You can see this divine expectation in the language the angels use at Christmas, the expectation that we will move from fear to joy, from anxiety to assurance. Whenever the angels say “fear not”—and they say it all the way through the Christmas story—they are using the imperative form of the verb. That means when the angels say, “fear not,” it’s not like, “Oh, don’t be worried. Everything is going to be okay.” It’s not a gentle encouragement. It’s a command. It’s the same verb form a general uses to tell the soldiers to attack the hill. It’s the same verb form a mother uses when she tells her kids to straighten up. The angel is commanding us to dump the fear and choose the joy coming into the world!
As soon as you hear that, you may say, “Wait a minute. I could use a little comfort here. I could use a little encouragement. What do you mean commanding me not to be afraid and to substitute joy for my fear? How in the world can I do that? How can I change my feelings?”
It seems absolutely impossible, but the reason the angel can say it is because at Christmas God gave the world the gift of Himself in Jesus. That gift comes with power to transform our lives from the inside out, so that our fears can be dispelled and we can experience true joy.
And the reason I am bringing this message today is that I see way too many Christians in modern America believing in Jesus without ever really accepting the gifts He was born to give, unconsciously choosing fear rather than joy.
The gist of the angel’s message is, “quit fooling around. Accept the gifts and become the person God created you to be.” To begin to understand those gifts and how they work out in our lives, we can look at the gifts the Magi, the Wise Men, brought.
Usually a sermon on the gifts of the Magi focuses on how those gifts tell us about the identity of Christ or the functions He was to perform in his time on earth. But in pointing out who Jesus was to be, the gifts of the Wise Men also point to who He would be for us, what gifts the heavenly gift came to give each of us. In Matthew 2 we read about the Magi, the Wise Men, arriving in Bethlehem. They brought three gifts, and each one is symbolic. We sing about them often, but for just a moment, think with me about what they mean in our lives.
The first was gold, and that really doesn’t need much explanation. Gold was the traditional gift for a king. When a king was born, or was crowned, or came to town, the first gift given was gold.
Who is this child? This child is the king of the universe, and He was born to be king over your life. That means as He is king over your life and as you follow where He leads, whatever this world throws at you, you meet it not simply in your own power but in His. Suddenly, in His power and authority, you are given the gift of being freed from fear of the world.
See how it works? As He is king over your life, as He is your leader and you’re not just paying lip service to Him, it’s not just you meeting this world. You are following Him, so you meet the world in the power of the one who is king over everything.
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