Gifts for Jesus

Pastor Don Carpenter

Author, pastor and commentator Dr. Warren Wiersbe makes an interesting observation in noting that “The magi were seeking the King; Herod was opposing the King; and the Jewish priests were ignoring the King.” He makes further mention of the fact that the Jewish leaders were a mere five miles away from Jesus’ birth place yet they showed no interest or demonstrated any educated preparation for the evidence of Messiah. They knew the Scriptures and could cite by memory the words of the prophets and as they pointed others to the Saviour, they completely ignored the message and evidence themselves.

Tonight, Christmas Eve 2021, we are going to think about the Magi for a few minutes. The knew to look for the King. When they got there, they had the perfect gifts that reflect a perfect understanding of just who this little Baby Jesus really was.

Tonight I want to challenge you. You probably know the stories surrounding the season. Have you actually responded to the truth behind the stories? To have you, like the Magi, come to give personal gifts for Jesus because you fully know who He really is?

Matthew 2:1–11 KJV
Now when Jesus was born in Beth-lehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,

Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.

When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.

And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.

And they said unto him, In Beth-lehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet,

And thou Beth-lehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.

Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, inquired of them diligently what time the star appeared.

And he sent them to Beth-lehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also.

When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was.

When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.

And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.

So the wise men found their way to Bethlehem. We need not think that the star literally moved like a guide across the sky. There is poetry here, and we must not turn lovely poetry into crude and lifeless prose. But over Bethlehem the star was shining. There is a lovely legend which tells how the star, its work of guidance completed, fell into the well at Bethlehem, and that it is still there and can still be seen sometimes by those whose hearts are pure.

Later legends have been busy with the wise men. In the early days, tradition said that there were twelve of them. But now the tradition that there were three is almost universal. The New Testament does not say that there were three, but the idea that there were three no doubt arose from the threefold gift which they brought.

1 William Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, Third Ed., The New Daily Study Bible (Edinburgh: Saint Andrew Press, 2001), 36.

Wise Men Worshiped

Psalm 72:11 KJV
Yea, all kings shall fall down before him: All nations shall serve him.

Isaiah 60:6–7 KJV
The multitude of camels shall cover thee, The dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; All they from Sheba shall come: They shall bring gold and incense; And they shall shew forth the praises of the LORD.

All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, The rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee: They shall come up with acceptance on mine altar, And I will glorify the house of my glory.

Isaiah 9:6 KJV
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: And the government shall be upon his shoulder: And his name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Philippians 2:9–11 KJV
Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:

That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;

And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Gold – The Gift For A King

Luke 1:32–33 KJV
He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:

And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

Psalm 72:15 KJV
And he shall live, and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba: Prayer also shall be made for him continually; And daily shall he be praised.

So, Jesus was ‘the Man born to be King’. But he was to reign not by force but by love; and he was to rule over human hearts, not from a throne, but from a cross.

We do well to remember that Jesus Christ is King. We can never meet Jesus on equal terms. We must always meet him on terms of complete submission. Nelson, the great British admiral, always treated his vanquished opponents with the greatest kindness and courtesy. After one of his naval victories, the defeated admiral was brought aboard Nelson’s ?agship and on to Nelson’s quarterdeck. Knowing Nelson’s reputation for courtesy, and thinking to trade upon it, he advanced across the quarterdeck with hand outstretched as if he was advancing to shake hands with an equal. Nelson’s hand remained by his side. ‘Your sword ?rst,’ he said, ‘and then your hand.’ Before we can be friends with Christ, we must submit to Christ.

1 William Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, Third Ed., The New Daily Study Bible (Edinburgh: Saint Andrew Press, 2001), 37.

Pastor Adrian Rogers says this in his sermon about the Magi:

And, you see, when these wise men came to the Lord Jesus Christ and presented to Him gold, what they were saying is that He is a king. I believe that they had learned that the baby that would be born was a king. They learned it from the prophet Daniel. In Daniel chapter 9 and verse 25 Daniel had called the baby that would be born “Messiah the Prince.” (Daniel 9:25) And the word prince means “king, ruler, sovereign.” And when they brought gold, they said, “We recognize His sovereign dominion.”

Have you done that? Have you recognized His sovereign dominion? Isaiah chapter 9 and verse 7: “Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice henceforth even for ever.” (Isaiah 9:7) This child, this baby that we’re talking about, He is King of kings; He is Lord of lords. Now the question comes this Christmas: Will you offer to the Lord the submission that is due to Him? Because He is your king, it is not enough for you to tip your hat; you must bow your knee.

1 Adrian Rogers, “The Gifts of the Wise Men and Our Gifts to Jesus,” in Adrian Rogers Sermon Archive (Signal Hill, CA: Rogers Family Trust, 2017), Mt 2:1–12.

Frankincense – The Gift for a Priest

Exodus 30:8 KJV
And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even, he shall burn incense upon it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations.

Leviticus 16:12 KJV
And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the vail:

Frankincense. Frankincense is a white resin or gum. It is obtained from a tree by making incisions in the bark, and suffering the gum to flow out. It is highly odoriferous or fragrant when burned, and was therefore used in worship, where it was burned as a pleasant offering to God. See Ex. 30:8; Le. 16:12. It is found in the East Indies, but chiefly in Arabia; and hence it has been supposed probable that the wise men came from Arabia.1

1 Albert Barnes, Notes on the New Testament: Matthew & Mark, ed. Robert Frew (London: Blackie & Son, 1884–1885), 14.

Exodus 30:34–38 KJV
And the LORD said unto Moses, Take unto thee sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; these sweet spices with pure frankincense: of each shall there be a like weight:

And thou shalt make it a perfume, a confection after the art of the apothecary, tempered together, pure and holy:

And thou shalt beat some of it very small, and put of it before the testimony in the tabernacle of the congregation, where I will meet with thee: it shall be unto you most holy.

And as for the perfume which thou shalt make, ye shall not make to yourselves according to the composition thereof: it shall be unto thee holy for the LORD.

Whosoever shall make like unto that, to smell thereto, shall even be cut off from his people.

What is God saying? God is saying that frankincense is the base of this holy incense that is most holy. It is to be given to God. And that incense, as it would rise up out of the tabernacle in the Old Testament, and the temple, speaks of the prayers, the worship of the saints, that goes to Almighty God. What did these wise men recognize? Why were they indeed wise as they were wise? They brought gold, and they recognized His sovereign dominion. And then, they brought frankincense. They recognized His sinless deity: Jesus Christ is God of very God.1

1 Adrian Rogers, “The Gifts of the Wise Men and Our Gifts to Jesus,” in Adrian Rogers Sermon Archive (Signal Hill, CA: Rogers Family Trust, 2017), Mt 2:1–12.

1 Timothy 2:5 KJV
For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

Hebrews 4:15–16 KJV
For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.

Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

Hebrews 9:13–14 KJV
For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:

How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

Hebrews 9:24–28 KJV
For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:

Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others;

For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.

And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:

So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

Myrrh – A Gift For The Dying

Psalm 45:8 KJV
All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, Out of the ivory palaces, whereby they have made thee glad.

John 19:39 KJV
And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound weight.

Myrrh, a valued spice and perfume (Psalm 45:8), also came from trees and was used in embalming; thus, it was a gift for a person who was going to die (Mark 15:23; John 19:39). These gifts certainly would have provided the financial resources for Joseph and Mary’s trip to Egypt and back (2:13–23).1

1 Bruce B. Barton, Matthew, Life Application Bible Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1996), 29.

Jesus came into the world to die. Holman Hunt painted a famous picture of Jesus. It shows Jesus at the door of the carpenter’s shop in Nazareth. He is still only a boy and has come to the door to stretch his limbs, which have grown cramped over the bench. He stands there in the doorway with arms outstretched, and behind him, on the wall, the setting sun throws his shadow, and it is the shadow of a cross. In the background there stands Mary, and as she sees that shadow there is the fear of coming tragedy in her eyes.

Jesus came into the world to live for men and women, and, in the end, to die for them. He came to give for us his life and his death.

Gold for a king, frankincense for a priest, myrrh for one who was to die—these were the gifts of the wise men, and, even at the cradle of Christ, they foretold that he was to be the true king, the perfect high priest, and in the end the supreme Saviour of the world.1

1 William Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, Third Ed., The New Daily Study Bible (Edinburgh: Saint Andrew Press, 2001), 38.

Romans 5:8 KJV
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

2 Corinthians 5:21 KJV
For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

Romans 6:23 KJV
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

So have you let the reality of the Christmas story change your life? Jesus is the King of Kings! You owe Him your allegiance. Jesus is the great High Priest. He is your only way to God. Jesus is the Atoning Savior. Through His death we can live.

One Sunday morning, a Roman Catholic priest appeared before a congregation of a thousand persons in an Illinois town and said, “My people, I resign my priesthood, though I have been here thirty years.”

At their earnest request he gave his reasons why he did so: “Last night I spent every hour praising God. All sleep had left me. After reading the New Testament I saw that salvation is in Jesus Christ, and is the gift of God’s eternal love. Penance is not in it. Purgatory is not in it. Absolution is not in it. On my knees in my room I accepted the Gift, and I love the Giver. I walked the room most of the night saying to myself: “I accept the Gift, and I love the Giver.” ”

And thus for an hour and a half Father Chiniquy expounded to the people the grace of God. At the close of the sermon he asked how many of them would join with him in accepting the Gift and loving the Giver. Every man, woman, and child, except about forty, responded. And there is a Presbyterian church today.

—A. C. Dison1

1 Paul Lee Tan, Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations: Signs of the Times (Garland, TX: Bible Communications, Inc., 1996), 276.

Exported from Logos Bible Software, 6:34 PM December 21, 2021.