1 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” – Matthew 2:1–2

Merry Christmas, Mission Church!

Today is the day after Christmas, and I hope everyone had a wonderful time yesterday being with those you love and celebrating the birth of our Savior! I know my home was filled with lots of love, food, family time, and gifts. And when I say gifts, I mean… So. Many. Gifts! Why? Because my amazing wife, Jamie, is one of the most generous people I know. It is a joy to watch her. Each gift is chosen thoughtfully, intentionally, and joyfully. And it is always on her mind. I think the first Christmas purchases she made this year happened back in April or May. I don’t think she does this just because she likes gifts. I think she does it because she loves and values people, and she loves to see the joy on their faces when their gift is received.
As I think about my wife’s love for giving, I’m reminded of one more aspect of the Christmas story: the visit of the wise men. Most of us are familiar with them and the gifts they brought to Jesus, but have you considered the lengths they took to deliver these precious goods to the feet of the Savior? How far did they travel? What did they feel? What motivated them? The verse above tells us that they came seeking the king of the Jews so they could worship Him. Worship, boiled down, is essentially ascribing worth to something or someone. It is showing or telling them how much you value them. Worship = “worth”-ship. These wise men gave incredibly valuable gifts to Jesus because they wanted to say how much they valued Him. But they did so much more!
So as we come together on this last Sunday of 2020, we’re going to let the worship of the wise men guide our time together. What a great way to end the year – in worship! We will seek to interactively enter into their experience, learn from what they did, and actually practice it together. Take some time to read Matthew 2:1-12 and think about all the ways they expressed worship to Jesus. And make sure to listen to the worship set, as we will spend a lot of time singing this week!
I can’t wait to worship Jesus with you this Sunday!

Brett Lovern
Pastor of Worship & ArtsSUNDAY AM PLAN
9:00 AM  – Worship Service On Campus & Online (Lancaster Campus)
9:15 AM – Worship Service On Campus (Myerstown Campus)
11:00 AM – Worship Service on Campus & Online (Lancaster Campus)

SAVE MY SEATS FOR SUNDAY ON CAMPUS WORSHIP GATHERINGS – CLICK HERE

REGATHERING DETAILS – CLICK HERE

SUNDAY RESOURCES
Everything you need for Sunday is available on the Mission Church App under Sunday Resources or on our website.