Your Daily Devotional for December 23, 2007

 

December 23,  2007

 

 

Christmas Gifts to Jesus

by Dr. Paul Chappell

 

 

"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 greatly 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."

 

Matthew 2:9–11

 

 

Every year our church has a special time when we gather together and offer Christmas gifts to Jesus. I think it is important for our families to realize whose birthday we are truly celebrating.

 

Many years ago I read a poem written about Mary and how she would have felt about all of the commercialism we call Christmas. In this poem Mary is expressing her recent dream to Joseph. She sees a beautifully decorated house, new clothes, a brightly lit tree, and dozens of elaborate gifts. A family is laughing and smiling; they are so excited about the gifts. Mary was sad when she realized the gifts were for each other—not for her Son. How odd it seemed for people to celebrate the birthday of someone they didn't even know.

 

In this Scripture passage we read about the wise men's birthday gifts to baby Jesus. They did not overlook the celebration of His birth. The Bible says they gave Him gifts of "gold, frankincense, and myrrh." Most importantly they were giving Him the gift of worship and adoration. Giving was their way of ascribing worth to Christ the Messiah.

 

The wise men honored Jesus as the King of Kings by giving Him gold, as Priest by giving Him frankincense, and as Prophet by giving Him myrrh. All of these gifts are of great value and are associated with wealth and royalty. The wise men recognized who Jesus was—the Lord and Saviour of the world.

 

Luke 16:13 says, "No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon." Our wealth or possessions are so intimately related to ourselves that we cannot give an offering without giving ourselves. In essence, the wise men were recognizing their need for a Saviour over their need for money or material possessions. They were saying, "We choose to serve God over money."

 

Many people today are so materialistic that they think money diminishes one's need for God. Therefore, Christ's birthday will not even be celebrated this Christmas. Just as the wise men recognized Christ's birth, we should remember the true meaning of Christmas. In the next few weeks, let's be thinking about the wise men's gift of worship. Shouldn't we take time to give Christ our worship this holiday season?

 

Daily Bible Reading

Nahum • Revelation 14

---

================================================
THIS IS AN AUTOMATED MESSAGE PLEASE DO NOT REPLY
================================================
Manage your online subscriptions at
http://www.dailyintheword.org/email/user-login.aspx

To Unsubscribe from this list please follow this link
http://www.dailyintheword.org/email/user-unsubscribe.aspx?s=4159&l=1