Epiphany: Your Epiphany

both people and animals, and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord. The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you.

You and I not only stand at a chronological crossroads today, we also stand at a cultural crossroads. It’s the very same crossroads the children of Israel faced in Egypt. Would they remain slaves to Pharaoh, or would they become free through the blood of the Passover lamb? For them it was literally a life-and-death issue—just as it is for us today! The spiritual and moral decisions we make at this juncture can largely determine the moral and spiritual destinies of generations to come, just as they did for the Israelites. The decision they made that defining night in Egypt sealed the fate of their children and their children’s children—even to this very day!

As we stand at the start of a new year, will we turn back to the “ancient paths,” to the “good way” that leads to “rest for [our] souls”? Or, will we take a dangerous detour from God’s ancient paths that have provided safe travel for generations from the patriarchs to the present? Will we go further and further into Egypt and allow Egypt to go deeper and deeper into us? Will we continue to chase every new fad of Egypt? Or will we make a clean break for the Promised Land?

How will you live in the new year? Are you seeking for the world’s happiness or for God’s holiness? Remember that happiness is always a by-product of holiness. Without holiness, there cannot be any lasting happiness. It is also important to remember that God’s New Year does not just last 12 months, two centuries, or two millennia. It lasts for eternity!

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Epiphany—January 6

When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Matthew 2:10–11

Patt and I wish each of you a happy and holy new year in this first week of the year. We pray that you have entered this new year in the confidence of the lordship of Jesus Christ. He is still firmly seated on the throne of the universe—in spite of how circumstances around us often look. As Gabriel told Joseph and Mary about Jesus, “The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David . . . his kingdom will never end” (Luke 1:32–33). His sovereign dominion over the world is a 24-7 reality whether or not we believe it, recognize it, or submit to it.

The first century was just as hungry for authentic kingship and leadership as the twenty-first century is. Both their world and ours are starving for lack of real political leaders who are true public servants rather than self-serving tyrants, despots, and paranoid power-mongers! That’s why the Magi from the East came looking for this King of the Jews whose star had lit up the eastern sky over their homeland, which was probably Persia. As a result of this hopeful heavenly sign, they set out on a journey seeking an epiphany, which only comes when you find and worship Him, just as they did.

Ever since the first century, many parts of the Christian world celebrate Epiphany almost as much as they celebrate Christmas. This is especially true in the Greek Orthodox world of the Middle East. It always falls on January 6th and is considered a second blessing of the Christmas season. It commemorates the visit of the Magi and their discovery, worship, and gift-giving to the Christ Child (Matthew 2:1–12).

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