Como to Worship #2 - Bring Your Gifts

Today I want to talk to you about something that is a very powerful way to worship God, and that is bringing our gifts before God, as an act of worship.

BRING YOUR GIFTS

Matthew 2:1–2 NIV

1 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.”

The reason was to worship Jesus.

Now, King Herod was actually an evil king, and so he got his panic on. He was suddenly afraid that his kingdom would be threatened, and so he kind of lied to them and said, “Hey, whenever you find out where He is, tell me, so I can go and worship Him, as well.”

Verse 9 says this:

Matthew 2:9 NIV

9 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.

Now, we read that one little verse, and we don’t really grasp the full magnitude of what these wise men did.

They actually traveled from what would have been known as Persia, or modern-day Iran, all the way to where Jesus was, a distance of, believe it or not, about 900 miles.

900 miles = 1448 KM it’s from here PIB to Aracruz ES. 18h to 20h of travel

This was a long, painful journey that they made to worship the One that they believed might be the Savior.

Matthew 2:10–11 NIV

10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 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.

And verse 10 shows us this:

They were overjoyed.

Matthew 2:10 NIV

10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.

And verse 10 shows us this: They were overjoyed.

They were overjoyed.

The English translation, it really has a hard time with what the original language said. There are actually 4 Greek words that are translated into “they were overjoyed.” Another version of the Bible translates it this way, it says, “They rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.”

It’s almost impossible to describe how full of life they were because, for centuries, they had hoped that one day, there might be One who was born that would save them from their sins.

And so, from the depths of their soul, they’re overjoyed, with a humongous, big, gigantic joy.

Here’s the problem with some Christians today: They are underjoyed. They’re underjoyed.

It makes no sense, to me

I mean, to come into worship looking like they’re mad, upset about different kinds of things, critical heart, angry about everything, nitpicking everything apart …

Listen to me, if you’re overjoyed, tell your face! Let it smile! Show it.! Let other people around you know. Being a follower of Jesus, you should be full of more joy than anybody else in the world.

It doesn’t matter how bad life gets – you’ve got the promise of eternity. You’ve got a God with you, a God who’s working in all things to bring about good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose, a God who is greater, who is ever-present, all-knowing, and all-powerful.

Don’t you dare ever live underjoyed! You smile! You clap! You worship! You praise! You be fun to be around. You be known for what you’re for, not for what you’re against.

You be full of love, and be full of grace. When people see you, they should say, “That’s one of the happiest people I’ve ever met.” Why?

We’re overjoyed we have a Savior. We’re overjoyed we have a Savior.

They traveled 900 or so miles, and they couldn’t wait to worship Him. So, what do they do? Verse 11 says this:

Matthew 2:11 ESV

11 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.

Mat

Now, how did they worship? I want you to watch very carefully. Scripture says they did what?

They were overjoyed to give. They did not give, underjoyed. They were not upset that they got to give.

It was an overjoyed sense of I get to give. And that’s what they did: They gave gold, incense, and myrrh.

what these gifts actually meant, or symbolized. The general thinking is that the gold represented His Kingship, that the King of kings and the Lord of lords was born.

The Gospel of Matthew, Volume 1 Gifts for Christ (Matthew 2:9–12)

(1) Gold is the gift of a king. Seneca, the Roman philosopher, tells us that in Parthia it was the custom that no one could ever approach the king without a gift. And gold, the king of metals, is the ﬁt gift for a king.

So, Jesus was ‘the Man born to be King’. But

The Gospel of Matthew, Volume 1 Gifts for Christ (Matthew 2:9–12)

(2) Frankincense is the gift for a priest. It was in the Temple worship and at the Temple sacriﬁces that the sweet perfume of frankincense was used. The function of a priest is to open the way to God for men and women. The Latin word for priest is pontifex, which means a bridge-builder. The priest is the one who builds a bridge between human beings and God.

That is what Jesus did. He opened the way to God; he made it possible for us to enter into the very presence of God.

gold represented His Kingship, that the King of kings and the Lord of lords was born.

The Gospel of Matthew, Volume 1 Gifts for Christ (Matthew 2:9–12)

(3) Myrrh is the gift for one who is to die. Myrrh was used to embalm the bodies of the dead.

The Gospel of Matthew, Volume 1 Gifts for Christ (Matthew 2:9–12)

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.

They worshiped Him, and they were overjoyed to bring their gifts, as an act of worship, to kneel down. And, with tremendous joy in their heart, they opened up the best of what they had, and they gave it to Jesus.

The incense actually was used to help prepare people for burial, and a lot of scholars believe that that was given to Him, foreshadowing that Jesus was actually born to die.

What I want to do is encourage you to bring your gifts, as an act of worship, to God.

Last week we talked about lifting up holy hands.

Next week we’re going to talk about pouring out our hearts.

Today, I want you, maybe like never before, to give to God as an act of worship, to bring your gifts.

I love being around generous people. Why? Because generous people love giving.

And what I want to do is, I honestly hope that, over the next 20 minutes or so, that the Spirit of God will start doing a work in you, and that if you don’t love giving now, you’ll start to love to give, love to give, love to give,

look forward to it, think about it, plan to give, be strategic, be overjoyed to give to God, who gave everything to you.

Love Gives

Why should it be this way? Because love gives, doesn’t it? When you love someone, you give to them. Love gives.

Oh, when Valentine’s was coming, I would break up on February 12, and suddenly work things out on February 15. Why? Because I was a cheapo. I didn’t like to give.

What’s one of the most well known verses in the Bible? ?

“For God so loved the world” – what did He do? He what? – “He gave.” Why did He give? Because He so loved the world. “For God so loved the world, that He gave” – not gold, frankincense, or myrrh, but His only Son, His Son. That’s how much He loved us.

Because love gives.

That’s what God does. We love God because God first loved us.

says this:

Romans 5:8 NIV

8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

God didn’t shout His love from heaven; He showed His love on earth.

He sent Jesus to die for us because love gives.

EX:

Now, as I talk about this, some of you would probably say, “I love God, but giving’s hard for me. I’d like to give, but I feel financial pressure, and all this,” and I understand that. “I love, but I’m afraid,” or, “I’m hesitant,” or, “I’m reluctant to give.”

Proverbs 3:5–10 NIV

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. 7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. 8 This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones. 9 Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; 10 then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.

Now, in the context of which this is written – “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding” –

Solomon said this: “9 Honor the Lord.” This word, honor, it means “to worship.” It means “to adore.” It means “to praise.” It means “to honor.” Honor, worship – worship the Lord with your – what? It says, “[Worship] the Lord with your wealth.”

Honor the Lord with your wealth, worship God with your wealth, and then you will be blessed beyond measure. Honor Him with the firstfruits of your wealth.

Now, some people may say, “What are firstfruits?” This parallels with what is taught in the Old Testament, in the Book of Malachi. Jesus affirms this in the New Testament,

Matthew 23:23 NIV

23 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.

It’s talked about in Hebrews; that’s what’s known as “the tithe.” The tithe is a Hebrew word, the word maasar, and it simply means “a tenth.”

Malachi says that we worship God with a tenth of what He trusts us with. We bring Him the first portion of what He gives to us, as an act of worship.

And Malachi says when we do this, God opens up the windows of heaven, and God pours out so many blessings on us that we do not even have room to contain it. We worship the Lord with the first tenth of what He gives us.

So, I love to say it this way: We bring our first and our best, and trust God to bless the rest. We bring God our first and our best – the first 10 percent, not the last 10 percent, not what’s left over. The moment we’re blessed with increase, we bring God our first and our best, and we trust God to bless the rest.

90%, with God’s blessings, is actually greater than 100% without, that when we actually worship God, and trust Him in this way, it does something in us that is supernatural.

10%, and we return it to the storehouse, which is a picture of the local church – the very place where we’re nourished, where we’re fed, where we eat spiritual bread, and gain spiritual life, that we make a difference in the world, all over the world, as the Church – that we return 10 percent to the storehouse.

Now, I’m not saying if you tithe, you’re going to get a new car. What I am saying is that God proves Himself faithful.

It’s the only place, in all of Scripture, He says, “Test Me. If you don’t believe Me, test Me. Test Me. Worship Me in this way, and see what I will do for you.”

YOUR ULTIMATE GIFT

Romans 12:1 NIV

1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.

Come to Worship and Bring your Gifts.

TALK IT OVER

How’s your joy-o-meter this week?

Are you overjoyed or under-joyed?

What affects your joy?

What would it take to make worshiping through giving a priority in your relationship with God?

What changes will you make to become a tither if you haven’t been one consistently?

Related Media

Related Sermons