The Gift is a King
Notes
Transcript
ME:
ME:
Good morning and Merry Christmas!
Has anyone already opened gifts this morning?
Well, I have this gift for our time in God’s Word this morning.
Is there anyone who would be willing to help me open this gift?
Great thank you!
What is in there?
A crown, that’s right!
And who wears a crown?
A king!
That is because this morning,
We are looking at Matthew 2:1-12,
Where we see that the Gift is a King!
As we go through this story this morning,
I am going to need lots of help!
Every time you hear me say the word “gift”
I want you to shout out:
“The gift is a King!”
Let’s give it a try.
This morning we are talking about a gift...
“The gift is a King!”
Great!
But I need more help than that.
Slide
For example,
It says Matthew 2 begins right after Jesus was born.
So, that means we are celebrating Jesus’ birthday!
And what do we do when we celebrate someone’s birthday?
We sing them happy birthday!
So, let’s sing Happy Birthday to Jesus this morning!
Join me!
“Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday to you!
Happy birthday dear Jesus!
Happy birthday to you!”
Awesome job!
Slide
After Jesus was born,
Vs. 2 says the wise men came looking for Jesus because they saw a star.
Look around the room,
Do you see a star anywhere in here?
Point it out if you see it.
Right! There it is!
Slide
Remember this:
The star shows where to find the King.
This will come in handy a little bit later this morning.
Vs. 2 says the wise men were not just looking for any king.
They were looking for the King of the Jews.
Slide
They were looking for the gift...
“The gift is a King!”
Slide
But even though the king of the Jews has been born,
Vs. 3 says there is another king in Jerusalem,
King Herod.
And what emotion do you think Herod felt when he heard this?
Slide
That’s right, vs. 3 says he was troubled,
Which means he was distressed, anxious, or upset!
And when the king is troubled,
What happens to everyone else?
That’s right,
They are troubled with him.
Slide
So, in vs. 4,
The king gets the leaders and the librarians of the Jews together to figure out where this new King was born.
Remember from earlier,
How do we find the king?
Point to it.
That’s right!
The star shows where to find the king!
The star rested over the exact place to find the King in a specific town.
But how did they know which town they would need to go to?
Slide
Because the leaders and librarians looked back in one of their old library books called Micah,
Which is a book that predicts things about this King.
In vs. 6, they quote this book called Micah, saying:
From Bethlehem shall come a ruler,
A King,
Who will shepherd the Jews.
So, if the star shows where to find the king.
Then what town is the star resting above?
Bethlehem!
That is right,
Slide
It is the little town of Bethlehem where they would find the gift...
“The gift is a King!”
Slide
So, in vs. 8, Herod sends the wise men to Bethlehem to search for Jesus.
But why did Herod say he wanted to find this King?
So, that he could worship the King!
But how did Herod feel about this King earlier?
That is right, he was troubled by this gift...
“The gift is a King!”
So, if he was so upset about the birth of this King,
Do you think he really wanted to worship the King?
No!
Later in the chapter,
It says that Herod did not want to worship the King,
He wanted to kill the King.
Slide
But here in vs. 9,
The wise men did not know Herod wanted to kill the newborn King.
So, they listened to king Herod,
And they went looking for the gift...
“The gift is a King!”
Slide
But how did they know where to find the King?
Point to it!
That’s right,
The star shows where to find the king.
It says the star rested over the place where the child was.
Slide
And how did the wise men feel when they saw this?
That is right!
Vs. 10 says they were exceedingly joyful!
And in vs. 11,
It says they gave their gifts to the gift...
“The gift is a King!”
They gave Jesus items worthy of a king!
And they fell down to worship the King.
WE:
WE:
Now, Jesus is not the only King.
Just in our passage this morning,
We meet another king,
King Herod.
But there are plenty of kings in recent history.
In fact, let’s play a quick game called name that king.
Here is how it works:
Slide
I have a series of pictures and the answer to each picture will have the word king in it.
Simba - Lion King
Gorilla - King Kong
Black Panther - King T’Challa
Whopper - Burger King
Author - Stephen King
Bible Translation - King James
News Anchor - Larry King
Tennis - Billy Jean King
Blues - BB King
Jazz - Nat King Cole
So, there are a lot of kings.
Slide
But Jesus is a King like no other!
1 Tim. 6:15 says,
“For at just the right time Christ will be revealed from heaven by the blessed and only almighty God, the King of all kings and Lord of all lords.”
King Jesus is a King like no other!
We would expect the King of all kings to be born in a palace,
With a purple lined crib,
And a designer onesie.
But instead,
Jesus was born in poverty,
In a manger,
Surrounded by farm animals.
No one predicted,
The Son of God,
The King of Glory,
Would be born this way.
It was inconceivable that He would become friends with the filthy,
Love the lepers,
And reach the rejected.
That He would surround Himself with uneducated fisherman,
Hated tax collectors, and rebellious trouble-makers to be His followers.
When a woman was caught in adultery,
He forgave her.
And when the religious were hypocrites,
He confronted them.
Slide
No one could have imagined this gift...
“The gift is a King!”
He would eventually ride into Jerusalem on a donkey.
With the rejected outcasts cheering Him on.
No one could have guessed this gift...
“The gift is a King!”
Would have to stand trial for crimes He did not commit,
In the middle of the night.
It is unimaginable that this gift...
“The gift is a King!”
Would be declared innocent,
And still be beaten, mocked, bruised, whipped,
Then hung on a cross.
It is much more likely that the King of all kings would come to rule and reign.
Not come as a baby to die on a cross.
And when He did,
The sky grew dark,
And all seemed hopeless.
As the King was buried in a cave.
But that was not the end.
Three days later,
The tomb was empty,
Jesus is risen,
The King is alive,
And now he sits on the throne.
Slide
So, this gift...
“The gift is a King!”
But He is not just any King.
The gift is a risen King!
Let’s say that together,
“The gift is a risen King!”
GOD:
GOD:
Slide
In Matthew 2,
We see 3 responses to the King.
The first response is demonstrated by Herod,
And that is to oppose the King.
Ch. 2 goes on to tell the tragic story of how Herod had all the boys under 2 in Bethlehem executed.
A person who opposes the King.
Says, I don’t need religion,
I am fine on my own,
I am in complete control of my life,
And I don’t need anyone telling me what to do.
Slide
The second response is demonstrated by the Jewish leaders and librarians,
And that is to dismiss the King.
They quoted the Bible to Herod,
And they were only 5 miles away from their King!
Yet they did not go to worship Him.
This is what a person who dismisses the King does.
They hear about the King,
And they simply said meh.
They may celebrate Christmas.
They’ll do all the gifts,
They will gather with family,
They will have the big meal,
And they will celebrate Santa.
But they completely dismiss Jesus as king.
Slide
There is a third response, however, demonstrated by the wisemen.
That is to worship the King.
The wisemen were overjoyed when they saw the star.
Because the star shows where to find the King.
So, they went and bowed down to Jesus as King.
A person who worships the King does the same as the wisemen.
We bow to Jesus.
We are filled with joy when we know where to find the King.
We revere Christ our King!
We submit to Him,
Trusting Him to be our Lord and Savior.
YOU:
YOU:
Slide
So, as you are celebrating this gift...
“The gift is a King!”
What is your response to Him?
Do you oppose, dismiss, or worship the King?
I would say, it is a pretty good sign that you are here in church on Christmas morning.
But that is no guarantee.
You may know all about Christ.
But that does not necessarily mean that you know Him.
For example,
You may be here because you think Christianity is all about church and rules.
Sadly, this results in you feeling like you never get it right,
Making you feel guilty.
But if that is what Christianity were about then it would not be a gift...
“The gift is a King!”
That’s right.
The gift is a King!
A King like no other,
The King of kings,
Who stripped Himself of the glory of heaven,
For sinners like you and me.
So, respond to the King with worship!
He is not some distant, uninvolved angry judge.
He is not the Man upstairs,
Or the big guy in the sky.
Jesus is not your homeboy.
He is not your 8 pound 6 ounce sweet baby Jesus.
He is a King like no other!
WE:
WE:
(stand)
He is the King of glory and righteousness.
He is the King who heals the sick,
Opens the eyes of the blind,
Makes the deaf hear,
Strengthens the weak,
Delivers the captives,
And restores the broken.
He is a shelter in times of trouble,
Light in a dark world.
The Prince of Peace,
The Lamb of God,
The Alpha and Omega,
The beginning and the end,
The resurrection and the life!
His goodness is indescribable,
His power is incomprehensible,
And His grace is irresistible.
Darkness trembles at the Name of Jesus,
And demons flee from His presence!
The devil hates Him but cannot stop Him.
Death could not defeat Him,
The grave could not hold Him!
Jesus is a gift, and...
“The gift is a King!”
Don’t just pass through Christmas today.
Worship the King of kings!
Pray.
As we close,
Remember earlier, I asked how the wise men found the King.
Do you remember how?
Point to how they found the King.
That is right,
The star shows where to find the king.
Right below the star are some gifts for kids,
Any kids who want to head to the star to take a gift are welcome to.
Or if anyone would like to take one to give to a kid is welcome to as well.
While they do that,
Please stand,
And let’s close by reading this benediction together, (NLT)
which he will display at the proper time—he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords,
Amen and Merry Christmas!
You are dismissed.