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The Magi: Worshipful And Giving
Brian Mashburn
December 25, 2016
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Exalting Jesus
In the Bible, the birth of Jesus is told multiple times and in several different ways. It was the disciple John, in his gospel, who used the loftiest of language when he described it by saying that "the Word became flesh and dwelled among us."
It is a phrase that the simplest of all people can fall in love with and appreciate, and the most gifted and passionate thinkers can go eternally deeper into and still learn from.
It is a proclamation that God became a man.
Often described as the "Incarnation of God" (which means, "God put in flesh"), the birth of Jesus is a demonstration of the lengths God will go in order to be with us. As a matter of fact, in the Bible, the birthday name of Jesus is "Immanuel" which means "God with us."
The idea that God was in that manger as a baby is something that we must be open and receptive to if we are to receive it's blessings. We must be curious and inquisitive about it if we are to confirm its truth. And we must be bold and changeable if we find it to be true, if we want to align our lives with what is real.
Ultimately, if it is true that Jesus is the incarnation of God, then there is one more posture that we must take up...
We must be worshipful and giving.
The wise men modeled this for us. They travelled a great distance to see Jesus, and when they did, they worshipped him, and they opened up their treasures and they gave.
Today, let us worship Immanuel, God made flesh.