We don’t talk a lot about Epiphany, but this traditional holiday has been around since at least the second century. Traditionally it is celebrated on the 12th day after the Nativity (January 6). At epiphany (which in the Greek comes from the term “manifestation”) we celebrate that this mysterious birth of Christ is more than the birth of a baby – it is the human manifestation of God.
This concept is difficult for human understanding. We understand babies and we get excited about birth – but understanding God’s manifestation in human form is much harder to get our head around.
And, like many of our church holidays –if you think about it, like nearly all of our church holy days – epiphany is a day when we celebrate mystery that is beyond our human comprehension. The church marks the mystery days and we call them holy. These mysterious holy days are opportunities for us to lean into the mystery rather than to comprehend the mystery out of them.
Epiphany is most often associated with Matthew 2:1-12 where some wise people followed a star and came from the East to find the Messiah. We don’t know from the text precisely when they came and we don’t even know how many of them there were or whether they rode on camels or even how they knew the star would lead them to the baby in Bethlehem. These facts have all been filled in by tradition, but they’re nowhere in the text. Matthew writes that they followed the star until it stopped over the place where the child was.
And then come some of my favorite words in all of scripture – when they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. They were overwhelmed with Joy. They were in the presence of the one they were seeking and they were overwhelmed with joy. They brought gifts, but the star had been the true gift – a gift that brought them to this child and overwhelmed them with joy.
We need to be looking for stars – for the things that point us toward Christ. We need to be looking for the things in our lives that point us toward the mystery of God’s incarnation.
During worship at Pinnacle on the first Sunday of the year we hear from individuals who have followed the star. These testimonials are brave examples of the way that we journey with one another like those wise ones of ancient time. We don’t know anything about what the lives of the wise men were like in the past, or what their travels with one another were like, but we know that they were together. They were companions on the journey, following the star together – seeking Jesus with one another. The companions on the journey, these are our other gifts from God.
The companions in your life can help you see things you might not see on your own. They can help you know you’re not alone and they can reveal the stars – the path to loving Christ – in ways you might not see yourself. If you weren’t able to be with us in person or online, I hope you’ll watch the recording to hear these powerful testimonies from your companions. (Click here to watch if you missed it.)
During worship we also handed out stars with words on them to all who were in attendance. The star is a tool for our journey. A gift of a word – a word to help you grow nearer and closer to Christ and a word to help guide your life in this coming year. We have stars for you even if you were unable to be with us. Simply call the church office and we’ll set one aside for you or drop one in the mail to you.
Share the word with others … maybe in an email or a phone call or over coffee or a walk. Share about it throughout the year. Learn about the word. Look up the definitions – all of them, even the strange definitions! Wrestle with your word. You may not like your word or even understand how it might be worth following, but wrestle with those feelings. Google the word. See where it appears in the news. Look up the word in scripture and see what verses it might appear in. Examine your word and then seek ways that you can live into the word in your year.
Put the star somewhere it might be helpful to see as a reminder and guide – maybe your refrigerator or your bathroom mirror or car visor or in a calendar or planner – somewhere you’ll continually be reminded of your word. And then enjoy the journey of following your star.
Stars and companions – gifts for us on the journey – a journey of epiphany – a journey of our lives.
