John 19:33-37

Watch on YouTube

In the season of Epiphany, we are going through the three gifts that the Magi brought to the Christ child, and today we’re looking in particular at that gift of myrrh. We may not be familiar with myrrh in our daily lives today, but back in Jesus’ time it was very commonly used and it was used for a number of different purposes. One was medicinal. Myrrh has antibiotic properties that are very beneficial when it’s used as an antibiotic, the bacteria don’t adapt to resist it, and so it can be very powerful in that regard. It was also used in preservation and particular in preservation of bodies after burial. And it’s very sweet smelling, so it was sort of a method of embalming. It was not only very pleasant smelling to combat the smell of decay, but it also helped prevent decay. It preserved the body as well for a while.

And so I have some myrrh with me today. This is myrrh incense, and this is a kind of sweet myrrh. It might not look like the incense we’re familiar with. We might think of incense being on a stick form, that you burn the end of the stick and it burns down. But this is actually resin incense, and this is more accurate to what the incense in Jesus day would have looked like. The resin incense is usually put on a lighted charcoal that will burn the incense and make it smoke, and provide a very strong, sweet scent.

Incense, like myrrh, is gathered in a very unique way. The way that they get incense is from the bark of a tree, and what they need to do with that tree is they drill into the tree and then sap pours out from the wound where they drilled the tree. And so then they gather that sap and they let it dry into a resin. And then when you heat it or burn it, it produces this very sweet smell. And you can use it in oil form as well for medicine or for preservation.

But that’s a very interesting way to gather myrrh. We see in that gift of myrrh, it foreshadows the very work that Jesus would do. Just like myrrh is gathered by piercing into a tree and taking the sap that pours out from the tree. So also with our Lord Jesus. His body was pierced on a tree. Myrrh has been called the tears of the bleeding tree, and we can apply that to our Lord’s work for us, that in all that sorrow on the tree on Good Friday we find healing, we find peace, and we find life even in the midst of death. We read from the gospel according to Saint John.

When they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. He who saw it [that is, John himself] has borne witness—his testimony is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth—that you also may believe. For these things took place that the Scripture might be fulfilled… T”hey will look on him whom they have pierced.” (John 19:33-37)

Just as the wound on the tree pours out the sweet smelling myrrh, so also the spear wound on that sacred tree of the cross, from that wound in Jesus’ side pours out from his gracious and loving heart for you blood and water. And that is the healing and the sweet smelling myrrh that you have today in your own congregation. Your own pastor baptizes you with that holy water, the water of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Your very pastor ministers to you with that very blood in the Holy Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, where Christ Himself and all that he has worked, and won for you comes directly to you, is placed upon your lips, and is yours. And the wounds from that tree cleanse you so fully, and preserve you so well that even death itself has no power over you. Your sin is forgiven.

By a tree, death is overcome and Christ is victorious and lives forevermore. And even in this season of Epiphany, we look ahead with joy, knowing that Christ is risen. He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Amen.

Ephesians 5:2, Isaiah 60:6-7

Watch on YouTube

Today we are going through the three gifts of the Magi in the season of Epiphany, and I’d like to share with you today the gift of frankincense. The Magi brought this special gift to Christ, the newborn king. And I have some frankincense with me today. This is incense of a kind we’re probably a little bit familiar with, at least. This is called stick incense. It says it’s premium quality. I don’t think it’s actual premium quality, but, hopefully we can still learn from it and enjoy it.

You typically put it in a holder and you light it and it burns as a sweet smelling incense. This is one of the gifts that the Magi brought to Jesus, not in this form, but in a different form. And we see in this gift, like the other gifts that the Magi knew who Jesus was. They knew what his purpose was. And in particular, frankincense reveals that purpose to us. Frankincense was commanded for use in the tabernacle, in the wilderness, and then later in the temple, and it was placed in the Holy Place. That’s the part of the temple reserved just for the priests. And there it had the candelabra. It had the showbread for the 12 tribes of Israel. And inside the Holy Place was also the Most Holy Place, the Holy of Holies. Now at the curtain that separated the Most Holy Place from the rest of creation, there was this altar of incense. And in the book of Exodus we hear God commanded specific incense be used to burn at the entrance into the Most Holy Place outside that very curtain. And one of the main ingredients that we read in Exodus 30 is frankincense.

Now, this comes from a tree. I believe it’s the Boswellia tree. They take bark from that tree and they break it down. And then the pieces of the resin that are made from that bark become this sweet smelling incense when you heat it or when you burn it. And so it made the Holy place and the Most Holy Place have this very sweet scented smell. When they would burn this, this sacred incense that the Lord had commanded. The Magi bringing frankincense to Jesus indicate they know he’s going to serve as a priest. Not just any priest, but the priest of all priests, the priest who would fulfill all of that tabernacle and temple worship and work from the old covenant that all points to him as its fulfillment.

And so we know that in Christ we have that purification of all of our sins. We have that cleansing in his sacrifice on the cross, the sacrifice he not only offers as priest, but he himself is. Out of love for you, he gave up his life on that cross. He offered it up to his father in your place to cleanse you of all of your sins, to sanctify you with his own Holy Spirit that has been washed over you and poured into your heart in Holy Baptism. And through that, through that cleansing, that sanctifying, we too can enter that Most Holy Place through the sacrifice of Jesus, atoning for all of our sins. We too can go into the presence of God Himself, where he dwells with us in Word and Sacrament. And so we read from Ephesians chapter five.

Walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. (Ephesians 5:2)

There we see Christ giving himself up in love for us so that we can be restored to God. We can be reconciled and purified, that we can enter that Most Holy Place of God’s gracious and loving presence in heaven. We see this fulfillment of prophecy from Isaiah 60.

They [the Gentiles] shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall bring good news, the praises of the Lord. They shall come up with acceptance on my altar, and I will beautify my beautiful house. (Isaiah 60:6-7)

And in this beauty of the Lord’s house, this beauty of the work of Christ, the priest, done for us. We too are brought up to the altar, the holy altar of God, and we to rejoice in and share his gracious presence with us in Word and Sacrament.

1 Peter 1: 18-19, 6-7, 8-9

Watch on YouTube

Hi, I’m Pastor Jacob Kempfert at Gloria Dei in Saginaw, Michigan, and in the season of Epiphany, I’d like to walk you through, in particular, the three gifts of the Magi, the gifts that they brought to Jesus, the newborn king from afar.

And the first gift we hear of is the gift of gold. And I have a little piece of gold here with me today to share with you. Gold is a very treasured gift. It’s considered very precious because it’s rare, and so someone bringing a gift of gold to a newborn would be a very precious gift, and in particular, a gift for a king. A newborn king would receive tribute. The king’s people, or often regions adjacent, would bring gifts of gold to pay tribute to their new reign. And so that’s what we see the Magi doing. Even though they were from very far away. They were Gentiles. Yet they knew that this baby, born in Bethlehem, was born to be a king. And not just any king, but King of all kings and Lord of all lords.

And so we see gold being very precious. And many people seek after gold. They want to have gold and invest in gold. But in a wider sense, many people seek after what gold gives. Wealth, value, money, power maybe. And what I have here is actually not gold. This is actually a piece of fool’s gold. It’s the only gold I can really afford to have. But that’s important for us to remember too, is really all gold is fool’s gold if you love gold. And so if you love gold and what it represents, if that’s where your heart is, that’s where your treasure is, then God tells us you are foolish. If you’re living only for money, if you’re giving your life only to the pursuit of money or possessions or power, if you’re valuing yourself only in terms of how much you make or what you have, or what you can attain in this world, that’s a very foolish pursuit.

Our Lord reminds us you are much more precious than gold. Your life has far more value than the pursuit of any of these worldly things. From First Peter chapter one.

Knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. (1 Peter 1:18-19)

And so we know that your soul, your meaning, your value is much more precious than gold or anything within this creation, because you were bought with the forgiving blood of the Holy Son of God on His cross. You were redeemed from all of these futile ways of the world with the sacrifice of Jesus’ own life in his death on Calvary.

And we also know what is more precious to God than gold, and that is your faith. The faith that he has created in you and strengthens in you, that is far more precious to God. From First Peter one we also read

In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 1:6-7)

So gold is purified in fire. It’s made more precious through a burning process, so also your faith in Christ which saves you forever. That is so much more precious to God than gold. If that fire makes that gold more precious, is that fire an evil thing? Is it a bad thing? So also in your trials, in your sufferings in this world, is that trial that makes your faith in Christ, your reliance on his work for you more genuine, more precious is that trial and evil thing? Is that a bad thing? Not at all actually, because that is what is turning your eyes away from this world and to the true treasure, the blood of Christ that you have in the Holy Sacrament. The forgiveness of all sins that was won for you in his sacrifice on the cross and the victory over death, the life everlasting that is yours, in the resurrection of Jesus from the grave.

And so we also read in first Peter one,

Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. (1 Peter 1:8-9)