Introduction:    There we have the story of the visit of the wise men and gifts that they brought to the Lord Jesus. Do you have difficulty finding just the right gift for just the right person? Have you ever thought about the gift that you may give to the Lord Jesus this Christmas season? I think we can take a lesson from the wise men. They came from the east. Most likely, they came from Babylon. In Babylon there was a great prophet, a man of God whose name was Daniel. It was there that young Daniel was taken captive, and it was there that Daniel taught, and in Babylon, there were wise men, Magi. As a matter of fact, the book of Daniel tells about them and these Magi had their lives saved by Daniel. And obviously they would have listened to the teaching and the preaching of Daniel and it was Daniel who prophesied a coming Messiah. These men were wise because

I.          THEY SOUGHT THE LORD JESUS TO WORSHIP HIM.

I think there's not a one of us who has not heard that slogan, "Wise men still worship Him." And may I say, it wasn't easy for them to worship Him. They had barriers to overcome.

A         The Barrier Of Distance. (V.1)

The Bible says they were wise men from the east. Modern Iraq to Jerusalem even today would be great trip. But these men traveled a great distance, perhaps about 300 miles just to worship the King of kings, the Lord Jesus Christ. Not only was there the barrier of distance, there was

B.         The Barrier Of Difficulty.

I want to remind you in this day there were no planes, no trains, or automobiles. There were no hotels, there no restaurants, there were no super highways. Over rough terrain they came. Not only was there distance and not only was there difficulty, there was

C.         The Barrier Of Danger.

When they got there, they faced ol' King Herod. Herod was a murderous old man, and he loved to kill people. He was the one who killed all of the little babies. But before he killed those little babies, he already murdered his wife, his mother, and his sons. With great, great difficulty, they came to worship the Christ child. The word worship means worth-ship. Why are you here? Why did you come? Because you felt it was worth it to give honor and glory to the son of God. I cannot imagine these who have a take it or leave it attitude toward worshiping the Lord Jesus Christ. In America today, I think the biggest cult is the cult of the comfortable. Those who don't want to be disturbed if the weather is not right, or if guests come, of if there is some other problem. And I don't want to brag on you being here, because dear friend, it's a privilege that you could be here. It's a privilege that I can be here. Thank God for the joy of worshipping Him. These wise men sought the Lord Jesus Christ in spite of distance and danger and difficulty, they came to worship Him. Now when they worshiped the Lord Jesus, and we're going to get into the heart of the message, the gifts of the wise men, they brought Him three kinds of gifts. I want you to look at it right here in the word of God. In Matthew Chapter 2, the Bible says that

II.         THEY BROUGHT TO THE LORD JESUS VERY SPECIAL GIFTS. Verse 11, 

Do you think that it is just by happenstance that it is recorded in God's word that gold and frankincense and myrrh were brought to the baby Jesus? There is an incredible thought given here, and a great inference as to what I should bring to Jesus this Christmas season. And what you should bring to the Lord Jesus. My gifts and your gifts must be like the gifts of the wise men of old. Now I want us to see what these gifts are and what they represent and what they speak of. For example, they brought to Him gold, a gift that would be presented to a king.

A.        They Recognize His Sovereign Dominion

When they brought gold, they said, "We recognize His sovereign dominion." Have you done that? Have you recognized His sovereign dominion. Isaiah 9:7: "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 from henceforth even forever." This child, 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. When these kings came to the baby Jesus, they did not cuddle Him. They did not play games with Him. These powerful kings from the East bowed the knee in reverence to Him, and they recognized that indeed He is a King. Look in verse 2, they said where is he that is born King of the Jews. Look in verse 6, "For out of thee shall come a governor that shall rule my people Israel." We worship, my dear friend, heaven's king. Have you given Him the submission that is due to Him as a King? Have you? Isn't it strange that we do not recognize and reverence His kingdom and His right and authority to rule over us? My dear friend, He is King of kings. He is Lord of lords. And one day every human being who ever lived will bow their knee to Jesus Christ. He is king. And they said, "Where is He that is born King of the Jews? We have come to worship Him." What can I give Him today? My dear friend, I can recognize His sovereign dominion. The gold represents that sovereign dominion. But what about the frankincense?

B.         They Recognize His Sinless Deity.

Gold was a gift fit for a king, and frankincense was used to worship almighty God? Exodus30:34. 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 that 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? They recognized His sinless deity. Jesus Christ is God of very God. May I say, dear friend, that they worshiped the Lord Jesus (Mat.2:11). The Bible says, "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and Him only," What shall I give the Lord Jesus? Because He of His sovereign dominion, I give Him my will. Because He is sinless deity, I give Him my worship. Not only did they recognize His sovereign dominion, not only did they recognize His sinless deity, but my dear friend, they recognized…

C.         They Recognize His Sacrificial Death.

They recognized that this little baby was born to die. Now I don't know whether the wise men understood all of this or not, but I know the Holy Spirit knew it. I know this is not by accident in the word of God. I know that of everything that could be listed here is gold and frankincense and myrrh, Sovereign dominion, sacred deity, sacrificial death. That's what they brought to the Lord Jesus. Do you know that the Bible never record the early church celebrating the birth of Jesus? Did you know that? I don't think it's wrong to celebrate the birth of Jesus. The Holy Spirit of God recorded it in the Bible. And I mean we have all of this scripture, the birth of Jesus is very important. It gives us an opportunity to preach and to teach and to worship. That's fine. But we don't ever have any record that the early church was told to remember His birth. We're told to remember His death. I'm not against remembering His birth, because He had to be born in order to die. The Bible records the birth of the Lord Jesus. But these wise men at His birth were there remembering that one day, He would die upon the tree.

Conclusion:     What will I give Jesus this Christmas season? Because of His sovereign dominion, I'll give Him my wealth. All that I have belongs to Him. Because of His sinless deity, I'll give Him my worship. I'll fall on my face before Him. And because of His sacrificial death, I'll give Him my witness. I want the world to know that He died for me. My wealth, my worship, and my witness belong to my Lord this Christmas season. And so does yours.