Pastor Wayne Cordeiro
December 20, 2015 - W1551

"When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. After coming into the house they saw the child with Mary, his mother, and they fell to the ground and worshiped him.  Then opening their treasures, they presented to him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh." (Matthew 2:10-11)

Now, according to some theologians and commentators, these gifts were no ordinary gifts but were prophetic in the sense that they were symbolic of Christ the messiah; gold would be that which is given to a king who in turn would provide for his people; frankincense had medicinal qualities of healing that kept swelling down; and myrrh was an aromatic balm for embalming people when they died.

Do we give gifts? We should, absolutely, but I want you to catch this: when you give gifts, it's not for Him. He owns the universe. It doesn't do Him any good to receive our gifts. But when we give gifts it does us a lot of good. 

As such, anything that Jesus asks you to give is not for Him. He owns it all.  Got it? But yet He'll ask you to give. Why? It's not for Him. It's for you.

There was a story about a carpenter and how he spent 31 years working for a contractor. One day he told his boss that he was going to retire on January 1. So when the time came he told his boss that he was retiring. But his boss asked him to build one more house for him. In the end the carpenter relented and agreed to build one more house for his boss.

But he was tired of his work. And so he cut corners as much as he could in order to complete the job quickly. Then finally he was done and he told his boss that he was retiring. The boss instead gave him the keys to the house and said it was for him after working so hard for 31 years.

If that carpenter knew that that house was being built not for the boss but for him, do you think he would have done a better job? Listen carefully. What Jesus asks you to do or to give, it isn’t for him. It's for you. But we often cut corners and wonder why our lives aren't quite right.

Jesus doesn't need our stuff. He doesn't need us to do things for Him. He's the all-powerful. So why does He have us do things?  Because it's for us.  And when we give, something comes back to us. When I give, my faith is released, and it's my faith that unlocks God’s storehouse to give back to me. 

Because the scripture says in Hebrews 11:6 that without faith it's impossible to please God. For those who come to Him must believe that He exists and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

He wants to reward, but that is going to come by faith, and so He asks us to give because sometimes letting go of something requires faith, and that's exactly the measure we needed to unlock the storehouse.

So you say, well, what do we give? Well, first of all, let's just establish everything on this scripture. Luke 6:38 says,

“Give and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure, press down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.”

Did you catch that? He's increasing your measure so the gifting and the rewarding can be in greater measure.  Give and it shall be given. 

So you say, well, where do you start? Let me give you about four examples of giving. 

In Mark chapter 12, the widow didn't have much money but she gave two mites or two copper coins, and it was so important to Jesus. He called his disciple, “Come here. Did you see what that woman just did? She gave not out of her excess - she gave out of her need.” This is it. She gave what she needed. So God said that then He could provide for her. 

What did she need? Money. What did she give? Money. And her Faith unlocked the door.

Remember that little boy that had a few fish and loaves, and the Lord said to give that. What did that boy need? He needed lunch. So you know what Jesus asked him to give? His lunch. And the result was that 5,000 got fed. Do you understand how that act of faith and giving unlocks the door of an unlimited storehouse?

Here's another one. A starving lady had just a little oil and flour left in 1 Kings 17 and Elijah asked, “What do you have?”

She said, “I got a little bit of oil, a little bit of flour. I'm going to mix it together and make a biscuit. I'm going eat it and my son is going to eat half of it, then we're going to die. That's all we got.”

Elijah knew that the starving woman had to give food because food was what she needed. It was her faith demonstrated by sacrificing her food that opened God’s resources to her.

Just give what you need.

You know what Abraham needed? Kids. Yeah, he was barren. He finally gets a kid, and what does God say to him? “Give up your son Isaac, and I will make you the father of many nations.” He gives what he needed the most and God reciprocates in epic proportions. Today the descendants of Abraham are all over the world.

You need to catch this really, really carefully. The Bible is full of opposites. A lot of times people say it's controversial, but it's not. If you want to live, you die. If you want to get, you give. Here's what God is saying: what you need is what you should start to give.

For example, let me ask you a question. What do you need?  You need love?  You give love.  What do you need the most?  Hence, if you give that, it becomes the most precious of all gifts because it's given sacrificially. 

See, a lot of times if we need love, we withhold love because we need love. Attention, I need attention. I don't give anybody attention because I need attention.  Money, I need money, so I hoard what I have. But the Lord says, “No, do the opposite.” You have to understand the Bible is filled with opposites. If you need money, you give. You need encouragement, so where do you start? By encouraging others. 

Appreciate people. And it can start right here. When you come here to church, I notice a lot of times people just huddle up in their own friend circles. But I encourage you, look for those that are on the side that are all alone and just need attention and go and introduce yourself. Let them know who you are, ask them what their name might be. You're giving attention.  And you'll be surprised what God will give back to you.

We all stick with friends, but remember, the Lord says this about a Good Samaritan. He said love your neighbor.  Now, let me tell you the difference between friends and neighbors.  He says you can love your friends, but anybody can do that. So go beyond that.

In Math. 5:46-48 the Bible says,

“If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?  And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others?  Do not even pagans do that?  Be perfect, therefore, even as your heavenly father is perfect.”

What is the scripture saying? That's what you do. Jesus says to love your neighbor. It’s easy to love your friends.  But there's a difference between friends and neighbors. You cannot choose the neighbors that move in next to you. Friends are people you choose.  Neighbors are the people God chooses. And He says you can love your friends, but make sure you love your neighbors because that's a tough one. Give love in a tough way because there's going to be times when you're going to be the one tough to love, but you'll get that in a larger amount. That's why He says in the same measure that you give, you'll receive.

So here's the question...what do you need the most? You need confidence?  Give people confidence. And start with those where it might be more of a sacrifice, like a widow’s two mites. And when you give to the building campaign, it should be something sacrificial. I need money, then start there, and watch what God does.  It's absolutely amazing.

I remember some years ago I was speaking in Denver, Colorado. When I was finished speaking a guy came up and started talking to me. Well, he talked for quite a few minutes. Eventually someone interrupted our conversation because they were ready to take me out to lunch. But I told them to wait awhile because I wanted to hear what this guy had to say. So I listened until the end and then it hit me that God was telling me that if you want others to listen to you, then you need to listen to them.

And then it began to hit me. The gifts that I give, they're not for God.  God uses it to build faith and depth and genuineness and authenticity in me and increase that faith so it unlocks this storehouse to give me what I need the most. 

Then I began to understand, and he showed me that man and he said, “Maybe I sent him to you so that he through his stories will increase your faith so that I can give you what you need to fulfill what I called you to do.”

The Bible does say that sometimes we will entertain angels without knowing it. What if God sent this guy just to help me build my faith so that what I need God can now give because without faith, it's impossible to please God. And what is that key? It's the faith that I need to unlock that storehouse. So this man came and taught me how to listen so I would give attention, and then God said that now when I speak, there will be attention given to me. If you cannot give attention, why should people give you attention? 

The most beautiful gifts we could give to Jesus would be rewarded and come back to us. The question is: what do you need the most? And maybe there's some who are tough to love, but you never know, maybe those are angels in disguise. 

Some of the people that God will bring into your life will be angels in disguise that will test you and help build your faith, so listen, be kind, and give what you need. That faith that you will grow will unlock the storehouses of God.

Let me finish with a story that I just love. It's about a shepherd. And a shepherd in Israel needs a staff to fight off predators and keep the sheep close, a cloak for sun protection and warmth and sandals for foot protection. But then one day God asked the shepherd to give him his staff, cloak, and shoes. So the shepherd obediently gave it to Him.

Then God said, "Why don't you come back and now take my staff and take my cloak and put on my sandals because now that staff becomes a scepter of God in the hands of a young shepherd, and my cloak will now become a mantle, and now my sandals will help you to bear the good news to nations."

And that shepherd left as a different person, didn't he? It may very well be that that's how God did it with King David. You see, God doesn't want us to lose. He wants us to gain, but it starts by giving and then it builds the faith that opens the storehouse for God to bless, heal and rebirth you. And then when you understand that, you'll understand what it means to bring gifts to Christ at Christmas. Amen.

Questions:

1. What did the treasures presented to Christ on the day of his birth represent?

2. Why is it that in order to receive we need to give first?

3. Why is the Bible full of opposites?

4. Why should we love our neighbors and not only our friends?

5. How do you go about getting love and attention?