February 3

Offering Gifts

On coming to the house, they saw the Child with His mother Mary, and they fell down and worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh. — Matt 2:11 BSB

Those who follow the light will always be led to Christ. And when someone finds the Savior, there is always joy in their heart. The first response is to adore and worship Him. The wise men saw only a baby lying in His mother’s arms. There was no crown on His head, no glory shining from His face. His surroundings were humble—no pomp or splendor. The child performed no kingly acts of power, spoke no word. Yet the Magi believed and “worshiped Him.”

Think about how much more we know about Christ than they did. We see Him in the glory of His life, death, resurrection, and ascension. We see Him seated at God’s right hand, “King of kings,” wearing many crowns. It’s not hard for us to see His royal marks. Will we be any less eager than the Magi in our adoration?

The wise men didn’t stop at worshiping the King with words and gestures—they also laid their gifts at His feet. It’s not enough for us to sing praises to Christ, look up to Him in adoration, bow in reverence, and speak words of worship. We should also bring our gifts to lay at His feet.

Too often, our devotion is only sentimental. When real sacrifice or service is required, our devotion fades. People sing heartfelt missionary hymns, but when it’s time to give, they have nothing to offer. These wise men didn’t just bring gifts—they brought costly ones. We should give our best to Christ—our “gold, frankincense, and myrrh,” the alabaster box of our deepest love, and above all, our lives and our service.