The Gift of Gold
Notes
Transcript
As I was reflecting on what to preach on this Christmas season I had this thought:
Growing up my parents always stressed to us the true meaning of Christmas. They always stressed that Christmas was not about the gifts, but about the birth of Jesus. As a small boy I understood what they meant, I said “I get it”, I believed what they were telling me was true, but…I always looked forward to opening those presents!
Who doesn’t? Let’s not be so super-spiritual that we pretend we don’t enjoy opening a gift of two on Christmas. Over the next four weeks I want to preach a series I’ve entitled: Christmas gifts.
Have you ever stopped to consider why we give each other gifts at Christmas? I believe the answer is found in Matthew 2:1-11. Will you read those verses with me now?
These wisemen, most likely from the regions of Persia or Babylon, were among the most intelligent people in their day. They were both influenced from many years of Jewish captivity and were thus familiar with many Hebrew prophecies, such as this verse in Numbers 24:17
17 I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: There shall come a Star out of Jacob, And a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, And shall smite the corners of Moab, And destroy all the children of Sheth.
They understood that this verse meant out of Israel (Jacob) would arise a king who would rule, not simply Israel, but would rule the world from Israel.
I believe that they were so taken by the appearance of this star, which by the way this star had to be a supernatural occurrence, or these men would have explained it away. They were so captivated by what they saw that for years they searched every holy writing at their disposal until they came on the writings of Moses in Numbers, and when they saw this verse they knew the King of kings had been born!
So impressed were they that they took their journey to Jerusalem, the capital of Israel, where they knew the could find the answer to their question “Where is he that is born king of the Jews?”
Once they knew where to find Him they immediately set out for Bethlehem, consequently, when they left the city the star reappeared, literally it appeared again and it led them all the way to the house where they found the two-year old boy in His mother’s arms. There they worshiped HIM, not Mary, HIM. Do you see what they did next? The presented Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Each of these gifts speaks to some prophetic truth of Jesus and in this series I want to focus on the meaning of each of these gifts individually.
Today we are going to explore the meaning behind the gift of gold.
There are two implications for this gift. First it implies:
The Royalty of Jesus
The Royalty of Jesus
These wise men understood the following to be true:
The One who was born under the star was to be king
This is the clear and only meaning from the prophecy in Numbers 24.
When they saw that star they searched the Scriptures
When they searched the Scriptures they found the prophecy
When they followed the prophecy it led them to Jerusalem
When they came to Jerusalem they asked the question, “Where is He that is BORN king of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and are come to worship Him.”
You can imagine Herod’s anger at the words “BORN king of the Jews”
These men understood that the King was born who would one day rule the world
All Herod knew was that his reign had come to an end.
He was only king in title
He was not even a Jew
All these men knew was that somewhere, there was a king born, and...
As King He deserved a gift fit for a king: Gold (see reference tor and influence
It was customary in the East, even today to bring such gifts to people of great influence
Genesis 43:11 “11 And their father Israel said unto them, If it must be so now, do this; take of the best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balm, and a little honey, spices, and myrrh, nuts, and almonds:”
Though not mentioned, gold was also given to Joseph to pay for the grain.
The lavish gifts were what was expected in the day in question
Now think of what this gift must have meant to this family!
It represented God’s blessing
They were not very rich
This gift of gold would have been an overwhelming shock to them
It represented God’s confirmation
As if they needed further proof God would keep His promises, angels had already appeared to them, but here these wisemen from the East show up and worship Jesus!
This was just further proof Jesus was the Son of God!
It represented God’s provision and protection
Remember when I said this represented God’s blessing on this poor family?
Imagine being Joseph, God comes to you in a dream and tells you to go into Egypt…what would his first thought be?
The same as ours:
How am I going to afford that?
I have no money
In Egypt, no one will hire me, a Jew
Let this sink in:
There are three gifts mentioned here, which has led to the tradition of only three wise men
Where do we read in the Bible there were only three wise men?
Where do we read they only brought one gift each?
Imagine 10, 30, 50, 100 wisemen,
Imagine them all bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh!
Imagine the impact this would make on them!
The gift of Gold was proof of the kingship of Jesus and proof of God’s provision for the family! God was telling them this child is special, this is my Son and I will protect Him. God was telling them, “You can trust me!”
Church, God is telling us today that we can trust Him! He will not take His hand away from His children! He will provide your needs, He will protect you, He will sustain you, He will guide you, and that is only one thing this gift of Gold implies,
Lastly it implies not simply the royalty of Jesus but...
The Deity of Jesus
The Deity of Jesus
Commentators are torn as to this actual meaning. Some say the gold was just that, a gift of gold, God’s provision for His Son. Others however find a deeper, more spiritual meaning in this lavish gift.
I for one agree the gold implies the deity of Jesus Christ, but so then do the other gifts, which we will explore in the coming weeks. How does or how can the gift of gold represent? To find this answer we must ask, “Has there ever been another time in Scripture when gold represented deity in relation to Jesus?” The answer is yes! Exodus 25:10-11.
In this passage God gives instruction for the creation of the Ark of the Covenant. We know beyond doubt the Ark represented Jesus Christ. But how was it made? It was made, first of all of wood which represented the humanity of Jesus Christ. Next it was overlaid, within and without with pure gold. The pure gold represented the deity of Jesus Christ.
When we couple this OT type of Christ with the gift of gold, the years long research of the wise men, the travel to Israel, the following of the star, and at last their response of Jesus: Worship at His feet, we conclude that these gifts, including the gold represent the deity of Jesus Christ!
Conclusion:
God is good…scratch that, God is GREAT!
We see the goodness of God in the gifts these men brought to Jesus, the gold alone would have increased their wealth tremendously, but there were two more to go, and they just keep getting better!
In just three weeks we will celebrate the birth of Christ, on that Christmas morning as you gather with your family and begin to open your gifts, I hope you will take time to reflect on the greatest gift ever given, Jesus Christ!
I cannot say enough today of the importance of the deity of Jesus Christ. I cannot stress the importance of the FACT that GOD became a MAN. That is the meaning of John 3:16
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
You and I are so desperately lost in our sin that we could never, ever, come to God where He is. Yet God loved us, so much that He sent His Son to this sin-cursed earth to die the most horrible death imaginable, so that we could be saved from our sin. God did that. Jesus did that. Jesus is God!
Heads bowed eyes closed, as the musicians make their way I know in a room this size there may be one, there may be more than one who does not know Jesus as their Savior. Today, right here, right where you are you can know Him. You say, “How can I know Him?” You must take Him at His Word. Today if you will:
Admit you are a sinner
Believe that Jesus died for you, was buried, and rose again
Call on Him to save you, you will be saved.