trust HIM

sometimes we like to believe in the idea of Jesus

BUT we need to trust HIM

believe what He says like it is the only Word because it is

So by obedience to God we can tell God that He is Lord

LEARNING TO LOOK TO GOD FOR DIRECTION

when we look to God for direction and He gives direction that we obey or follow his direction for our lives

that’s why we preach the repentance of sin

that when we find sin in our lives that we will turn our obedience from selfish desires to that which pleases the Father

so we teach obedience to God’s ways

that a man should marry a woman

and woman to a man

that they should not live together or sleep together before marriage

they we should not look upon someone who is not married to us with lustful desires

use our lips for praise and building up

not to tear down

gossip

slander

lie or manipulate

that we are not only truthful in our business and lives

but generous with what God has given us

That we don’t give into addictions

or allow substances to take the place of God

by relying on them for peace or calming of our minds because Jesus can do that that for us

That we don’t just profess Christ in the church but in everything that we do and with all who we come in contact with

so even our FB posts

Friday nights

benefit is the Sanctification process that takes place when we do this

or that we will grow in our faith

where it will become more natural to

forgive others

build others up

love others

stand up for the Truth

James 4:7–10 ESV

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

James 4:

then we will begin to see that all things are created for Him

Colossians 1:15–20 NLT

Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see— such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together. Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything. For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.

Col 1:15-20

Colossians 1:15–16 ESV

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.

and that when we live our lives that we can do it for God and to exalt His name

so the wise men brought Gold to Jesus because they knew that He was King of kings and Lord of lords

maybe you need to do that this morning

come and recognize that HE HAS ALL AUTHORITY

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