Free Gift’s! ….. Just Pay Here

The magi were educated men of integrity and wisdom. As they studied nature and science, they encountered the glory of God and their hunger for knowledge of the Creator grew. As they studied the Hebrew Scriptures they learned the Advent was near.  They had read Balaam’s prophecy in Numbers 24:17 “A Star shall come out of Jacob; A Scepter shall rise out of Israel, And batter the brow of Moab, And destroy all the sons of tumult.”

In the night sky, they had seen what they thought was the Star, and in faith they set out to find the Prince of the World.

Their journey was long, if they came from the same region as Balaam – 400 miles away – Traveling only at night. It might have taken 3-4 weeks of steady travel riding on camel; much more if there were interruptions.  Isaiah 60:3,6   “The Gentiles shall come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your rising. ⁶ The multitude of camels shall cover your land, The dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; All those from Sheba shall come; They shall bring gold and incense, And they shall proclaim the praises of the LORD.”

They encountered delay, obstacles, even disappointments at Herod’s court, as none of Israel’s leaders seemed to be aware of the momentous event.  But in faith they pressed on.  Matthew 2:1-2  “Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, ² saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”

Matthew 2:9-11  “When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. ¹⁰ When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. ¹¹ And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.”

They had set out to find the world’s prophesied Redeemer King. They found a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes. What kind of a King was this? Born in a stable, a king with no army, no courtly entourage, no palace, no province. Jesus would later say His kingdom was not of this world, (John 18:36) 

Spirit led, they recognized the Babe’s divinity and worshipped Him. They surrendered their gift to Him, and gave Him their treasures.

Their gifts:

Gold, used in the temple and a symbol of wealth, victory, royalty;  acknowledging baby Jesus’ victorious kingship over all the earth
Frankincense, used in the temple and in the holy anointing oil used to consecrate the priests,
and poured upon the sacramental bread of the Temple.
They recognize baby Jesus divinity.
Myrrh, used in the ancient world to embalm the dead, and a symbol they acknowledge baby Jesus as the Savior of the world, and for His suffering and ultimate death on the cross.

Their treasures:

Their hearts.

After giving their gifts to King Jesus, they were warned not to return to Herod.

But they also left with gifts, for they had met and worshipped the world’s King and Savior.

The same precious gifts are always offered by God to the diligent, humble, hopeful seekers and followers, even yet today.

Have you received His gifts? They are free, but cost a fortune!

Have you met Him and worshipped Him in Spirit and in Truth?

Even as Christians celebrate the birth of Christ, and rejoice at this gift of love with which God has given our world, it comes with a cost. The surrendered life of a Christian is not easy. If we follow Him, there is a price, a cost. The Spirit will lead you to places you would not otherwise have planned to go. Once you meet Jesus, give Him your heart, and chose to worship and serve Him as your Savior and Lord, it is not possible to return home the same way that you came. It is not possible to remain unchanged.

So how do you buy free gifts? Scripture tells us how. It takes something other than money.

Isaiah 55:1 “Ho! Everyone who thirsts, Come to the waters; And you who have no money, Come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk Without money and without price”

What a concept…  but how do you “buy without money and without price”?

Perhaps you have had times when you wanted to get someone a gift, but it just wasn’t in your budget. I’ve had that happen before, even recently. Recently I was thinking how much I’d like to get my wife a different car to drive – our Prius has about 222k! Often, budget realities and practicalities influence our decisions – rightfully so. So instead, we settled for two new front struts, a new wheel bearing, new cv axle, transmission flush, and some almost new used snow tires.

But for the kind of gift shopping we are talking about here though, Jesus says … Revelation 3:18  “I counsel you to buy from Me…

There are 3 essential gifts Jesus wants us to “buy” from Him for ourselves: Revelation 3:18  “I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see.”

1) Gold. Symbolic of FAITH refined through trials:

James 2:5   “Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?”

It still takes faith today to follow the path that leads to Jesus. It means traveling through a world of human pain, sin, and hardship. Christianity is not for the weak of heart, so if your weak of heart, then its past time to give Him your heart.

Does your faith need more refinement and growth?

Then it’s time to go shopping!

Illus: There are many things you could wear shopping this holiday season. Some people wear some interesting things when shopping as you can discover by goggling  the unusual pictures of shopper’s attire.

Jesus calls you to buy and wear something specific: He wants you to wear ….

2) White Garments. Symbolic of RIGHTEOUSNESS by faith:

Perhaps you recall the parable of the wedding garment (Matt 22) where all the guests were given a special robe to wear. But one guest was found not wearing his. He had no excuse, he had been given one but chose not to wear it. He was cast out.  

Paul wrote in Galatians 3:27, “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”

When you “put on” Jesus Christ, you are also putting Him “in”; into your heart, through the work of the Holy Spirit. And transformation begins to happen.

Are you covered by Christ’s righteousness? Is righteous transformation happening in your life?

Is it time to go shopping?

Jesus called you to buy eyesight. He wants you to have something much better than eyeglasses or contacts. He wants you to have …

3) Eye Salve. Symbolic for the HOLY SPIRIT and the spiritual discernment He gives us

Speaking of the Holy Spirit, Jesus said: John 16:8,13   “And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment…  ¹³ “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.”

There is a very important reason why we need this gift. Paul wrote: 1 Corinthains 2:14  “But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”

Are you discerning, understanding of spiritual matters? Are you heeding the signs of the times, and following the leading of God?

Do you need to go shopping?

As you shop this holiday season, or any season, please consider what your buying and where!

And what do you buy with if not money? With your heart! That is the only acceptable payment. God wants your heart, as sin stained and pain filled as it may be! He wants you to give it to Him so that He can give you a new heart!

Jesus came as a babe at the darkest point spiritually in earth’s history. When Christ came as a babe a few were ready, but most were not.

His chosen nation was too busy for Him. King Herod did not want Him and was even frightened by Him. Rome was ignorant, and then fearful, of Him. Only a few wise men and shepherds worshipped Him.

Are you ready? Where is your focus today?  

On the things of this world or on Jesus and the next world?

Emmanuel -God with us; Jesus – salvation, saved from sin

Perhaps you’ve heard of Shrek the sheep. He wandered away from his owner, perhaps you could say he was “on the lamb”, and was found after hiding out in caves for six years! For six years his fleece grew without anyone there to shave it. When he was finally found and shorn, his fleece weighed sixty pounds! As comparison, most sheep have a fleece weighing just under ten pounds. Shrek was carrying six times the regular weight of fleece. All because he had wandered away and hid from his shepherd.

After Shrek was found, a professional sheep shearer took care of his fleece in twenty-eight minutes. His sixty pounds of fleece was estimated to be enough wool to make suits for 20 men!

All it took was coming home to his shepherd.

Are you wandering from your Shepherd?

The Good Shepherd – Jesus Christ?

And if you are tempted to say “no, after all I’m here at church”, or “I’m listening on zoom”, let me ask it this way … are you avoiding buying Christ’s gifts and letting Him refine and transform your character?

If you are, you’re going to accumulate extra weight in this world—the weight of sin, guilt, pain, suffering; burdens that you don’t have to bear!

Friend, Christ can lift those burdens you carry, if only you stop hiding. He can shave off your “fleece”: sin, self, the world’s, and Satan imposed burdens. Burdens brought about by wandering from the Good Shepherd. Jesus says: “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 

So will you come to Him, just as you are, will you buy His gifts? Not with money, they cannot be bought with money, only by giving Him the gift of your heart. And will you receive the gifts of His transforming grace?