Each church season offers a unique “movement of the soul,” a particular way of growing in grace. The movement of the soul Epiphany offers is not something we do, but instead something we receive. In Epiphany, we receive a revelation of God’s character in the person of Jesus Christ. Do we see him clearly? Do we receive him? To that end…
In an educational philosophy book, I once read these (paraphrased) words of admonition to parents and teachers: “We undervalue the gift of the Spirit; he is giving each of our children all of his attention, all of the time.” All of his attention, all of the time, to each one of his children. What a gift our King Jesus has given to us, in going back to the Father and sending us his Spirit! As Isaiah prophesied (Isaiah 40:28-29), our God “does not faint or grow weary…he gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength.”
Our God, revealed to us in the person of Jesus, graciously gives us all his attention, all the time, and even supplies us with his power and might, knowing that we have no abiding strength in ourselves. And yet, how often do we actually turn to our Lord and seek him? Martha, in the story told of her and her sister Mary in Luke 10:38-42, is burdened by many cares. She turns to Jesus, saying, “Lord, do you not care…?” Jesus’ response to her is a rebuke, but also an invitation to join Mary in sitting at his feet and listening to his teaching. We, like Martha and Mary, are loved by our Lord, and like them we are invited to sit at his feet—as Jesus tells Martha, the one thing necessary, the good portion! May we turn to our Lord in distress, weakness, and worry and hear his invitation to sit at his feet as his beloved ones.
The Season of Epiphany
The word epiphany means “manifestation,” and the Feast of Epiphany, celebrated on January 6, commemorates the manifestation of Jesus Christ to the Magi, who represent the entire Gentile world.
This is a feast day in the life of church because God revealed himself not just to the people of Israel, but also to the Gentiles—that is, those outside the Law and promise of God. The Magi were the first, but the gospels record Jesus’ interactions with other Gentiles and the book of Acts demonstrates God’s plan to bring salvation in the name of Jesus to every tribe, tongue, and nation. Most of us are, by God’s grace, recipients of this kindness, and so we celebrate the fact that the doors of salvation are open wide to those not numbered amongst the Israelites!
The Season of Epiphany, which is a season of Ordinary Time, follows the feast day. Ordinary Time (a green season) is an extended period of time where we get to “work out” what the feast day introduced. (The other, longer period of Ordinary Time is the Season after Pentecost, where we “work out” what occurred at Pentecost.) Thus, during this season, we are given the chance to focus on who God has revealed himself to be in Jesus Christ. We are encouraged to celebrate not just a general revelation of God’s existence, but instead the specific manifestation of God in the character of Jesus Christ, who is God-in-the-flesh.
Prayer during Epiphany should spring from the desire to understand Jesus Christ. Rather than emphasizing application or obedience, our devotional reading should focus on simply seeing Jesus clearly. In this season, we pray that God would reveal himself to us as we read, and we should hunger to understand the character of our Lord Jesus Christ, because in him, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are made manifest!
Steven+
Scripture Reflections
When exiled Israel began to return to the promised land, God gave them a mandate. Rebuild the temple! Build back the center of Israel’s spiritual life, the place where God’s presence would dwell among his people, newly restored in the land he had given him. When they laid the new foundation there was a great celebration in Jerusalem, but that celebration was mixed. There were still older Israelites who remembered the glory of the first temple. The new temple’s modest foundation couldn’t compare to the glory of the original.
The prophet Zechariah had a simple message for those who were tempted to scorn the new work that God had done. “Whoever has despised the day of small things shall rejoice” (Zech. 4:10). His co-worker prophet Haggai echoed that message from the Lord: “the latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former…and in this place I will give peace” (Hag. 2:9).
I thought of this story while I was reading through the Christmas story in Luke. It occurred to me how beautifully God worked through the small and easily despised at Jesus’ birth. There was Bethlehem, “too little to be among the clans of Judah” (Mic. 5:2), home of the original too-small king David. There were the shepherds—humble people doing a humble job isolated on the hillside. Then there was the birth itself—some travelers in an animal pen, and a humble teenage girl laying the Son of God in a manger. Through those small things God has brought about the most glorious thing imaginable—the redemption of the world through the incarnate Christ.
One of my prayers for us is that we would be people who do not despise the small things. I don’t mean our creature comforts, or “the little things” that might bring some pleasure (though there’s room for that too). I mean the humble things that are of no account in our world. Little acts of service toward the poor, the middle-class, and even the powerful. Quiet acts of everyday endurance and patience that no one sees, and that bring us no credit. We may not see it now, but those humble acts are the threads of love that God will weave into the church’s wedding garment (Rev. 19:8).
Do not despise the day of small things. From Jesus’ birth to the crucifixion and beyond, it is God’s pattern to bring from them a greater glory than anything else we might have expected or hoped for. Remember that when it seems that faithfulness brings no immediate fruit, or when obedience is just boring. May God give us eyes to see what he sees in the midst of them, and the grace to love as he has loved us.
Justin