I'm having an Epiphany! And so are you. The question is, are we learning anything? Are we gaining anything from our epiphany? It has always fascinated me that the day we celebrate the Kings/Wise Men/Magi visiting Jesus is called Epiphany. An epiphany is an Aha! moment, or a moment of learning something. So we need to ask what it is about the visit that we are to be learning?
It's probably cliche by now, but bears repeating: I think one of the main things we can learn is that the incarnation event was meant for everyone. That should have been obvious when the first persons told of the event were poor working folks out in the fields. But the arrival of the Kings/Wise Men/Magi drives this home powerfully. As far as we know these men were not Hebrews. They would not have heard most of the prophecies that we now associate with the coming of the Messiah. In fact, the coming of the Messiah would have been pretty much meaningless for them other than that the stars indicated that a new king had been born, so they decided to make the obligatory visit. But their lives, too were changed forever as they found themselves involved in political intrigue and visited in dreams by angels. Maybe that's the epiphany: that once we experience the incarnation we are changed forever.
Oh, come to us, abide with us, Our Lord, Immanuel. Come into our lives once again and bring the changes we so very much need. Open our hearts and lives to your coming and your leading. Like those men so long ago we may find ourselves going places and doing things we might never have expected, but we go in faith trusting you to lead us and guide us in our path.......Amen.
It's probably cliche by now, but bears repeating: I think one of the main things we can learn is that the incarnation event was meant for everyone. That should have been obvious when the first persons told of the event were poor working folks out in the fields. But the arrival of the Kings/Wise Men/Magi drives this home powerfully. As far as we know these men were not Hebrews. They would not have heard most of the prophecies that we now associate with the coming of the Messiah. In fact, the coming of the Messiah would have been pretty much meaningless for them other than that the stars indicated that a new king had been born, so they decided to make the obligatory visit. But their lives, too were changed forever as they found themselves involved in political intrigue and visited in dreams by angels. Maybe that's the epiphany: that once we experience the incarnation we are changed forever.
Oh, come to us, abide with us, Our Lord, Immanuel. Come into our lives once again and bring the changes we so very much need. Open our hearts and lives to your coming and your leading. Like those men so long ago we may find ourselves going places and doing things we might never have expected, but we go in faith trusting you to lead us and guide us in our path.......Amen.
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