Synopsis of Sermon 12/24/23

Delivered by Bishop Joseph W. Walker, III

Matthew 2:11 NKJV

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.

I.            INTRODUCTION

1. During this time of the year, we are in the season of giving. Many of you have stood in lines at the store to get gifts. The longer you live, the shorter your Christmas list gets, because you begin to realize how ungrateful people are. You realize what’s important in life.
2. We also put ourselves in position to receive. We recognize God gave his son and we in return give our lives to him. In other words, if you do this, God will do that. For example, Romans 10:9-10 says, “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved”. 2 Chronicles 7:14 says “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land” – Our relationship with God has always been a relationship of
3. In this season, we need to ask what we will do for Him. We really need to self-reflect and ask, what will we do for God. We thank God for all he has done for us!
4. Like all of the disciples, Matthew had a profession, before God called him. Matthew was a Tax Collector. Matthew wrote the book of Matthew. In this book, he presented Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah.
5. As the prophesy comes about in the Old Testament, Matthew brings it forward. How and where the Messiah would come, was a focus in Matthew’s book.
6. The three gifts mentioned in the text were three of many gifts given by the wisemen. They were guided by a star to where the baby Jesus was. King Herod was threatened by the expected Messiah. Herod didn’t realize that Jesus wasn’t going to be the king of Jews, because he was already a King that had the keys to the Kingdom. His kingdom was not of this world.
7. Herod consulted his people, and they told him that the Messiah would come. Micah 5:2 says 2 “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From [a]everlasting.”
8. The wisemen were warned by an angel not to take the news back to Herod, so they went back another way. Mary and Joseph were warned in a dream that Herod wanted to kill baby Jesus, so they fled to Egypt to escape Herod.
9. Herod, feeling deceived by the wise men, ordered the slaughter of all male babies in Bethlehem from the age of 2yrs and under. Matthew 2:16-18 sayc16 Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men. 17 Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying: 18 “A voice was heard in Ramah, Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, Refusing to be comforted, Because they are no more.”
10. In the actions of the wisemen, they teach us what we should be willing to do for God. They first demonstrate:

II.            THEY WANTED HIS PRESENCE TOO MUCH TO STAY OUTSIDE 

• They made the journey to see Jesus, but decided to go in. They could have stayed outside, but they wanted to be in His presence. “Staying Outside “symbolizes us using other people’s account on how good God is, rather than having a personal relationship with him on our own.
• The blessing of the Lord is not on the outside. It’s on the inside.

A.     You’ve Got to Want to Take the Jesus Journey 

• When they saw the star, they took the journey to get where Jesus was. You have to be willing to take the marathon. The journey is not a sprint, it is a

1. You Shouldn’t Take the Journey Alone – Some people don’t want to do church. They talk about how they can just do church online but know that you need community. With community, we come together to encourage each other. Never do the Jesus journey by yourself. If you will notice, the wisemen went together.
2. The Journey Will Never Be Without Challenges– Herod was the challenge. His intentions were wrong. He frustrated the journey. We won’t let the difficulty stop us from getting where we are about to go.
3. The Journey Requires Discipline and Focus– You’re not going to get there without the focus. The wisemen didn’t follow a person, they followed the star. Most of our Jesus relationships is tied to a person and not Him.

B.     I Want His Presence More Than His Presents 

1. They didn’t go in looking for anything other than His presence. Some people will only come, when God does something what they want. In his presence there is fullness of joy.

III.            THEY APPROACHED HIM WITH A POSTURE OF OBEISANCE

A.     He’s Not a Kid, He’s A King 

1. The wisemen knew that the baby Jesus was more than a kid. They knew that He was a king. Isaiah 9:6 NKJV says For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. – The more you grow in Him, the more He grows in you.
2. He’s a nativity scene to some, but He is much more to other!. We know that we can cast our cares on Him.
3. Not only is He a child, He is also a Wonder. He’s made ways, when we thought we were going to lose our mind. He is our Prince of Peace! After all we’ve been through, we still have our peace.

B.     He Is Worthy of Our Worship 

1. It is all about who He is, not what He’s done. Some people can’t worship God, because they want to be worshiped
2. Elements of Worship:
3. Worship Requires Humility – Pride rose up in Lucifer and got him kicked out of Heaven. When you refuse to worship God, you are holding onto yourself. We have to recognize the authority of who God is.
4. Worship Requires the Right Heart-It’s more than recreational activity for the cameras. It’s about what’s in your heart. Jesus measures our heart by what we do with our hands. How can you worship, if you don’t even speak to people, you encounter every day?
5. Worship Acknowledges Where You Get Your Help– When I worship God, I remind people that I look to the hills from which comes my health.

IV.            THEY WERE PREPARED AND OPEN 

• The wisemen made an intentional effort to be prepared to give. Always show up, prepared to give to God.

A.     They Didn’t Come Empty Handed 

1. Think about the parties that you have gone to. If you will recall, you have to ask the Host is there anything that they want you to bring to the party.
2. The wisemen thought about what they would bring the King. Don’t ever show up empty handed. Some people struggle with giving to God, because they view it in the flesh. In the spirit, you know that it belongs to God anyway.

B.      When You Bow Down, Your Treasure Opens Up 

1. When they bowed down, and opened their treasures, it was part of their worship. We must worship in spirit and truth.
2. When you say you love God, you recognize whatever you have, God gave it to you.
   400. Story: Bishop preached at a Convention Center full of about 2000 people. At one point in the service, there was a Minister that got up and begged for 45mins during the offering period. Even after begging for 45mins, they only raised $400. The reason they only raised $400 is because they had a house full of Praisers and not a house full of

V.            THEY PRESENTED HIM WITH THEIR BEST OFFERINGS 

• When they gave, they gave specific gifts. The wisemen presented 3 gifts. In doing this, the wisemen demonstrate to us that we should give what’s right and not what’s left.
• Malachi 1:6 NLT 6 The Lord of Heaven’s Armies says to the priests: “A son honors his father, and a servant respects his master. If I am your father and master, where are the honor and respect I deserve? You have shown contempt for my name!“But you ask, ‘How have we ever shown contempt for your name?’ – In Malachi 1, offerings were given by livestock. Eventually, instead of bringing God their best, they started bringing lambs with only one eye and other lame livestock. God eventually asked why they were giving to him wrong. We have to give God your best!

A.     What They Gave Was Not Random, It Was Intentional

1. The wisemen gave intentionally, not randomly.
2. The gifts they brought were gold which represented-kingship, frankincense which represented- divinity, and myrrh which represented-
3. When you give, it must be intentional. Your gift ought to mean something. You give your best, because He gave his best to us! 

B.      I Give Him My Best Because He Gave Me His Best 

1. How I Serve– I must put my energy at serving God like I do serving everyone else.
2. How I Sow– When I sow, I sow at another level. You can’t give that Baptist dollar that you used to give. You have to give like you are blessing Him!
3. How I Sacrifice– It’s how I wake up and do what I do with God. I want to give God my best in everything that I do.
4. 2 ways I praise God:
5. I praise God when I feel like it.
6. I praise God when I don’t.
7. They presented Jesus with gifts. They didn’t drop the gift off. They went inside and presented it to Him.
8. When the Ring Camera begins to ring, I know it is Amazon wanting to drop something off. Amazon is just a drop off service. Amazon is in the business of
9. There is a difference in delivery and presenting. For example, a friend says they want to come by and give something. They ask are you at home? They ring the doorbell and then came in the house and present your gift to you.
10. When some people present you with something, they want to wait to see your response. This is why they don’t just drop it off! Don’t come and just drop your gift off to the Lord. Come to the Lord with your gift and wait for God’s response! What will you do for Him?