THE SUNDAY IN THE SEASON OF EPIPHANY,
THE MESSAGE FOR SUNDAY THE 7th SUNDAY OF JANUARY, 2001,
The LESSON:.....Isaiah 60: 1-6
The Gospel:....... Matthew 2:1-12
PRAYER...MAY THE WORDS OF GO D AND HIS MESSAGE SPOKEN THIS HOUR BE BOTH A WORD OF COMFORT AND CHALLENGE
WE PRAY THAT IT WILL CHALLENGE THOSE WHO ARE COMFORTABLE
AND COMFORT ALL THOSE WHO ARE BEING CHALLENGED THIS DAY.
Introduction::: After Easter, Epiphany is the second oldest season in the Christian Church year.
A.......The Greek word Epiphany can be translated "the showing forth."
And Epiphany is the day which leads to the season, in which we celebrate " the showing forth of our Lord JESUS AS A baby to the Wise Men or Magi.
SO today we celebrate the FIRST SUNDAY OF Epiphany, with the gladness of heart BECAUSE WITH SO MANY SECRETS WHICH SURROUND US TODAY...he has " shown, manifest, revealed himself to us...
B..........The word "epiphany" also means appearing, bringing something into the light, making SOMETHING visible what was once unseen and hidden.
SO IN A PLANNER SENSE The season of Epiphany is ALSO about light:
AND OUR SCRIPTURE OF ISAIAH GUIDE US IN VERSE 1"..Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you."
SO THE SEASON OF Epiphany is ALSO about the coming of the true Light into the darkness of this world.
AND WHO IS THE ONE TRUE LIGHT IN OUR LIVES BUT JESUS..
Scripture tells us that "Jesus Christ is the Light of the world, JESUS IS THE Light WHICH no darkness can overcome."
THERE ARE several aspects of light become more apparent AS WE LOOK at the development of the passage..
A.......Light was the first word spoken by God into the chaotic darkness of creation. "Let there be light."
And there was light. AND GOD SAW THE LIGHT AND SAID THAT IT WAS GOOD.
B.....THE PSALMIST SAY GUIDE US IN HIS UNDERSTANDING OF LIGHT WHEN HE says ...."Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."
LASTLY The symbol of the presence of God in Scripture is light.
C.........This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all" (1 John 1:5 NIV).
THAT PASSAGE IS WORTH REPEATING..God is light, and in Him there is no darkness."
Darkness means disorientation, despair.
We speak of "dark moods,"
or the "dark side" of someone’s personality,
or "the dark underbelly" of society.
Sin draws us into the darkness.
Sin loves darkness and uses darkness as its cover. More crimes are committed at night than in the light of day. Ask the policemen who patrols the streets at night.
SIN tries to blot out the light, to kill the light.
Sin hates the light and refuses to come out into the light. "
BUT WE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT...
Jesus is light enough to dispel our deepest darkness,
Jesus is light enough to scatter the darkness of our sin, Jesus is light enough to destroy the darkest depths of our death.
AND AS WE AFFIRM THAT JESUS IS THE LIGHT ...JESUS TELLS US THAT WE ARE LIGHT TO...
Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven."
In today’s O.T. Text Isaiah stresses A FACT IN VERSE 2 OF CHAPTER 60:
"Darkness covers the earth and thick clouds cover the people."
I WISH TO RAISE THE QUESTION..Has darkness covered us??????
AND like the leaders of Jews of his day, HAVE WE ALSO become absorbed in the affairs of this life
and the quest for wealth, pleasure and power...
I RAISE THE QUESTION???? Have we become so totally absorbed in such things as to have neither the interest nor the time to pay our respects to Christ or to welcome him into our homes and our hearts, as our true Lord.
ISAIAH ANNOUNCES IN VERSE 2.. "But the Lord rises upon you and His glory appears over you..
Isaiah reminds us that this wonderful Light that scatters the darkness "Lift up your eyes and look about you., Isaiah says. "See how all PEOPLE assemble and come to you, your sons and daughters.
He is calling all people into His priesthood, calling them out of darkness, into His marvelous light. Isaiah foresaw the day that the nations would come to worship the true God, when herds of camels would cover the land, when people from Sheba would come bringing gold and incense.
Isaiah foresaw the day when the eastern wise men, Persian astrologers or Magi, would come to Israel seeking the Christ who was born in Bethlehem.
He saw the day when those who once worshipped the stars would be led by the star to bow down and worship the Child who was their King, their God, their Savior.
Our text of Matthew FULFILLS WHAT WAS PROPHESIED BY ISAIAH..WHEN WE READ IN MATTHEW’S 2ND CHAPTER...in verse 2 that in the days of King Herod wise men from the east came to Jerusalem inquiring of the birth of a new king.
A common word today to describe these men is called The Magi, which means astrologer, . It is believed that they came from Babylonia, Persia or Arabia,,,What is east of Jerusalem.
There was not three,,,but maybe a caravan...
Scripture says that the Magi followed the star in hopes of finding the promises king.
Often times they didn’t have much light from the star,,,AND NEXT TO IMPOSSIBLE TO FOLLOW A STAR DURING THE DAY....and they didn’t know where it would lead them but they followed with what light they had.
The Wise Men traveled purely on a faith journey. When they embarked from their homeland, they didn’t know exactly where the star would lead them.
They had no certainty that they would find the newborn king but they took the risk and their faith was rewarded. Modern day people of faith like us have an advantage over the Wise Men; we know the identity of the king we follow.
He is Jesus of grace, HE is the God of love he is the fellowship of the Holy Ghost,,be ours through faith,, We are a part of God family able to share in his riches. The wise men were astrologers whose business it was to look up to the heavens.
They fell down at the feet of THIS child, not yet weaned from his mother’s breast, and paid him kingly homage.
HOMAGE IS WORSHIP, AND Worship is giving glory to God.
LUKE...SAYS THAT..The multitude of heavenly host on the first Christmas day praised God saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men’
There are MANY good reasons why we ought to give homage to God: BUT LET ME LIFT UP AT LEAST TWO.....
1.............It acknowledge our GRATITUDE...
"Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits" (Ps. 103:1-2)
2...........It express humility and gratitude.
The proud do not give glory to God. PROUD people do not express gratitude. God is praised by the humble and grateful.
BUT, YET the main theme of this account, is the manifestation of Christ the Lord to the whole world ....
AND TO THE WISE MEN.. the star is a revelation, and they promptly set off to glorify God.
The Magi, being men of faith, see it as a guide that will lead them to
THE purpose of prostrating
adoring
and offering ourselves as gifts,,,,for self-giving for the glory of the Lord.
Yes in offering of our selves we become humble..
Epiphany is a feast of humility, for when the Church sees the bright light of the star, she is forced to ask herself whether she is constantly journeying to adore the Lord,
They opened their treasures (v. 11). No act of worship is complete without opening our treasures and laying them at the feet of One we call Savior and Lord.
They bring Gold. A gift of value still today - greatly significant - a gift suited for royalty. These Magi also bring Incense. Incense is a gift given to Deity in worship. This demonstrates that the Magi have a deep respect and possibly an appreciation for the faith and worship of the Hebrew people
But the third gift_ Very different. Myrrh. Myrrh was a very aromatic resin - and a very versatile substance in ancient times. We hear it mentioned first in the Bible in Exodus as a principle ingredient in the holy anointing oil.
It was a primary ingredient in perfumes of the day.
What shall we give this Christmas SEASON,,? Here are some suggestions.
I. Let us give love. The pharisees asked Jesus this question to test him: "Master, which is the great commandment in the law?" (Matt. 22:36).
Jesus answered by saying, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with thy soul, and with thy mind. This is the first and great commandment.
II. Let us give forgiveness. In the model prayer, Jesus said to pray, "Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors" (Matt. 6:12).
For if ye forgive men their trespasses, heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses neither will your Father forgive your trespasses" (Matt. 6:14-15).
III. Let us give a good example.
IV. Let us give the Gospel to hungry souls.
What is the gospel? The gospel is the good news about Jesus Christ. It includes his coming, his death, and his resurrection (1 Cor. 15:1-5). We are to share the gospel with others.
IN Conclusion.....We are in the season of Epiphany and Epiphany has ANOTHER name called discovery.
Epiphany is the period of the church calendar in which we affirm the discovery of Jesus, it is the season in which his real identity, is made clear to the world .....and clearer to those who will look for it..
What began with the very private announcement of :
A......the angel to Mary
B......then angel to Joseph,
C......the angel to the shepherds
IS now an announcement made to us as well as to the world,,, to a global audience of witnesses.
For me epiphany is one of the most important seasons in the church because this is the season in which we come to see .....
a.....who Jesus is,
b.....where he is to be found,
c.....and where we begin to understand what he is about.
The Epiphany message is greater than the manger and goes well beyond it. To leave the story of Jesus Christ in the manger, to pack it up as we have done with our creche and put it away for another year, is to fail to understand what the Epiphany is all about.
Everything we say, everything we do in church in these coming weeks is part of this growing process of discovery of who Jesus is and where he is to be found.
In Matthew gospel we read in chapter 2: 1-2
When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem saying, "Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the East, and have come to worship him."
1........Why were these wise men so wise? Because they were wise enough to follow the star. God had sent a message from heaven and they were wise enough to take it seriously and to pack their necessary traveling gear, and go forth on a long journey to follow the star.
Wise people always heed the messages God sends and follow where God leads. That’s why I always tell people that if God has shown you a star, then no matter who doesn’t understand, follow your star.
Even if you have to travel alone, follow your star. For wise people always follow their stars.
2.........Why were these wise men so wise? The wise men were wise not because they followed the star but because they followed the star that led to Jesus.
Wise people always follow the star that leads to Jesus.
If there is one question that some of us need to ask ourselves, it is "Where is the star leading us?"
a.....If the star we are following leads us to say things we shouldn’t or do things we know are wrong, that if we were discovered we would be disgraced and ashamed, then we are following the wrong star.
b.....If the star that we are following causes us to forget the training received from praying mothers, believing fathers, and others who truly love us, then we are following the wrong star.
c....If it is leading us away from God, then we are following the wrong star. If it is leading us away from Jesus, then we are following the wrong star.
There is only one star that leads to Jesus. There is only one way-it is the knee way of prayer and confession; it is the way of repentance and the new birth;
For the wise men , The star a led them to the guardian of the divine word. And in like manner the Lord manifests himself to each of us in several ways, as well.
1.......We discover him through the intimate personal communication of prayer and personal experiences.
2......We also discover him through the divine message uttered by the Church.
This day_January 7 is celebrated in observance of the fact that, in Christ, the light of God has broken into the world in a way that’s visible to all people.
Are you shining forth the light of Christ in a powerful way, such that people might come to His light in the same dramatic fashion as did the Magi?
The story of the astrologers from the east is always relevant and pertinent. That is what we learn from our meditation today.
Realizing that the Lord manifests himself to us unceasingly, let us be attentive and HUMBLE so that none of these manifestations escapes us. His light is something we need.
ON THIS FIRST CHRISTMAS DAY CELEBRATION,
The shepherds did their best.
And Joseph and Mary gave their lives.
THE WISE MEN committed themselves to God’s plan even though they did not fully understand it.
Thus the object of our journey today is not to find our king but to follow our king where ever he may lead us..into uncharted territory.
Have we embarked on a spiritual pilgrimage to follow the light and worship the One who is light of the World?
LASTLY.,,,,,,The first Christmas was a time of giving, and so has been every Christmas since.
When Jesus was an infant, the magi brought him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh-the best money could buy.
Let us give to God what money can’t buy,,, our souls, our life, and our Worship....
Amen................Amen.....................Amen
