When we think about coming together to worship, we often picture singing songs, lifting our hands to God, maybe kneeling before him, and pouring out our hearts in prayer. But today, on this first Sunday following Christmas, I want to share with you another powerful way to worship God as we follow the journey of the Magi. We are going to begin in Matthew chapter two and then explore other parts of Scripture but the title for today’s message is inspired from the text in Matthew chapter two. Here’s what the Bible says in verse one and two:

"After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, 'Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him” (Matthew 2:1-2).

And so, the Magi stated right from the beginning that their purpose for coming was to what? It was to worship Jesus, right? They said, “We’ve come to worship him.”

This statement of intent caused King Herod to panic because he feared that his control over the kingdom would be threatened. And so, to protect his throne, he lied and said,

"Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him" (Matthew 2:8).

"After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was." (Matthew 2:9).

In other words, the star they had seen caused them to begin this pilgrimage in Persia, the area that is now Iran rose and continued moving. And so, they continued their journey that evening and verse ten says,

"When they saw the star, they were overjoyed" (Matthew 2:10, NIV).

I want to take a moment to reflect on the word "overjoyed." The English language sometimes struggles to capture the full meaning of the original language. In this case, there are actually four Greek words that are translated into "they were overjoyed," which the English Standard Version expresses more accurately by saying,

"When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy" (Matthew 2:10, ESV).

This modern translation highlights just how happy the Magi were when they saw the star. They had been following the star for weeks and maybe months, anticipating the birth of the Savior, looking forward to this encounter, and now they were so close their joy was immense and overflowing.

What troubles me today is that in many churches, there are people who come to worship without any sense of joy. In other words, they come with their own agenda, maybe burdened by life, feeling angry and upset, or critical of the songs or music style, when they should be full of joy. It's puzzling to me that anyone who has heard the gospel and experienced the power of God’s love and grace could seem so unhappy. After all, you and I have received the greatest gift ever, and as followers of Jesus, no matter how hard life gets, we have the promise of everlasting joy.

David expressed it this way in the Psalms,

"You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand" (Psalm 16:11).

So don’t restrain yourself, but let it out, smile. Don’t hold back your joy, but let it show as you worship and praise God. Let others feel your joy because Jesus is with you, working in all things for your good. And he is greater than any challenge you will ever face; He is your always present, all-knowing, and all-powerful God and Savior. Therefore, every believer in this place should be known as the happiest person in your home, your school, or your workplace, bringing joy and delight into other people’s lives because we have a Savior who loves us beyond measure.

You see, the Magi had traveled approximately 900 miles, the distance between Maryland and Florida, because they could not wait to worship the Savior. The Bible tells us that with exceedingly great joy they continued following the star and in verse eleven,

"On coming to the house, they saw the Child with His mother Mary, and they bowed down" (Matthew 2:11).

In other words, they knelt down and bowed their heads in worship before the King of kings and Lord of lords. But they weren't finished, that wasn’t the extent of their worship, the Bible says:

"They opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh." (Matthew 2:11).

And so, after traveling for countless hours, days, and miles, they didn't give their gifts out of mere obligation, but instead they joyfully knelt and offered their treasures to Jesus.

They didn’t come to worship grudgingly or indifferently. Instead, their journey was driven by joyful hearts, eager to offer their gifts with reverence and overflowing joy. They presented Him with valuable gifts, prophetic gifts of gold symbolizing Jesus' kingship, frankincense representing His role as both priest and offering, and then myrrh pointing to His death. The Magi’s journey and their gifts demonstrated their faith and commitment to the Lord Jesus. And so, they were overjoyed as they knelt and worshiped the Savior with all their hearts.

Today, more than ever, I want to encourage you to give your gifts to God as an act of worship because true love gives. When you truly love someone, you want to give to them. We see this exemplified in one of the most famous Bible verses, John 3:16, known even by many who don’t regularly attend church.

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16).

And so, God gave because he loves, and God loved the world so much that he gave his only son, Jesus, who lived a perfect life, died, and rose again to save us from sin. This selfless act of love demonstrates that true love means giving.

“We love because he first loved us" (1 John 4:19). And so, when we truly love, it shows itself in our actions, reflecting God’s example of giving because He didn’t just talk about his love from heaven, but he showed his love here on earth. The Bible says,

"God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8).

I understand that some of you might be thinking, "I love God, but giving is hard for me because of my bills and I worry about money." And that is understandable to feel a mixture of love, fear, and hesitation when it comes to surrendering in the area of giving. However, it’s important to remember that God understands our struggles and invites us to trust Him, even with our finances.

I want to share a well-known passage from Proverbs with you that may help you because many people stop reading too soon. Proverbs chapter three, verse five says,

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight" (Proverbs 3:5-6).

"Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones" (Proverbs 3:7-8).

In other words, it says don’t try to figure everything out on your own but do what is right and trust that God knows better than you do. And then look at what he says next:

"Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine" (Proverbs 3:9-10).

In this passage, the word “honor” means worship, adoration, and praise. And so, how should we worship God? He says, “Worship the Lord with your wealth,” and specifically, he says, “with the first fruits of your increase.”

In other words, on payday, your first fruits, you honor the Lord, by setting aside the first and best part of your crops, livestock, or income to give back to God.

In the book of Malachi, “first fruits” are referred to as the “tithe,” which is the first and best part of your harvest or income that you give to God as an act of worship and obedience. This idea is expressed in Malachi chapter three, verse ten, where God says,

"Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house..." (Malachi 3:10).

Jesus reaffirms the giving of the tithe in the gospel of Matthew when he condemns the Teachers of the Law and Pharisees for their hypocrisy. He says to them in chapter twenty-three,

"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill, and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former." (Matthew 23:23).

In other words, he tells them that giving a tenth of what you have is important, but it should also go hand-in-hand with being just, merciful, and faithful.

And so, it is not either or, but both. Jesus said it is all the above, and at first, this idea might seem hard to accept. In fact, for years, I thought that giving ten percent was crazy, but then I began studying all of the Scriptures that taught tithing and discovered the blessing of faithful giving.

As Solomon said: "Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine" (Proverbs 3:9-10).

In other words, we give God our first and our best and trust him to take care of the rest. And so, he gets the first ten percent, not the last ten percent, not what’s left over after our expenses, but as soon as we receive any increase, we give our first and best to God and trust him to bless what remains.

Now, I can tell those of you who tithe, because you are the ones who are nodding your heads in agreement. You have learned that having ninety percent with God’s blessings is far better than having 100 percent without his blessing. Because when we worship God and trust him like this, we begin to experience his supernatural provision.

I’ve got to admit, when I first thought I was tithing, I wasn't actually doing it correctly. I thought it meant buying T-shirts and music from the group that came to church or spending ten percent of my money at a Christian bookstore on various items of faith. But I soon realized that true tithing means bringing ten percent of our income to the local church, the place where we receive spiritual nourishment and fellowship. It's about supporting the place that feeds our faith and helps us grow in our relationship with God.

In fact, this is what God said through the prophet Malachi:

"Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house..." (Malachi 3:10).

And so, the first time I truly tithed, I was working but not making much money, and I heard a message that convicted me. I fact-checked it with the Bible and decided I was going to give as an act of worship to the church where I attended and was growing spiritually.

I still remember the feeling of exhilaration as I put that first check in the offering basket and thought, “God, I am trusting you with this because I believe in you.” And it was amazing; because even while living paycheck to paycheck with maxed-out credit cards, God set us free from debt. And I believe that every financial blessing that we have received today goes back to that first tithe because when you give your first and best, you can trust him to bless the rest.

Now, I am not saying that tithing will get you a new car or a big house, that may come through a new job or a promotion, but God will give you the wisdom to live within your means and be content as he shows you his faithfulness. In fact, this is the only place in the Bible where God says,

"Test me in this and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it." (Malachi 3:10).

In other words, God says, “If you don’t believe me, test me, worship me this way, and see what I will do.”

I am excited to be able to testify to the faithfulness of God as someone who gives a tenth of my income to the church as well as giving offerings to organizations like Convoy of Hope, Compassion International, and ministries of the Assemblies of God that help people in need all over the world. I love knowing that my tithes go to supporting the ministry in Emmitsburg as well as missions around the world and that brings me great joy.

We believe in giving because God gave to us first, and we embrace the saying, "It is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts 20:35). Because Jesus taught us this, and we also see giving as an act of worship. And so, I find joy in giving back to God what He has first blessed me with, and together, we witness lives transformed by God’s love.

Giving our money is important because Jesus said,

"You cannot serve both God and money" (Matthew 6:24).

But I’ve got to say this because giving isn’t just about money. How we manage our money shows what is in our hearts. It is important that we honor God with our wealth, but honestly, the greatest gift we can offer is our lives.

We see this illustrated in the apostle Paul who was once a hater of Christians and even killed them. But when he had an encounter with Jesus Paul was changed completely and he wrote:

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy…" (Romans 12:1).

In other words, considering what God has done for us, Paul said, “I urge you to offer…” not just your wealth, because that is easy, that’s a starting place, but he says,

"To offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship" (Romans 12:1).

In other words, we are to follow the example of God, who showed his love for us by giving his only Son, offering our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God. That’s why we must trust in the Lord with all our hearts and lean not on our own understanding because this might not always make sense, but part of our faith journey means recognizing that God’s ways are higher than our ways and his thoughts higher than our thoughts (Isaiah 55:9).

The Magi had traveled a long way to come to worship him, they were overjoyed when they saw the Savior, and they offered their treasures and worshiped him. Just like the Magi, we are also called to offer our best in worship and trust God’s provision. When we give our first and best, it is an act of love and faith, reflecting our belief in the great gift God gave us through his Son.

My hope for the coming year is to challenge, stretch, and grow you in sacrificial giving. Most of us know God as our provider, meeting our needs, but God offers more than just bread to eat, He gives us seeds to sow. The Bible says,

“Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness” (2 Corinthians 9:10).

As you reflect on the word of God today, I want to ask each of you to give something to Jesus today. Many of you will give your first tithe, giving God your first and your best, and trusting Him to bless the rest. For others, it may be your life, and I want to invite you to offer yourself as a living sacrifice as an act of worship, not as an obligation or duty, but as an act of faith, with love and devotion.

I want you to imagine what it would have been like to be one of the wise men kneeling before Jesus, the One born to give His life so that we might live for eternity with God. Give today as an act of worship, give from your heart as Jesus said,

"Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you" (Luke 6:38).

Graphics, notes, and commentary from LifeChurch, Ministry Pass, PC Study Bible, Preaching Library, and Sermon Central. Scripture from the New International Version unless otherwise noted.