Wise men journey, led to worship by a star,
kneel in homage, bringing precious gifts from lands afar, so…
Come and join the celebration, it's a very special day;
come and share our jubilation, there's a new King born today!
‘God is with us,' round the world the message bring;
He is with us, 'Welcome!' all the bells on earth are pealing.
(Valerie CoIIIison © 1972 Hlgh-Fye Music Ltd)
I wonder how much time you spend on choosing what gifts to give to people? Have you ever had second-thoughts just before you hand over the present, thinking ‘I’m not sure this is the right gift for them?’ I wonder if these thoughts went through the minds of the people in today’s Bible reading. Read Matthew 2: 9-12
The Magi when they had set off on their journey, had chosen gifts which they expected to deliver to a palace, giving them to the safekeeping of royal parents. When they eventually find the ‘new-born king’ he is in a very ordinary home, and they are giving their gifts to parents who are not in any way connected to royalty. While the magi might have had second-thoughts about how appropriate their gifts were, we are able to see that they predict the ways in which ‘the new-born king’ would live up to his name.
Both Mary and Joseph were individually told by an angel to name the baby ‘Jesus’ (Matt.1:21 & Luke 1:31), but it is Joseph who is specifically told the reason for this name which mean ‘God Saves’. He is told (Matt.1:32) that the baby will ‘save his people from their sins’
In the Christmas carol ‘We three kings of orient are’ we are reminded of the significance of the three gift the Magi gave to Jesus. Gold points to Jesus being King - a king like the world had never seen before – or since - ‘king forever, ceasing never, over us all to reign’.
Frankincense was used by priests in the temple to help people in their worship of God, and so this gift helps us to recognise that Jesus is ‘God on earth yet Priest on high.’ The priest’s role was to help people connect with God, which Jesus does in a more prefect and complete way than any ordinary priest.
Myrrh was a very expensive embalming oil, and so ‘tells of his death and Calvary’s gloom, sorrowing, sighing, bleeding dying, sealed in a stone-cold tomb’, but we know that Jesus’ death was not the end of how he reveals that ‘God Saves’. While Jesus through his death saves us from the punishment we deserve, for not loving God as we ought to love him, he also shows us through his resurrection how ‘God saves’ us to an amazing new life, as we ask him to be our king, and we submit to him reigning over every aspect of our lives.
‘Glorious now, behold him arise; King and God and sacrifice!
Heaven sing out ‘Hallelujah!’ ‘Amen’ the earth replies.
Christmas is going to be like none we have previously experienced. Some of you may be spending the day alone, many of us will not be spending it with the people we usually have around us, but there is still joy to be found as we recognise all that God has done for us through our King Jesus.
If during the next few days, you find yourself feeling as though you are in ‘a bleak mid-winter’ try to also remember the truths that this well-loved Christmas Carol goes on to tell us about:
In the bleak mid-winter, frosty wind made moan,
earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone; snow had fallen,
snow on snow, snow on snow, in the bleak mid-winter, long ago.
Our God - heaven cannot hold Him, nor earth sustain,
heaven and earth shall flee away when He comes to reign;
in the bleak mid-winter, a stable-place sufficed
the Lord God almighty, Jesus, Christ.
What can I give Him, poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;
if I were a wise man, I would, do my part;
yet what I can I give Him - give Him my heart.
(Christina Georgina Rosetti 1830-94)
With many of us having a very different Christmas day, you may enjoy watching some Christian Christmas programmes on your TV:
BBC 1 10am-11am Morning worship live from Birmingham, at the Nechells’ Outreach Centre. It clashes with our own church gathering which also starts at 10:00am (10:15am live-stream), but with ‘catch-up’, video recording and our church event available to watch on Facebook anytime after we finish - it will be easy for you to enjoy both of these events.
TBNUK - channel 65 on free-view, continues with many of its usual daily Christian programmes, but at 6:00pm on Christmas Day there is a traditional Carol Concert, at 7:30pm a programme of more contemporary Christian Christmas songs and at 8:30pm a ‘Hillsong’ Christmas programme.
If you aren’t able to join with us on Christmas Morning (there is still room), then I pray that the light of God fills your life with peace, joy and love - Stephen