Willow Ridge Sermons

December 22nd, 2024 • "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change." — James 1:17

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Creators and Guests

Host

Beau Bradberry

Senior Pastor

What is Willow Ridge Sermons?

Sermon audio from Sunday services at Willow Ridge Church.

Welcome to the Willow Ridge Sermons podcast.

We're so glad you chose to listen today.

In this message, we reflect on the journey of the wise men and the faith lessons they teach us.

Their wisdom is seen in their pursuit of Jesus, their recognition of his worth, and their humble worship.

Join us as we explore how the wise men's devotion challenges us to seek Christ, honor him with our lives, and obey his calling above all else.

Thanks for listening.

Well, good morning.

If you have your Bibles, and I hope you do, I want to invite you to join me in Matthew chapter 2.

I hope each and every one of you had the opportunity to enjoy some of the wonderful goodies that were out there this morning.

I want to thank every single person for coming who were able to provide those for us.

So, normally, I don't eat on Sunday mornings.

I'm on a steady diet of caffeine from early in the morning.

And today was a steady diet of caffeine and sugar.

Right?

So, here's my goal.

Right?

I'm going to probably try to have to slow down a little bit the way that I talk.

And I'm going to ask that you guys don't experience your sugar crash until you get home this afternoon.

So, if you feel like I'm about to, like, my sugar's crashing, I need to go do, go out there, like, hammer a couple of cinnamon rolls, come back in here, and you'll be good.

But, see, it's just a wonderful opportunity for us to gather together as a church.

Not that simply gathering together to worship and to open God's Word is insufficient, because it's not insufficient.

This is what God calls us to do, and I'm so grateful that we have the opportunity to do that as well.

But, on special occasions like this, it's just so wonderful for us in the busyness of life, in all of the chaos that is happening around us,

to be able to come together as a family, as a church family, and experience that together.

So, thank you all for being here this morning and for doing that.

With that said, just a reminder, these were in those videos, you guys have heard this,

but our Christmas Eve service at 530, we'd love everyone will be in here.

It'll be loud, it'll be noisy, it'll be shorter than a normal service,

and it'll be a wonderful time for us to gather together, to take the Lord's Supper together,

to acknowledge Christ and His work and remember that, and to celebrate again as a family, all of us.

And then our New Year's prayer service that we'll have on December 29th.

So, if this was heavy on the sugar, we're going heavy on the protein, right?

So, we'll have bacon and sausage and eggs and all those things next Sunday.

And so, we'd love for you to be here with us, 950s, and we'll start breakfast again.

That's everybody in the room.

If you can help us out by registering, that is really important for us,

that we can make sure that we have enough food here for everyone that morning.

Now, something a little bit different.

After the service is over with, we will go into a special called business meeting for church members,

for us to be able to vote on the budget for next year.

So, if you're a church member, prepare, just kind of hang tight.

Dave's going to come up on stage.

It doesn't take us long to walk through that, but we want to make sure that you hold on to that

and that you, Dave will dismiss everyone who's not a church member so that we can vote.

So, you'll want to make sure that you hang around for that.

And with that said, if you are a first-time guest, we count it as a privilege and honor that you're here.

Maybe you're in town visiting some families for the holiday season.

Maybe you're here because you're checking out our church and you're visiting us and you're looking for a new church home.

Whatever the reason that you find yourself here today, we count it as a blessing and an honor and a privilege

that you would decide to worship with us.

And you'll notice there's some QR codes on the backs of the chairs in front of you.

At some point in time, maybe even right now during the service, if you would scan that,

you can give us just a little bit of information just so we have a record that you were here.

But then after the service is over with, okay, while the business meeting is happening,

I will be out in the main lobby in the front.

And if you wouldn't mind for our first-time guest, if you wouldn't mind stopping by,

would love to just shake your hand to meet you and to thank you for being here and for worshiping with us.

I want to read to you, we'll be in Matthew 2, but I want to read to you James 1.17 this morning

as we set our hearts for God's Word.

This is every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights,

with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

Would you pray with me?

God, we come to you this morning, Lord, and we thank you for what a privilege and honor it is to gather together.

Father, I thank you for this church.

I thank you for this church family.

I thank you for this opportunity to gather in fellowship, to gather in worship, Father, and to gather in studying your Word.

God, as we study, as I preach, God, I pray that this would not be of me and my heart and my thoughts and my motivations,

but God, it would be of you and it would be of your will and it would be of your heart and your words.

Lord, may you teach us, may you guide us in the power of your Holy Spirit, Lord, and instruct us and change us.

And Father, if there's anyone here who does not know you, I pray that today they would put their faith, hope, and trust in your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ.

And it's in his name we pray, amen, amen.

Today's theme, today what we're going to look at, and in the telling of the biblical story, the biblical narrative of the wise men,

we're going to have this kind of this theme of gifts.

It's what we think about, it's oftentimes where Christian tradition has come from, but around the Christmas season that we give gifts and do that.

So in this, we're, this is kind of the theme that we're going to look at this morning.

I found it, I chuckled a little bit.

I was outside loading my face up with cinnamon sugar donuts this morning.

Van Ham looked at me and he was like, hey man, right?

All right, you've got it right here.

And I looked at him and I said, I know.

And then I think it was Brent Hawkins said, oh, he's saving that for later, right?

And I came inside though to get ready to pull my message up on my iPad and I go through my email to do that.

And I just sent my sermon through there.

And then, but the email that popped up right before that, just in case you were wondering, was Amazon.

And it said, it's not too late, right?

Last minute, click here.

So we're surrounded by the pressure, the obligation, the opportunity, the joy of this time of year to give gifts.

And what I love is as we think, we got the kids in here and there's the excitement of this time of season of what they think through.

In fact, I was talking to one of our elementary school kids just a second ago and was talking about being excited and immediately went in to tell me about what they get to do and where they get to go and all the different gifts that they get to open.

But we're going to look at this opportunity that we see, this beautiful true story coming out of Bethlehem of the wise men who bring gifts to Jesus.

So let's begin reading Matthew chapter 2.

We're going to read all the way through verses 1 through 12.

And God's word says this.

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, saying,

Where is he who has been born of the Jews?

For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.

When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled and all Jerusalem with him.

And assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people.

He inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.

And they told him in Bethlehem of Judea.

For so it is written by the prophet.

And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah are by no means least among the rulers of Judah.

For from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people, Israel.

Verse 7.

When Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared,

and he sent them to Bethlehem, saying,

Go and search diligently for the child.

And when you have found him, bring me word that I too may come and worship him.

After listening to the king, they went on their way.

And behold, the star that had been seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was.

And when they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.

And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshipped him.

Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.

And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod,

they departed to their own country by another way.

Let's understand some of the details concerning the birth and the early days and months of Jesus' life.

Jesus was born in Bethlehem.

You and I here at Bethlehem, we sing songs about Bethlehem.

We know about Bethlehem.

In fact, several years ago, Aaron and I had some friends who lived in the real place of Bethlehem.

And it's a small city, as we know, it's a small city, about six miles south of Jerusalem.

And this was the place of birth for King David.

While this place carries significance and importance for us,

in the time of Christ, this was not a city of significance.

This was not a city of influence.

But yet, what we see happening in this story from the birth of Christ to what we find now,

the wise men coming to see Jesus, is this insignificant setting is carrying individuals in a story of great significance.

During this time, there is a ruler who ruled over the area by the name of Herod.

And this can get a little confusing because we'll see throughout history different Herods.

But this Herod was referred to as Herod the Great.

And he was great.

If you acknowledge that his greatness is a little bit complicated.

He was seen by peers and adversaries to be a great ruler in areas of politics, in areas of administration, in areas of building and construction, and many other ways.

He oversaw building projects.

Where some of those buildings still stand today, he's written about and studied.

During his rule and reign, the region in which he oversaw suffered one of the worst famines today on record.

And you look at what he was able to do, and he provided famine relief to many.

And even those during the day who opposed him go on historical record, not biblical record, I'm sorry, but go on historical record to commend him of his decision making and the things that he was able to accomplish and that he was able to do.

However, with all that said, we said he was great, but his greatness was complicated.

He was a man that his cruelty was great as well.

Before the birth of Christ, Herod, who was already had a bent toward cruelty, suffered an illness that caused him to have various mental struggles.

And the way that these mental struggles began to manifest in his life is he was a man who was constantly bombarded with thoughts of paranoia.

And very specifically, this paranoia was geared toward the Jewish people that he ruled over.

And very specifically, within those Jewish people, a threat that one day that one of them would come and take his throne, take his rule, take his reign.

And again, we begin to see and understand the situation that we find us in.

I thought this was interesting.

I read this this week, speaking to the cruelty of Herod.

There's a Roman emperor whose name was Augustus.

And here's a quote from Augustus concerning Herod.

He said this, it would have been safer to be Herod's pig than it was to be Herod's son.

As he wanted to make sure that no one, no one could take what is his.

But this morning, while Bethlehem is greatly significant, this morning, while Herod is definitely significant in the telling of the story,

we're largely going to focus on this group of individuals known as the wise men.

As the wise men.

But who are they?

Who are these kind of mysterious group of men who show up in the narrative of the telling of the birth, of the story of the early days of Christ?

I think it's important for us to understand some things about them.

Traditionally, what we have seen, traditionally, what we have heard,

traditionally, what has been common thought in the telling of the story in the churches,

is that there were three of them.

But the truth is, we don't know if there were three of them or not.

We don't know if there was more than three.

We don't know if there was exactly three.

The number three comes because what you just saw, there were three gifts that were given.

So that's a number that's there.

But the truth is, we don't know how large this group of men who have traveled from a great distance,

we'll understand in just a second, are.

But we know that they were wise men who came and who traveled,

and there was a group of them who did this.

The Bible tells us that they came after Jesus was born.

They did not come on the same night as the shepherds.

In fact, they probably came months later to see Jesus.

While Joseph, Mary, and Jesus were still in Bethlehem.

The Bible tells us that they traveled from the east.

And many believe that these wise men who have traveled from the east

were actually exiled Jewish men who lived in what we would come to know as modern-day Iran.

And this means their journey would be about 800 to 900 miles.

If you want to know what it's like to travel 800 to 900 miles at about 3 o'clock today,

get on 378 from I-20 and head toward Walmart.

When you get to Walmart, right, that's about what it would have felt like to make that distance.

It's a long, long ways.

But the Bible tells us the word that's used is magi.

And we've translated that kings, and it's close, but it's very specific with the type.

And it's that these were literally wise men.

They were highly educated, probably in the area of astronomy, specifically,

but not just the area of astronomy.

They'd have been highly educated in the area of mathematics and the sciences.

So what we have are literally a group of individuals who have made this long trip.

They've made this long journey.

They are wise men, even in the world standards.

They would look at them and their mental capability of what they've studied,

of what they've journeyed, of what they've known, of what they have,

as they're applying what they have in order to be able to make this journey as they follow a star.

It's pretty sharp, fellas.

The Bible tells us that they come bringing Jesus' gifts.

Very specifically, the Bible gives us the gifts that they brought.

They brought gold that translates well in our day.

If you're wondering what would be a gift that would wow someone, gold, right?

And they bring this gift to Jesus.

They also bring frankincense.

Frankincense was a white resin that would be used during worship in the temple to be burned.

Incense.

So they brought gold.

They brought frankincense.

I'm like, okay, I can definitely get behind the gold.

The frankincense, okay, that's different.

But okay.

And they brought myrrh, which would have been a spice that would be used in the embalming process.

You're like, okay, you got me on that one, right?

I'm like, fellas, just telling you, for the lady in your life, right?

If you're in that panic mode, number one, get on Amazon right now.

Like, you've got my permission.

They still can get it there.

But don't, like, look up embalming fluid.

She's not going to like that, right?

But all of these gifts, gold, frankincense, and myrrh, all of these gifts, highly valuable, and they bring them to Jesus.

And this kind of paints this picture of what we do.

This brings us this picture of who we are to be as people, of what we not just gather in this time of year

and take packages and wrap them with paper and put them on bows, and we get cards and write them,

and we give them to friends and family to do this.

But it's also the telling of the story that God is good and that God gives to us.

And it's why we begin in James 1, 17, of this time of the year is the reminder that we don't just gather

and we think about the gift of Christ once a year, but it is a day in, day out, 365-day,

beautiful reminder of the gift of God's goodness, the gift of God's grace, the gift of God's salvation,

which is not found in you, it's not found in your works, it's not found in your capability,

and it's not found in mine either, but God's goodness of His grace and His gift in Christ Jesus

is found in Christ and Christ alone.

And He continues every single day of more and more to pour out His gifts on us.

And we are blessed, we are blessed, and then God calls us to be givers, and we gift one another,

but we also, we take what God has given us, and we give it back to Him.

We give it back to Him.

You know, when you think you're hearing me say that, you're like, okay, well here we go on tithing,

and sure, yeah, we take what God has given us, and we take a portion of that, and we bring it in our tithes,

in our offerings, and we give it back to Him, but the beauty when we become givers,

and we understand what that means, is that we understand as givers that we're stewards,

and that all that we have, every single bit of it, not 10%, but 100% is His,

and in all of it, we do what God has called us to do, in every single aspect of it.

We use our gifts, we use our talents, we use our time, we use it all for Him.

And that's what He called us to be.

But specifically, it's just thinking through, like, what is the gift that we can kind of think of within this?

I thought about, in this, with the wise men, the gift of wisdom.

The gift of wisdom.

Of what God gives us.

Of what God calls us to.

God's Word promises that those who trust God, those who put their faith in God,

that those who seek God, that God, in turn, will give them wisdom.

It's not obtained through a degree.

It's not connected to your intellectual capabilities.

But that God, the greatest giver,

it's who He is,

and we are recipients of that,

that He gives,

and He gives wisdom.

James 1.5 says,

if any of you lacks wisdom,

like, you ever feel like you fall into that?

Like, that's me?

If any of you lacks wisdom,

let him ask God,

who gives generously to all without reproach,

and it will be given to him.

In the context of this,

James is writing,

and he's encouraging the men and the women of the faith

who are facing unbelievable trials

that you and I cannot possibly fathom.

And he says,

during this,

as you're desperate of what to do,

how to handle,

how to move forward,

like, ask God in faith.

God, this is not dependent on me.

God, this is not dependent on my problem-solving capabilities.

God, this is not dependent on my mental fortitude.

God, this is not dependent on my own moral capabilities.

But God, this is dependent on you.

God, and in faith, Lord,

I need your wisdom.

And God's word says to ask,

and he's generous,

and it will be given.

Proverbs 2, 6 says,

for the Lord gives wisdom.

From his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

Right?

But that's God.

God is our source of wisdom,

that all of the powerfulness of wisdom

comes from the combination of the knowledge

and the understanding that God gives us.

It's why the greatest mind

to study God's word

that I've ever had the privilege

to sit at their feet

was a man who barely graduated high school,

who grew up a dirt poor farmer

in Abbeville, South Carolina,

who was not going to wow anyone

with his ability to read

or formulate mathematical equations

or get into a theological debate.

But I could sit at the feet of my grandfather

and hear the wisdom of God's word

as you have the knowledge

and the understanding

because it came from God.

Proverbs 2, 6

says, for the Lord gives wisdom.

From his mouth

come knowledge

and understanding.

The Lord gives.

Psalm 111, 10.

The fear of the Lord

is the beginning

of wisdom.

All those who practice it

have a good understanding.

His praise endures forever.

Grayson's at home today.

He's not feeling well.

If y'all could pray for him,

that'd be great.

So he's watching this right now

on the live stream.

And so I'm going to confess

something to him.

We were talking about

and I taught him

how to play spades last night.

So we sat around the table

and we were playing spades

and we were there

and I was talking about

how the points

were divided out.

And it was afterwards.

And it was just me and him

and again,

he's kind of wrapping his mind

around all of it.

And he said,

so you mean to tell me

it's like a,

and then he used a word

that I've never heard of

in my entire life.

And then he said,

formula.

And that's how this happens?

And in that moment,

I was afraid

to let him know

that he knew more than I did.

And that I was petrified

to admit that.

And I said,

exactly.

Like,

now you're getting it, boy.

Right?

That's it.

I could not have said it

any better myself.

The fear of the Lord

is the beginning of wisdom.

And here's

what the psalmist

means when he says this.

Is that

in our proper,

in true wisdom,

proper wisdom,

the wisdom of God's word,

it comes

from this fear

of the Lord.

And if you're here

this morning

and you're not

a follower

of Jesus Christ

and you're like,

well man,

I don't know

that I want to follow

a God

that I'm afraid of.

Well,

that's not

what that word means.

What we mean

by fear

of the Lord,

it's an awe,

it's an awesomeness

of who he is,

and it's submission

to that.

It's a mind

that's blown away

by his goodness

and who he is.

It is a depth

of respect,

it is a depth

of mind-blowing,

unbelievable goodness

that when we stand

before him

and his holiness,

the only thing

we can do

is say,

I give up.

I give up

and I'm yours.

And we begin

to see this.

So,

we got these

three guys

and we're getting

back to these wise men.

what made the wise men

wise?

What made the wise men

wise?

Educated

beyond

what you and I

would be capable of.

The closest thing

that I would compare

these guys to

is they are

Harvard-level

PhD

after PhD

students.

And that may

have been

why the world

would have said

that they were wise.

But we can find

from this story

some aspects

about them

that did not come

from their

earthly education

but came

from their

submission,

from their fear,

from their

understanding,

from their submission

to God.

Five aspects

that we see

in this story

that caused

us to say

beyond your

understanding

of mathematics

and science,

here is the

wisdom of men

who have submitted

themselves

before a holy

God.

And there are

things that you

and I,

regardless of

where we find

ourselves this

morning,

simplicity

of truth

can take,

can hold

into our

hearts

and in the

power of the

Holy Spirit

begin to

implement

in our

lives.

And we

too,

we too

can be

wise.

Number one,

they read

and believed

God's word.

They read

and believed

God's word.

In this

interaction

in Matthew

chapter 2,

we see

evidence

of two

times where

they begin

in the telling

of their

story of

what they

are doing,

of why

they are

on the

journey,

of why

they've

come from

modern day

for us,

Iran,

to this

little,

nothing,

insignificant

town,

800 to

900 miles

away.

Because they

followed a

star.

Followed a

star,

well why

this star?

Why not

another star?

There's theories,

there's people

that have argued

about the

different stars

and where

the star

could have

been,

but here's

what I think

is important

and I

apologize

that these

verses are

not on the

screen,

so if you

want to

jot the

references

down,

the first

one is

Numbers

24,

17.

It says,

I see

him,

but not

now.

I behold

him,

but not

near.

A star

shall come

out of

Jacob,

and the

scepter shall

rise out

of Israel,

and it

shall crush

the forehead

of Moab

and break

down the

sons of

Sheth.

Right?

The promise

of a star

and the

promise of

a savior

and the

journey of

which it

will come.

You see,

the star

is not

just this

piece of

what's there

and the

prophecy

of a

being in

the sky,

not a

being,

I'm sorry,

of a

star in

the sky,

but a

baby born

in a

manger.

And so

they read

that and

they believed

it.

But it

also would

point them

to a

person in

a place

in Micah

But you,

O Bethlehem,

Ephrathah,

who were

too little

to be

among the

clans

Judah.

From

you

shall

come

forth

for

one

who

to be

ruler

Israel,

whose

coming

forth

is from

old,

from

ancient

days.

So these

were men

who gathered,

who took

the

scripture

that they

had access

to,

not the

whole

thing,

but the

part that

they had

the access

to.

And they

said,

this is what

God's

word is,

so this

is what

we'll

believe,

but not

just that

we'll

believe it,

but we'll

act on

it.

But we'll

act on

it.

You see,

the wisdom

that we

see from

these wise

men are

not just

that they

read and

that they

understood,

it's that

they read,

it's that

they believed,

and it's

that they

acted.

You know,

we're getting

ready to go

into the

new year.

One of the

things that

people commit

to every

single year,

I'm one of

you,

is I

desire and

I commit

to spend

more time

in God's

word.

And I

will say

to you,

we need

to do

that.

If you're

ever wondering,

should I

spend more

time in

God's

word?

The answer

to that

is yes.

Yes,

you should.

Yes,

spend more

time.

It's never

going to

fail you.

It's never

a waste

of your

time.

And what

I love

is that

you and

I can

take in

God's

word in

so many

different

ways.

We can

read it,

we can

listen to

it,

we can

get

emails

that send

reminders,

we can

get text

messages

that send

reminders,

we got

apps on

our phone

that will

send

those to

us as

well,

like over

and over

again.

We can

obtain,

we can

consume,

we can

read and

then be

given God's

word.

But the

question is

when we

do this,

are we

just going

to read

it,

are we

going to

acknowledge

mentally

that yes,

this is

right,

or do we

take the

fullness

of wisdom

and in

submission

and obedience

say if

this is

true,

then this

is who

I am.

If this

is true,

then this

is what

God's

called me

to.

You see,

these wise

men were

wise because

they read,

because they

believed,

and because

they acted.

And when

they acted,

the second

thing that

they did

was they

sought

Jesus.

They sought

Jesus.

See,

their study

brought them

to Jesus.

And very

simply,

in their

journey,

Jesus was

enough.

They didn't

come seeking

relief,

seeking answers,

seeking agendas

to be met,

seeking

predetermined

outcomes.

They just

simply came

looking for

Jesus.

And when

they found

him,

he was

enough.

He was

enough.

Have you

ever been

looking for

something,

and when

you found

it,

it wasn't

what you

expected?

the wise

men

were very

clear.

They came

looking for

a king,

and instead

they found

a baby.

They came

looking for

a royal

family,

but instead

found a

poor family.

My assumption

is they

came with

an expectation,

but walked

away very

simply with

Jesus being

enough.

I wish I

could tell

you in

truth that

every struggle,

every difficulty,

every hurt,

every pain,

every bit

of suffering.

Boy, I

wish that

you could

just bring

it, and

we could

say a

prayer, and

wave our

hand over

it, and

it would

just disappear

and go

away.

But if

you've been

a believer,

faithfully

following Jesus,

you know

that that's

not the case

that we

just saw

in James.

James to

a group

of men

and women

who are

suffering

for the

Lord, and

his message

is endure,

endure,

endure.

He is

good.

He is

faithful.

Endure,

endure.

It's the

message of

the New

Testament.

Endure.

And the

question that

I have for

you is

this.

If you

come to

Jesus,

and you've

got your

agenda,

if you

come to

Jesus,

and you've

got your

predetermined

plan,

is Jesus

going to be

enough?

Is he

going to be

enough?

My fear is

for so many

of us.

Our belief

is attached

to Jesus

plus my

expectations.

Jesus

plus my

desires.

Jesus

plus my

wants.

Jesus

plus my

healing.

And when

this side

of the

equation,

on this

side of

eternity,

doesn't

come true,

then the

misbelief

that you

have is

that Jesus

has failed.

And the

hope of

the gospel

should bring

us to the

truth that

Jesus is

enough.

The third

thing,

that the

wise men

do,

that display

their wisdom,

is they

recognized

the worth

of Jesus.

They gave

gifts.

We talked

about it.

Probably a

little strange,

right?

Like imagine

being Mary,

right?

She's like,

oh,

fantastic.

Gold.

Oh,

the next

one,

frankincense.

Okay.

Myrrh.

This just

got weird

a little

bit,

right?

But they

recognized

the worth,

the heavenly

worth of

Jesus.

If you've

ever wondered

why,

why gold,

why frankincense,

why myrrh?

And what I

believe is

only the

working power

of the Holy

Spirit,

of God,

in the lives

of this group

of men,

as they

journey to

see a king

that they've

longed for,

that they've

studied about,

that they've

hoped for,

that in the

working of

that,

that what God

does in their

lives is God

ordains and

has them bring

these gifts.

And it

displays the

worth and

the value

and the

essence of

who Jesus

is.

They bring

gold,

a precious

metal.

Do you

know who

you brought

gold to?

You didn't

bring gold

to a

carpenter's

boy.

You didn't

bring gold

to a virgin

son.

You didn't

bring gold

to Bethlehem.

You brought

gold to a

king.

And so as

they show up,

they're showing

up, and

they're like,

man, you're

a baby.

You're

oohing and

gooing and

all that stuff,

right?

It's baby

time.

But you're

king, and

you're king

Jesus.

And so they

brought frankincense.

They brought

the incense that

was burned in

the temple during

worship, so that

when you smelled

the smell that

would come from

the incense, that

you knew that

the very presence

of God was

before you.

So they're

coming in, and

they're bringing

this incense, and

they're looking at

this baby, and

they're saying,

you're a king, and

you're God.

This is who

you are.

See, Jesus

won't grow up

and become

God.

Jesus won't do

good works and

earn to be

God.

But he's

God.

That in the

most vulnerable

state, this

baby comes, and

he is God.

When you smell

it, when you

smell that

frankincense, it's

the reminder of

him before you,

and the divinity

of Emmanuel.

the divinity of

Christ.

And so then

they bring

myrrh.

Oh, you see

this.

I know you.

Like, you're

tracking with me

on this.

Remember myrrh,

the spice you

use for

embalming?

Because you

are king, and

you are God, and

you're man, and

you're going to

die.

And you're going to

die on the cross, and

you're going to pay the

price of sins for

humanity.

so gather before

them is the

mission of God, found

in Jesus, and

represented, that he

is king, that he is

God, and that he

will die.

But praise the

Lord, the tomb will

not hold him.

And the fourth

thing, they

humbled themselves

in worship.

Matthew 2, 10

and 11, and

when they saw the

star, they

rejoiced

exceedingly with

great joy.

the journey

they've been

on.

800 miles.

It's worth it.

Every bit of your

struggle is worth

it.

Every bit of this

week was worth

it.

Every time,

every time that

you were spoken

illy against, it

was worth it.

Every time they

slandered your

name, it was

worth it.

Every time they

took advantage of

you, it was

worth it.

Every time your

character was

questioned, it

was worth it.

It was worth it.

Every bit of that

800-mile journey,

every blister, every

moment of confusion,

every struggle that

you went through is

worth it.

Verse 11, and

going into the

house, they saw

the child with

Mary's mother, and

they fell down and

worshipped him.

They humbled

themselves in worship.

These educated,

successful,

powerful men of

influence fell down

on a dirt floor in

front of a teenage

girl and her baby,

humbled themselves

face, and worshipped

him.

There's a song, I'll

date myself.

When I got saved,

when I got saved,

the first, we used

to do these events at

the church that I was

at.

I was an intern,

wasn't there long.

It was called

Disciple Now

Weekend.

It was a cool

weekend.

Our youth guy, at the

time, our youth

pastor, his name's

Mark Owens, great

godly man.

I love him to death.

He just kind of

stumbled into things

sometimes.

I remember he was

talking to us, and

he was like, I got

this guy, he's from

him, he's been in

Texas, but he's in

Atlanta now, he's

kind of doing some

stuff back and

forth.

His name's Chris

Tomlin, and like

some of you, you're

like my age, or

you're older, you

remember Chris

Tomlin, and if

you're younger than

that, you're just

like, I just play

his music all the

time on Christian

radio, right?

But he said, I've

got this guy, and

he's willing to

come and be our

worship leader for

D now, like, what

do you think?

And we're like,

yeah, yeah, yeah,

that would be

great, that'd be

cool, that'd be

awesome.

And I knew

nothing about

worship music for

me at that time,

like right out,

like in fifth grade

I went to a

Carmen concert,

right, and that

really dated me,

right, and if you

don't know who

Carmen is, like,

go check out some

YouTube videos,

right, enjoy that

for the rest of

your day, right?

And so we went,

and I'll never

forget, and this

verse rang just

in my mind over

and over and over

again, that they

saw Mary.

And they saw

Jesus, and these

wise men, these

magi, got on the

dirt, and they

put their face

down, and they

got dirty, and they

worshiped him.

And the verse is

like, we fall

down, we lay our

crowns, like, at the

feet of Jesus.

And what I had to

repent of in that

moment, and man, I

hope this lands the

way that God's going

to use it in your

life, is how many

times do I selfishly

come into worship and

say, God, what can I

get from this today?

God, let me be a

consumer.

And God's like, no,

no, no, no, no, no,

no, no, like, you

got to get this.

Like, worship is not

you selfishly coming

to me and saying,

what can you get from

me?

But like, I've been

overflowing your cup

all week long, but

worship is in the

wisdom of these men

before Jesus.

Face down, surrender

in humbleness, my

accomplishments, my

agendas, my plans

don't matter.

Jesus, I'm yours.

It's not, you've

given me everything.

You've given me more

than I could possibly

fathom.

You've given me more

than I could possibly

comprehend.

God, it's me, and I

give all of me to you.

Have me.

Use me.

Do with me what you

please.

And they humbled

themselves in worship.

And then lastly, you

remember Herod?

Scary man.

He'd sooner kill a son

than a pig.

Let me know.

Let me know where he's

at.

But they had a dream.

You know, God's been

speaking in dreams.

God spoke to Joseph in

dreams.

And because they were

wise, because they

listened, because they

studied God's word,

because they were

obedient to God's word,

when they had the

dream, they knew that

this is the dream from

God.

And it says, like,

don't go that way, go

this way.

And so they did.

And in this last one,

what we see in the

wisdom of what it

means to follow God

and the way that the

wise men did, is that

they obeyed God

rather than man.

They obeyed God

rather than man.

I want to tell you

something about

Herod that rings true

still today.

man has an agenda.

Man has an agenda.

Sometimes we can

justify it.

Sometimes we can

promote it.

Sometimes we can be

subtle with it.

Sometimes we can be

blatant with it.

But we have an agenda

that comes from our

flesh to promote us,

to be who we want to

be, to do what we

want to do.

But what we see is

they had faith.

They had faith in the

plan of God.

They had faith in the

purpose of God.

And then their desire

was to fulfill that.

You see, I don't,

I don't care what your

SAT or your ACT

score was.

I don't care whether

you went to college

or not.

I don't care what

your GPA was in high

school.

I understand that at

numerous points and

times during this

message, I myself have

butchered the English

language.

The wisdom of God

is not defined in the

terms of the wisdom

of this world.

But it is found in the

fear of the Lord and

submission to Him.

And so in the next

couple days, we're

going to scatter from

this place.

We're going to gather

with friends and

families.

We're going to open

up packages.

And if you're a

believer in Jesus

Christ, and you've put

your faith, your hope,

and your trust in Him,

and He is your Lord and

He is your Savior, I

pray that for you, this

Christmas season, the

gift that you would

desire above all is the

gift of the wisdom of

God.

to know Him and to

live for Him, to take

His knowledge and His

understanding and put

those together and

practically live those

out in your life.

But if you're not a

follower of Jesus, my

prayer for you is that

during this time, there's

a greater gift that you

would receive.

It's the gift of this

child that we talked

talked about.

This Jesus, who would

walk on this earth for

roughly 33 years.

He came in the form of a

baby, fully God and fully

man.

In those 33 years, when I

say He lived a perfect

life, He lived a perfect

life.

There's no little sin, there's

no big sin, there's no in

between sin in His life.

In His humanity and His

divinity, He lives every

moment in holiness, in His

thoughts, in His actions, in

His words.

And He came fully God and

fully man and experienced the

hurts and the pains of this

world.

You see, He wasn't free

from that.

He knew what it was like to

lose.

He knew what it was like to

hurt.

He knew what it was like to

cry.

He knew what it was like to

be hungry.

He knew what it was like to

be betrayed.

And that as He walked on

this earth, that He looked

and saw humanity.

He saw the evil in

humanity.

He saw the destruction in

humanity.

He saw the pain in

humanity.

He saw the suffering in

humanity.

And the Bible says that He

came to save all of

humanity.

To pay the price of their

sin on the cross of

Calvary.

And so at age 33, He was

falsely accused and

arrested.

He was beaten and had a

crown of thorns stuck on

His head.

The thorns weren't small,

but they were, man, they

were those big, big

thorns.

I mean, they pierced

through His skin.

And He was taken.

And He was stripped

naked.

He was tied to a pole.

And they had a whip.

And they took the whip.

And they beat Him with

it.

And they beat Him with

it.

And they would have

beaten Him until He

almost died.

And then they would

resuscitate Him.

And then they'd beat

Him again.

And then they would take

His cross, the instrument

of death that He would be

nailed to.

And they would force Him

to carry it.

And He'd carry it as

long as He could.

To the top of a mountain.

And there on the top of

that mountain, they would

take three spikes.

And they'd ram Him into

His arms.

And they would ram Him

through His feet.

And they would hang Him

on that cross.

And with all of the pain

and the experience

that we had gone through,

it would not be blood

loss that would kill Him.

But it would be

suffocation.

Because you see, when your

body's that beaten

and you hang down,

it becomes impossible

to breathe.

And so the only way to

breathe is to put all

of your pressure onto

the nail in your feet

and the nail in your hands

and pull yourself up.

And while He's on the cross,

there's a thief

who deserved it.

Who deserved every moment

of it.

And He said,

remember me.

And Jesus said,

I will.

For today,

you'll be in paradise.

And here's the truth.

You and I

deserve to be

on that cross.

We do.

We're the thief.

We deserve it.

You see, there's another thief

who mocked that guy.

But one cried out to Jesus.

And it wasn't in His goodness.

The thief.

He didn't have time

to right his wrongs.

He didn't have time

to get it right.

But He put His faith,

His hope,

and His trust

in the One

who always got it right.

And for you

and for me,

when we put our faith

and our hope

and our trust in Jesus,

then the work

of the Son

on the cross,

the Bible tells us,

is imparted

to our account.

And that in His death,

the Bible teaches us

that your debt

has been marked

paid.

So the punishment

is no longer on you,

but the punishment

has been put on Him.

But the Bible also tells us

that not only

has the debt

been paid,

but we have been forgiven

and in our forgiveness

in Christ,

we've been adopted

into His family.

You see,

so on that day,

the thief on the cross,

he wasn't just someone

that has been forgiven.

He wasn't someone

whose debt was just paid,

but he came

as Son of God.

And that three days later,

Jesus' body

was dead in the tomb

that He rose again.

And He rose to life.

And that the promise

for us

is that being sons

and daughters of God,

that we too,

that death is not the end

in this earthly death,

it's not the end for us.

And the promise

in a God

who always fulfills

His promises,

His eternity with Him.

And my hope for you

this morning,

if you find yourself here

and you're that skeptic,

you're that wanderer,

you're that searcher,

that today,

today,

you would put your faith

and your hope

and your trust

in King Jesus.

Would you pray with me?

God, we thank You.

We thank You

for the beautiful,

wonderful majesty

of who You are.

God, we stand here.

God, we are so

not worthy

of Your love for us.

Lord, You love us anyways.

God, I pray

that as we've seen

the wisdom

of the wise men,

that that wisdom

would ring true

in our life.

God, for all of us

who have known

and trust Jesus Christ

as our Lord

and Savior,

Lord, that today,

today,

Lord, we would

commit to more.

More of seeking You.

More of trusting You.

More of knowing You.

More of obeying You.

More of worshiping You.

More of submitting to You.

Lord, that we would look

at this 800-mile journey

that is life.

We know,

we know

that, Lord,

that You are the prize.

God, I pray

for everyone here

who does not know Christ

as their Lord and Savior.

God, I pray

that whatever lie

in their mind,

Lord, that they choose

to believe,

Lord, in the power

of Your Spirit

that You would set them

free from it.

That You are real.

That You are good.

That You did come.

That You did die.

That You did rise again.

That we are not

good enough.

That we are not

capable enough.

That there is not

another way.

That there is not

another mission.

That there is

a point.

That there is hope.

That there is peace.

That there is joy.

And all of that

is found in Christ

and Christ alone.

Lord, when You say

that You are the way

and You are the truth

and You are the life,

You are everything.

Lord, in that they would

put their faith,

their hope,

and trust in Jesus.

Lord, that they might

not understand

all of that now,

but that is the beauty

of faith.

Faith says you are not

going to understand it.

Faith says you can't

fully comprehend it.

Faith says you have

to trust it.

So God, right now

where they are at,

God, I pray

in their words

and the revelation

of their heart

to You

in a beautiful moment,

God, as the power

of Your Holy Spirit

is wonderfully captivating

their mind

and their heart.

Thank God they would

move from death

to life.

That they would move

from sinner to saint.

They'd move

from the old

to the new.

God, right now,

right now,

they would choose Christ.

Choose Christ.

Jesus,

You are good.

You are sufficient.

You are enough.

You are beauty.

You are hope.

You are meaning.

You are purpose.

You are eternal.

You are everlasting.

God, we repent.

We repent

when we've come

looking for more.

Jesus,

we just come

to You.

Listen,

Jesus,

then we pray.

Amen.

That's it for this week's message.

Be sure to check back

next week

for another episode.

In the meantime,

you can stay up to date

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at Willow Ridge

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and online

at willowridgechurch.org.

Thanks again for listening.

Bye.

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