Gifts
Wise Men, 22 December 2024
23 12 24 Filed in: Sermons | The Glory of Christmas
Wise Men
The Glory of Christmas: The Skit Guys
Kirk Schneemann
College First Church of God
December 22, 2024
Matthew 2:1-12
Series Big Idea: The Glory of Christmas is all about Jesus.
Big Idea: Wise men—and women—still seek Him…and bring gifts to the King.
The King of kings came first as a lowly servant.
How do you approach the manger? One of my favorite Christmas cliches is that “wise men still seek Him.” Wise women do, too.
Last week we saw how the birth of Jesus the Messiah was announced to Jewish shepherds by an angel. Today we see the birth of Jesus the Messiah was announced to possibly Gentile Magi—or wise men—by a star. This is a big deal because Jesus the Jewish Messiah is also the Gentile Messiah. Us Gentiles have been grafted into God’s plan for humanity, and for that I am so grateful.
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem (Matthew 2:1)
There’s more to this sentence, but there’s plenty to dissect here first. Our scene takes place after Jesus was born, likely one or two years later. If you have a nativity scene with men carrying gifts, they should be placed far from the manger. One or two years away!
The second thing we see is this is during the time of King Herod, a very insecure leader as we will see in a minute. He ruled from 36 or 37 BCE until 1 or 4 BCE, depending upon your source.
Magi from the east are mentioned next. How many? We don’t know. Were they wise? Certainly educated. Were they kings? Not necessarily, though “We Three Kings” is a fun song to sing (and the first widely popular Christmas carol written in the USA back in 1857!).
What are their names? The Bible doesn’t say, but legend says they were called Melchior, Caspar, and Balthazar.
The east was likely Babylon or Persia, modern-day Iraq or Iran, though possibly as far away as India. We only know “from the east,” but their journey was between 500 and 1000 miles—by foot or camel—taking weeks or even months. These Magi are dedicated! Would you walk 500 miles…to meet Jesus?
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2 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.” (Matthew 2:1-2)
The Magi are in Jerusalem inquiring about the birth of the king of the Jews, one who even had his own star (then again, Jesus created everything!). Remember, no GPS, no cable news, they didn’t have radios or a printing press to obtain information, but they were astrologers who paid attention to the stars. They thought the stars delivered messages from the gods.
Jews believed in one God who created the universe, but these were probably Gentile Magi. God used a star this one time to convey a most important message to these men.
Are any of you sky gazers? One of the things I love about Findlay versus larger cities where I’ve lived is on a clear night, you can see more stars. The sky is magnificent! I confess I don’t know all the constellations, but I can find the Big Dipper! I remember my first trip to South America, gazing above and seeing an entirely different set of stars.
The Star Prophecy comes from the book of Numbers.
“I see him, but not now;
I behold him, but not near.
A star will come out of Jacob;
a scepter will rise out of Israel.
He will crush the foreheads of Moab,
the skulls of all the people of Sheth. (Numbers 24:17)
Remember, Jewish shepherds were led by an angel’s words. Now Gentile Magi are led by a star.
We really don’t know much about these wise men, but many theories exist. Some have suggested a link with the prophet Daniel hundreds of years earlier.
Then the king placed Daniel in a high position and lavished many gifts on him. He made him ruler over the entire province of Babylon and placed him in charge of all its wise men. (Daniel 2:48)
There are countless articles and videos about the wise men, but little in the Bible itself.
When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. (Matthew 2:3)
“A king is born? I’m the king,” Herod must’ve thought. It’s not like they had an election every four years! He’s not what we would call a nice guy, having murdered family members and eventually all baby boys two years and younger. Can you imagine?
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. (Matthew 2:4)
King Herod didn’t know the details, so he asked the Jewish leaders. What’s remarkable is how they apparently had no interest in traveling the six miles from Jerusalem to Bethlehem! It’s not enough to know about God. We need to pursue and worship Jesus!
“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.’” (Matthew 2:5-6)
This is a prophecy from Micah 5:2, one of hundreds that Jesus the Messiah fulfilled.
Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 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.” (Matthew 2:7-8)
Nice try, Herod! You want to worship this boy? Right!!! Herod was lying. He only wanted to know where Jesus was so he could end any rival to his dynasty by killing the boy king.
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. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. (Matthew 2:9-10)
This is no ordinary star. It moves. It guides them. Then it stops. It reminds me of the way God led the people of Israel through the wilderness for forty years, a cloud by day and fire by night. There are many scientific theories about this star, but it is my belief that it’s simply one of the many miraculous components Jesus’ birth and early years.
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. (Matthew 2:11)
The Magi came to the house, not the birthplace of Jesus. It’s interesting how Joseph’s not mentioned. Maybe he was out hunting for food or building a model spaceship for his son (maybe not!).
The Magi bow down and worship the boy. They bring him treasured gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. This is the only reference to “three” Magi, but there may have been two or twenty! Three looks nice on Christmas cards (again, this was one or two years after Jesus was born) and three is a common number in the Bible…but we don’t know!
We do know these three gifts were special and all connected to temple worship.
Gold is…gold (presently about $2500/ounce!) and the temple was covered in it.
Frankincense is resin from the Boswellia tree, used for cosmetic, medicinal, and religious purposes. It was burned in the temple twice a day for its aroma and was more valuable—by weight—than gold. The smoke of the burned frankincense represented the prayers of the saints ascending to God.
Myrrh is sap from the Commiphora tree, used for embalming, burial, medicinal, and cosmetic purposes.
These are extremely expensive gifts.
We don’t know for sure, but some have linked the Magi to a passage in the book of Isaiah that mentions kings, which is probably where the idea of “We Three Kings” originated.
Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn…Herds of camels will cover your land, young camels of Midian and Ephah. And all from Sheba will come, bearing gold and incense and proclaiming the praise of the LORD. (Isaiah 60:3, 6)
Again, we don’t know. What we do know is…
And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route. (Matthew 2:12)
God spoke to them in a dream…and they obeyed. Today, Epiphany or “Three Kings Day” is a Christian feast day commemorating the visit of the Magi to meet Jesus.
So What?
God orchestrated every detail of this story. Pagan Magi—seeking other gods—encountered the one true God. They delivered treasures that helped the holy family flee to Egypt while Herod massacred innocent boys.
Wise men—and women—still seek Him. These Magi traveled 1000+ miles round trip, proving their love for Jesus with their time, travel, and treasures.
What will you bring Jesus for His birthday?
The Glory of Christmas: The Skit Guys
Kirk Schneemann
College First Church of God
December 22, 2024
Matthew 2:1-12
Series Big Idea: The Glory of Christmas is all about Jesus.
Big Idea: Wise men—and women—still seek Him…and bring gifts to the King.
The King of kings came first as a lowly servant.
How do you approach the manger? One of my favorite Christmas cliches is that “wise men still seek Him.” Wise women do, too.
Last week we saw how the birth of Jesus the Messiah was announced to Jewish shepherds by an angel. Today we see the birth of Jesus the Messiah was announced to possibly Gentile Magi—or wise men—by a star. This is a big deal because Jesus the Jewish Messiah is also the Gentile Messiah. Us Gentiles have been grafted into God’s plan for humanity, and for that I am so grateful.
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem (Matthew 2:1)
There’s more to this sentence, but there’s plenty to dissect here first. Our scene takes place after Jesus was born, likely one or two years later. If you have a nativity scene with men carrying gifts, they should be placed far from the manger. One or two years away!
The second thing we see is this is during the time of King Herod, a very insecure leader as we will see in a minute. He ruled from 36 or 37 BCE until 1 or 4 BCE, depending upon your source.
Magi from the east are mentioned next. How many? We don’t know. Were they wise? Certainly educated. Were they kings? Not necessarily, though “We Three Kings” is a fun song to sing (and the first widely popular Christmas carol written in the USA back in 1857!).
What are their names? The Bible doesn’t say, but legend says they were called Melchior, Caspar, and Balthazar.
The east was likely Babylon or Persia, modern-day Iraq or Iran, though possibly as far away as India. We only know “from the east,” but their journey was between 500 and 1000 miles—by foot or camel—taking weeks or even months. These Magi are dedicated! Would you walk 500 miles…to meet Jesus?
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2 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.” (Matthew 2:1-2)
The Magi are in Jerusalem inquiring about the birth of the king of the Jews, one who even had his own star (then again, Jesus created everything!). Remember, no GPS, no cable news, they didn’t have radios or a printing press to obtain information, but they were astrologers who paid attention to the stars. They thought the stars delivered messages from the gods.
Jews believed in one God who created the universe, but these were probably Gentile Magi. God used a star this one time to convey a most important message to these men.
Are any of you sky gazers? One of the things I love about Findlay versus larger cities where I’ve lived is on a clear night, you can see more stars. The sky is magnificent! I confess I don’t know all the constellations, but I can find the Big Dipper! I remember my first trip to South America, gazing above and seeing an entirely different set of stars.
The Star Prophecy comes from the book of Numbers.
“I see him, but not now;
I behold him, but not near.
A star will come out of Jacob;
a scepter will rise out of Israel.
He will crush the foreheads of Moab,
the skulls of all the people of Sheth. (Numbers 24:17)
Remember, Jewish shepherds were led by an angel’s words. Now Gentile Magi are led by a star.
We really don’t know much about these wise men, but many theories exist. Some have suggested a link with the prophet Daniel hundreds of years earlier.
Then the king placed Daniel in a high position and lavished many gifts on him. He made him ruler over the entire province of Babylon and placed him in charge of all its wise men. (Daniel 2:48)
There are countless articles and videos about the wise men, but little in the Bible itself.
When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. (Matthew 2:3)
“A king is born? I’m the king,” Herod must’ve thought. It’s not like they had an election every four years! He’s not what we would call a nice guy, having murdered family members and eventually all baby boys two years and younger. Can you imagine?
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. (Matthew 2:4)
King Herod didn’t know the details, so he asked the Jewish leaders. What’s remarkable is how they apparently had no interest in traveling the six miles from Jerusalem to Bethlehem! It’s not enough to know about God. We need to pursue and worship Jesus!
“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.’” (Matthew 2:5-6)
This is a prophecy from Micah 5:2, one of hundreds that Jesus the Messiah fulfilled.
Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 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.” (Matthew 2:7-8)
Nice try, Herod! You want to worship this boy? Right!!! Herod was lying. He only wanted to know where Jesus was so he could end any rival to his dynasty by killing the boy king.
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. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. (Matthew 2:9-10)
This is no ordinary star. It moves. It guides them. Then it stops. It reminds me of the way God led the people of Israel through the wilderness for forty years, a cloud by day and fire by night. There are many scientific theories about this star, but it is my belief that it’s simply one of the many miraculous components Jesus’ birth and early years.
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. (Matthew 2:11)
The Magi came to the house, not the birthplace of Jesus. It’s interesting how Joseph’s not mentioned. Maybe he was out hunting for food or building a model spaceship for his son (maybe not!).
The Magi bow down and worship the boy. They bring him treasured gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. This is the only reference to “three” Magi, but there may have been two or twenty! Three looks nice on Christmas cards (again, this was one or two years after Jesus was born) and three is a common number in the Bible…but we don’t know!
We do know these three gifts were special and all connected to temple worship.
Gold is…gold (presently about $2500/ounce!) and the temple was covered in it.
Frankincense is resin from the Boswellia tree, used for cosmetic, medicinal, and religious purposes. It was burned in the temple twice a day for its aroma and was more valuable—by weight—than gold. The smoke of the burned frankincense represented the prayers of the saints ascending to God.
Myrrh is sap from the Commiphora tree, used for embalming, burial, medicinal, and cosmetic purposes.
These are extremely expensive gifts.
We don’t know for sure, but some have linked the Magi to a passage in the book of Isaiah that mentions kings, which is probably where the idea of “We Three Kings” originated.
Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn…Herds of camels will cover your land, young camels of Midian and Ephah. And all from Sheba will come, bearing gold and incense and proclaiming the praise of the LORD. (Isaiah 60:3, 6)
Again, we don’t know. What we do know is…
And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route. (Matthew 2:12)
God spoke to them in a dream…and they obeyed. Today, Epiphany or “Three Kings Day” is a Christian feast day commemorating the visit of the Magi to meet Jesus.
So What?
God orchestrated every detail of this story. Pagan Magi—seeking other gods—encountered the one true God. They delivered treasures that helped the holy family flee to Egypt while Herod massacred innocent boys.
Wise men—and women—still seek Him. These Magi traveled 1000+ miles round trip, proving their love for Jesus with their time, travel, and treasures.
What will you bring Jesus for His birthday?