Epiphany Sunday and I had an Epiphany

Today is Epiphany Sunday. I love those words: “Wise men (and women) still seek Him.” It is an EPIPHANY when one soul seeks Him and finds Him. And when we find Him, we find more than we ever imagined. For in Jesus Christ, we find forgiveness, inward peace and joy, today, and the promises of life eternal tomorrow.

An epiphany is an “ah-ha” moment – when a light comes on in our minds and we suddenly understand something. The original epiphany occurred when three “wise” kings saw a star like none other they had ever seen. This star led them to the Christ child.

I’ll segue here for a personal moment. I wonder why God didn’t let a woman, with all our attention to details, give explicit facts about the story of the three kings, or is it magi, or wise men? Only the disciple, Matthew, writes about the magi and he sure wasn’t detail-oriented.

He told us about their visit to the Holy Family. but he left out the details of how long after Jesus was born before they came. How old was Jesus when they arrived? Where were they from? The East? Matthew, more details than just East, please? How did they know to follow THAT star? Were there only three who came? One for each gift? Or were there more than that? C’mon Matthew! Details, we need details!

Oh, but I get it, Matthew! I had an “epiphany”! I had an aha moment. Matthew, you are a wise and articulate Gospel writer. You knew this story really wasn’t about the wise men. It was and IS about Jesus. What is important, isn’t the details about the wise men, it is that God is here, among us, in human flesh and blood. God revealed this to the wise men, and He uses the wise men to reveal it now to us. Indeed, they were WISE.

It is not that we should seek signs from God in the stars, and not that we should travel great distances to get to Jesus. To the Wise Men, their journey was about only one thing: Jesus. They came to fall down, and worship Him.

And why did they? For one reason only: God wanted them to know that their Savior had come. Not just the Savior of the world, but their personal Savior. That is why He sent the star. And that is why they fell down and worshipped him.

Epiphany comes to teach us again about our God. The one, true God. The only One who will not let us down, leave us, or fail us. Those wealthy wise men didn’t have it all. They fell down and worshipped the One Who did.

I triumphantly declare an AHA – an Epiphany today! “Arise, shine, for your Light has come!”, said Isaiah. And this Light is for all people. For that is what worship is — not what we do for God, but what God does for us. In worship, we receive what we need. We come as sinners and receive forgiveness. We come unworthy and are made worthy. We come with doubts and fears and we hear His Word of promise and assurance.

The details about the wise men? Not so important after all. The AHA. The Epiphany — when THE LIGHT shows up! The Light of Jesus. Maybe, God will use you and I as one of His “wise men and women,” to share THE LIGHT of Christ to others who will fall down and worship Him too!