This is actually a very appropriate scene this morning. Jimbo asked if I would mind preaching down there. The Christmas story was there was no room for them in the end and there's almost no room for me on the stage this morning, but take a Bible and turn to Matthew 2. This is a story you've heard so many times, but let's look at it again. We've been going through the Advent candles and wreaths and wreath and today we're looking at the light that the wise men shine on the birth of Christ. After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea during the time of King David and Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, where is the one who has been born King of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him. When King Herod heard this, he was disturbed and all Jerusalem with him when he had called together all the people's chief priests and teachers of the law. He asked them where the Christ was to be born. In Bethlehem in Judea they replied, for this is what the prophet has written, but you, Bethlehem in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah, for out of you one will become a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel. Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent him to Bethlehem and said, go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me so that the eye too may go and worship him. And when they had heard the King, they went on their way and the star that they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary and they bound down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and incense and of myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route. Have you ever wondered, what if there had been no wise men? What if it had been a visit by wise women? How would that have changed things in Matthew 2? If the wise men were actually wise women? Well, one writer said, first of all, they would have been on time. At this point, Jesus is about two years old. Secondly, if they had been wise women instead of men, they would have helped clean up the place because it would have been the stable and so forth. They would have cleaned it up. Thirdly, if it had been wise women, they would have assisted with the delivery. And fourthly, if it had been wise women, they would have brought some practical gifts. What can a baby, a baby needs diapers, formula, pacifier, blankets, changes clothes? Well, I read this week, a woman who writes in regard to the birth of Jesus. My husband and I have been happily married for five years, but hadn't been blessed with a baby, so I decided to do some serious praying and promised that if God would give us a child, I would love it with all my heart. And raise it with his word as my God. He answered my prayers, blessed us with a son. Next year, God blessed us with another son. The following year, he blessed us with yet another son. The year after that, we were blessed with a daughter. My husband thought that we had been blessed right into poverty. We now had four children, and the oldest was only four. I began reading a few verses of the Bible to the children each day as they lay in their cribs. I was off to a good start. God had entrusted me with four children. I didn't want to disappoint him. I tried to be patient the day the children smashed two dozen eggs on the kitchen floor searching for baby chicks. I tried to be understanding when they started a hotel for homeless frogs in the spare bedroom, although it took nearly two hours to catch all 23 frogs. When my daughter poured ketchup all over herself and rolled up in a blanket to see how it felt to be a hot dog, I tried to see the humor rather than the mess. In spite of changing over 25,000 diapers, never eating a hot meal and never sleeping for more than 30 minutes at a time, I still thank God daily for my children. I knew I was missing the mark just a little when I told my daughter we were going to church to worship God, and she wanted to bring a bar of soap along to wash up Jesus too. Something was lost in the translation like explained that God gave us everlasting life, and my son thought it was generous of God to give us his last wife. My proudest moment came during the children's Christmas pageant. My daughter was playing Mary, two of my sons were shepherds. My youngest was a wise man. It was their moment to shine. My five-year-old shepherd had practiced his line. We have found the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, but he was nervous and said the baby was wrapped in wrinkled clothes. My four-year-old Mary said that's not wrinkled clothes. That's dirty, rotten clothes. A wrestling match broke out between Mary and the shepherd, and was stopped by an angel who bent her halo and lost a wing. I slouched a little lower in my seat when Mary dropped the doll representing the baby Jesus, and it bounced down the aisle, crying, mama, mama, Mary grabbed the doll, wrapped it back up, and held it tightly as the wise men arrived. My son stepped forward wearing a bathrobe and a paper crown, knelt at the manger and announced, we are the three wise men, and we are bringing gifts of gold, common sense, and fur. The congregation dissolved in the laughter, and the patient got a standing ovation. I've never enjoyed the Christmas program as much as this one, said the pastor wiping tears from his eyes. For the rest of my life, I'll never hear the Christmas story without thinking of gold, common sense, and fur. Okay, the kids got it a little bit wrong, didn't they? But adults, get it wrong too. For instance, how many magi were there? Well, we typically think of three, and we sing we three kings of Orient R and so forth. Actually, we don't know how many wise men there were, we do know that there were three gifts, but has it ever occurred to you why did these Gentiles in their caravan come so far when the Jews themselves weren't willing to look for the Messiah at all? You think it was a low priority? No, it was this. Rome was so hated that the Jews of that day wanted immediate relief. Some of you've seen the debates that are going on and so forth, and maybe you have a favorite candidate. Suppose I tell you that the ultimate candidate for president has just been born. We just have to wait until these 35, 35 years from now in order to devote for him. You would feel pretty desperate. We can't wait 35 years to elect the ideal president. We can't afford to wait. This is how the Jews of that day felt. A baby? We're struggling with Rome. We're under the Roman boot. What good is a baby? That's how desperate they felt. And let me tell you part of the reason why they felt so desperate. The name Herod that we read here was actually shared by several people. There was Herod Tetrarck. There was Herod Antipas. There was Herodius. Herod was more of a family name. This was Herod the Great. He ruled for about 50 years from age 20 to age 70. He died at 4bc just after his 70th birthday. He was called the King of the Jews. But did you know that Herod the Great wasn't actually a Jew by birth? His father was an Edomite. He was descended from Edom. Remember the story of Jacob and Esau. The Edomites descended from Esau. So his father was not considered a Jew. And his mother was from the Arab Kingdom. In fact, Herod the Great didn't even become a Jew until Edom was conquered by the Jews. And it was thrust on him. Herod the Great was known for his political shrewdness. He was aware that some people considered him an illegitimate King because he wasn't actually Jewish by birth. He had nine wives, none of whom were Jewish themselves. And so for political expediency, he took a 10th wife as a Miriam who was descended from the famous macabees of Israel. It was very clever thing. It was very shrewd politically. Now at last he had a Jewish wife. He was seen as a benefactor by some. There was a famine about 30 BC. There was a famine that was terrible. And Herod the Great applied to Egypt for food to feed the people. But it wasn't because he had a compassionate heart. It was to increase the sense of dependency and his control over the people. This is why Caesar Augustus allowed him to rule in the first place. He could keep the Jews in line to keep them under control. He was known for political shrewdness. And even worse, he was known for savage cruelty. In 30 BC, he anticipated that his own grandfather was a threat to his throne. So he had his grandfather executed. Not just him. His wife's brother, Aristopoulos, was Miriam's brother, was the Jewish high priest and was very loved by the people. Now he couldn't tolerate the people loving and appreciating Aristopoulos' high priest. So he invited Aristopoulos to a swimming party at his home and encouraged him to get in the water with everyone else where he had men ready. They held him under until he drowned. He executed his own wife Miriam after a mount trial. He executed his mother-in-law, Alexandra, too. Then his sons by Miriam, remember they would have been Jewish by birth. Alexander Aristopoulos, he had them executed. Five days before his death in 4 BC, he had a third son who had been born to him by a different wife, had him executed as well. Now, these are just family members that he had executed. It's estimated that he executed several hundred people who opposed him politically in some way. Listen, if he killed this many of his own family, how many others do you suppose died at the hands of Herod the Great? I tell you, Al Capone could have taken lessons from Herod the Great. He was treacherous. He was paranoid. He was cruel. He was ruthless. He was bloodthirsty. Once when he was traveling outside of Judea, he gave his henchmen orders that if he died somehow on the trip, they were to execute several other people in his family. And so now the magi come to him and say, where is he who was born King of the Jews? King of the Jews? He considered himself King of the Jews. So it's no surprise when he gave the order to kill all the children, all the infants under the age of two. Herod the Great was an absolute thug. There's no other way to say it. He was as vicious as any criminal who ever lived and as any criminal today. So the wise men leave Jerusalem, they're heading south towards Bethlehem and the star which for some reason had disappeared for a time. The star suddenly reappears. By this time Mary and Joseph and the baby Jesus are living in a house, the star stops. They see him and present their gifts, gold, frankincense, and myrrh. What do we learn from this? Point one. This is a picture of kings bowing before Christ. This is a picture of kings bowing before Christ. Who were these wise men? Where were they from? The Bible doesn't say. The Bible just says they were from the east. We don't even know if they were from the same country or not. They could have been astrologers in different countries and all saw the star. It is thought that they were more than likely astrologers who worshipped Zoroaster. Where do we get the idea that there were three kings? Well, that theory was originated by Tertullian in the second century. But he did so on the basis of what he read in Psalm 72. Let me just read that very quickly. Psalm 72 verses 8 through 11 says this. He, speaking of the Messiah, will rule from C to C and from the river to the ends of the earth, the desert tribes will bow before him and his enemies will lick the dust. The kings of Tarshish and of distant shores will bring tribute to him. The kings of Sheba and Seba will present him gifts. All kings will bow down to him and the nations will serve him. And so are mentioned the kings of Tarshish and Sheba and Seba. And so in the second century Tertullian said, well, there are three places, three different kings bound. So there must have been three kings. Now, the scriptures don't actually say that there were three kings. There could have been even more than that, but we know that those who came and worship Jesus were wealthy. We know that Tarshish was a place that Solomon had set up trade with. We also know that Tarshish was a place that Jonah tried to skate to, and then he was thrown overboard by sailors. We know that according to 1 Kings 10, the queen of Sheba traded with King Solomon after she heard of his fame. And it says specifically that the trade had to do with spices like mure and frankincense. So where were they from? Were they from Persia, India, Pakistan, Yemen? There is archaeological evidence that perhaps the wise men were from Yemen. All these places are possibilities, but the point is this, just as the birth of Jesus was announced, as we mentioned last week, to low-life shepherds who were poor. Now, the birth of Jesus is acknowledged by rulers who were wealthy. And so here's a picture of kings bowing before Christ. Now, if you read the newspaper today, it's pretty hard to imagine, isn't it? When you think about terrorism, other nations, other rulers, kings, other religions, it's pretty difficult, if you think about it, to imagine kings from other nations worshipping Jesus. But the Bible is unmistakably clear, the one whose birth we celebrate will one day rule over all the earth. The Jesus who we celebrate will one day rule over all the earth. For instance, consider verses like Isaiah, chapter 60, beginning with verse 3. Listen to what that says. Nations will come to your light. Kings will come to the brightness of your dawn and then verses 9 and 10. Surely the nation of the islands looked to me in the lead are the ships of Tarshish bringing your sons from afar with their silver and gold to the honor of the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has endowed you with splendor. The foreigners will rebuild your walls and then kings will serve you. What is Isaiah talking about? Well, if you read on, in the next chapter of Isaiah, these are the verses that Jesus read in the temple that day. The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the broken hearted to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God. And so, who do you suppose Isaiah is writing about in chapter 60 when he says, nations will come to your light. Kings will bow down before you. And then the very next chapter, Isaiah says those words, the Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. Why Isaiah is writing of Jesus? So, what do we learn from this? Well, we learn what we learn is completely in harmony with a verse like Revelation 19. On his robe, speaking of Jesus and on his thigh, he has this name written, king of kings and Lord of lords. And this is why Paul writes in Philippians 2, therefore God exalted Jesus to the high place and gave him the name that's above every name, that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow. In heaven and all earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. So, what do we get from this? Here is a picture of kings bowing before Christ. Second, here is a picture of outsiders embracing Christ. Perhaps the most significant thing here is not simply that these are kings, but these men were unclean Gentiles. Seriously, unclean Gentiles. Think about conflict in the Middle East today. Think about Palestinians versus the Jews and so forth. Think of the intense hatred that exists to this day in one of the debates in the past week. One of the candidates said, and I looked it up, that even missiles were fired into Israel last month, that there have been over 200 missiles that have been fired into Israel this year. That kind of animosity and hatred still goes on in the Middle East. The word magi. Do you know where that comes from? Did you know that the word magi is actually an Iranian word? Now, think about the Middle East and the possibility that Iran has nuclear weapons and so forth. They might use them against Israel. Magi is an Iranian word. And so, not only is this a picture of kings bowing before Christ, but those who are outsiders, those who are strangers to the Covenants of Promise, those who know nothing about the Old Testament and New Testament, Jesus is for outsiders. Jesus is for outsiders. We forget how unusual it was for magi from the East to come and bring gifts to a Jewish king. It went against the culture of the day as Christmas approaches. One of the things we see today, Christmas is becoming more secularized. There are more and more people today who celebrate Christmas, who don't know anything about what it's about. Listen to some interviews on TV. A 10-year-old girl was interviewed by someone in a mall at the mall of Georgia. What is Christmas about, he asked. She said, I don't really know. Perhaps you're one of those people. Perhaps you hear the singing and the decorations, but your heart is cold. I have good news for you. If you know nothing about the Bible, if you don't know anything about Genesis and Revelation, if you don't know the Old Testament from the New Testament, if you aren't from a church background, if all you understand is that there's a hole in your heart, and that you have failed in living out what you know is right and wrong, know that Jesus is for outsiders like you. Jesus was born for someone like you. Jesus is for outsiders. And then third, here's a picture of you standing before Christ. Here's a picture of you standing before Christ. Here were the wise men standing for the baby Jesus, but one day you and I will stand before the king of kings and the Lord of lords. It's good to see the joy of the shepherds and the excitement of the magi, but if you think about it today, most people respond to the gospel in one of two ways. They respond either with apathy or with opposition. Apathy is just like the Jews in Jesus' day. Here's the Savior who has been born, and the Jews are not flocking to Bethlehem to see it. The star was not just visible to the wise men. It was visible to everyone, but there was no interest in doing that. There was just complete apathy. And then on the other hand, there was Herod's reaction, outright opposition. What kind of apathy is in your heart? What kind of apathy? Isn't it true that Christmas sometimes immunizes people against the gospel? That we hear just enough about the Christmas story, peace on earth, good willed them in so that it inoculates us against the real thing, so that we never really catch the Christmas fever. Jesus is born. Ho-Hum isn't that nice, Jesus is born. The most impenetrable armor against the gospel is a lifelong familiarity with it. And that can be true of all of us at times. The other kind of response is the one typified by Herod and his opposition. It's a picture of the person who desperately clings to ruling his life. And this murderous opposition that Herod had for mention of the King of the Jews is what my flesh is like as well. Herod is a picture of people today who are determined to live by their own rules. Who are determined to cling to ruling their own lives. Herod is a picture of people who desperately cling to their flesh and their own sins. And every one of us was born a Herod just like that. We camouflage it. We camouflage it well, but underneath there's the same kind of hostility. I'm going to hang on to my way of life and no one can stop me. What about you? Can you think of ways in your life that you're pretty much like Herod, clinging to power and ruling your own life? Isn't the truth that apart from Christ, we're all like that. And so how do you become like the Magi? How do you come like the Magi? In awe and wonder of the birth of Jesus. Well, it's very simple. Come as a worshiper. Come as a worshiper. What does that look like? To really be a worshiper, you give to Him something that is precious. You give to Jesus something that cost you something. Some of you spent a lot of time during the Christmas season trying to think of something special for someone in your life. And you wanted to cost something. Listen, if you're really interested in worshipping Christ, doesn't it make sense to give Him something that He really wants? Something that is really costly to you? What would that be? Do you know what it is? It's your sins. If you want Christmas to be meaningful, if you really want to worship and fall down an adoration as the Magi did, then give Him something really meaningful. Give Him your sins. I don't just mean give over to Jesus the guilt of your sin, though that's included. I mean give over to Jesus control over that sin. And if you want to boil a sermon down in a nutshell, it means this. To worship Jesus on His throne, you must first get off yours. So what does that mean at Christmas? It means to become a worshiper. It means to repent of your sins. It means to give Him your heart. It means to make Him your hope and your joy and your security. Jesus, if I have you, I'm going to do it. And your security. Jesus, if I have you, there's nothing else I desire. As the Psalmist wrote, who have I in heaven but you? And on earth there's nothing else besides you. My flesh may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Now what light do the wise men shed on the birth of Jesus? The need to worship. The need to get off our own thrones. And the need to present to Jesus your favorite sins. What would that be? What does that look like? I'm convinced that unless we do that, that our worship of the Savior's birth is just going through motions, it's just a sham. In the silence and quiet of your own hearts, would you just bow your head and ask the Holy Spirit right now to reveal what it is in your life that needs to be presented in worship to Jesus? Will you do that? Father in heaven, we confess that instead of being more like the Magi, we're more like the Jews of Jesus' day. We're more like King Herod. We confess that we are guilty sometimes of celebrating your birth with all the right words and music and all the proper planning, gift-giving. But Jesus, we know that you want us to give you a gift as well, because you're the King of kings and the Lord of lords. And so we present to you ourselves, and we present to you our favorite sin. We pray that you would rule over us and that you would rule in us, and that you would remind us through the day and through the week, through the whole season of Christmas, that you would remind us that to worship you Jesus on your throne, we must get off of our own. Will you bind that to our hearts? Will you make it a living reality that we cannot forget, so that we would worship you at Christmas and forever? And we pray this in your name, Amen.