12.26.16

 
Devotional for Sunday, December 26, 2016
“The Power of Expectation”
 
 
wise-men-b
 
by Dona Hake
 
Hope you had a beautiful Christmas Day.  Today it is on my heart to share with you the story of the three wise men that traveled with great expectation  to see the newborn King.   I love just imagining what it must have been like.   I wonder what went on in their hearts as they set out on this long journey.   One thing for sure and that is they knew what to follow and it was the grand star in the sky.  Let us read from the scriptures about these three wise men that traveled to see our Lord for the first time.  The Word tells us that they saw the same star they had seen in the east, and they followed it. The star went before them until it stopped above the place where the child was.  They were very happy and excited to see the star.
 
Can we just try to imagine how their hearts must have been overjoyed as they neared what was under that grand star.   Finally they knew in their hearts that they were going to meet this King that they knew was prophesied to come. 

Matthew 2:11    Easy-to-Read Version

11 The wise men came to the house where the child was with his mother Mary. They bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened the boxes of gifts they had brought for him. They gave him treasures of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 
 

I always wondered why the gifts were gold, frankincense, and myrrh.   These gifts must have had significance.   I felt to research the song written by John Henry Hopkins, Jr. in 1857.    I thought that John Henry Hopkins’ interpretation of the gifts was interesting.

We three kings of Orient are;
Bearing gifts we traverse afar,
Field and fountain, moor and mountain,
Following yonder star.

O star of wonder, star of night,
Star with royal beauty bright,
Westward leading, still proceeding,
Guide us to thy perfect light.

Born a King on Bethlehem’s plain
Gold I bring to crown Him again,
King forever, ceasing never,
Over us all to reign.

 
Frankincense to offer have I;
Incense owns a Deity nigh;
Prayer and praising, voices raising,
Worshiping God on high.
 

Myrrh is mine, its bitter perfume
Breathes a life of gathering gloom;
Sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying,
Sealed in the stone cold tomb.

Glorious now behold Him arise;
King and God and sacrifice;
Alleluia!, Alleluia!,

I enjoyed meditating upon this carol and how this composer saw each gift’s significance. The GOLD was an acknowledgement of Jesus becoming the King of all Kings!  The King that would never cease to reign.   FRANKINCENSE is a sweet smelling incense that he seemed to see as symbolic of our prayers, our voices and our worship to Him.   MYRRH being bitter is symbolic to the life and love of our Lord.   There would be bitterness in the sorrows, bleeding and dying that   He would face as He walked in God’s perfect will as He laid down His life at the cross.
 
I encourage you today to praise the living God that loved you so much that He chose to send His only Son just for you!   May we remember that His purpose was to come and set the captives free.   He came that we might be forever redeemed from sin and it’s destruction.  Let us worship Him everyday with sweet praise and adoration.   Let us live in great expectancy of the wondrous things that He has in store for us as we serve Him all the days of our life.