As I think about my own selected gifts that need to be returned for one reason or another, I cannot help but remember three gifts that were returned in a very special way. Men have always seen symbolism in the gifts the wise men brought. They have seen in each gift something which specially matched some characteristic of Jesus and His work.
Gold is the gift for a king.
William Barclay tells us in his commentaries that Seneca, an historian of Rome, records that in Parthia it was the custom that no one could ever approach the king without a gift. Gold, the king of metals, is the fit gift for a King of men. He was to rule over men's hearts, not from a throne, but from a Cross. Frankincense is the gift for a priest. It was in the Temple worship and at the Temple sacrifices that the sweet perfume of frankincense was used.