As an alternative to the MidWeek Musings

We offer these daily devotions from Luther Seminary

 
God Pause Daily Devotions

Epiphany Musings

Sunday, January 6, 2013
Epiphany of Our Lord

Midweek Musings

Reflection by Judy Lazenby

INTRODUCTION
Epiphany means "manifestation." On this day we celebrate the revelation of Christ to the Gentiles—that is, to all nations. Some Christian traditions celebrate three great epiphanies on this day: the magi's adoration of the Christ child, Jesus' baptism in the Jordan River, and his first miracle in which he changes water into wine. The word and sacraments are for us the great epiphany of God's grace and mercy. We go forth to witness to the light that shines brightly in our midst.

Prayer of the Day (ELW)

O God, on this day you revealed your Son to the nations
by the leading of a star.
Lead us now by faith to know your presence in our lives,
and bring us at last to the full vision of your glory,
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.

First Reading

Isaiah 60:1–6

Jerusalem is assured that nations will make a pilgrimage to her, because the light of God's presence is in her midst. The bountiful food of the sea and the profits of international trade will come streaming to Jerusalem and thereby declare God's praise.

Arise, shine; for your light has come,
and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you.
²For darkness shall cover the earth,
and thick darkness the peoples;
but the LORD will arise upon you,
and his glory will appear over you.
³Nations shall come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawn.
⁴Lift up your eyes and look around;
they all gather together, they come to you;
your sons shall come from far away,
and your daughters shall be carried on their nurses' arms.
⁵Then you shall see and be radiant;
your heart shall thrill and rejoice,
because the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you,
the wealth of the nations shall come to you.
⁶A multitude of camels shall cover you,
the young camels of Midian and Ephah;
all those from Sheba shall come.
They shall bring gold and frankincense,
and shall proclaim the praise of the LORD.

Psalm (ELW)

Psalm 72:1–7, 10–14

All kings shall bow down before him. (Ps. 72:11)

¹Give the king your jus- ^| tice, O God,

and your righteousness to ^| the king's son;

²that he may rule your ^| people righteously

and the ^| poor with justice;

³that the mountains may bring prosperity ^| to the people,

and the ^| hills, in righteousness.

⁴Let him defend the needy a- ^| mong the people,

rescue the poor, and crush ^| the oppressor. R

⁵May he live as long as the sun and ^| moon endure,

from one generation ^| to another.

⁶Let him come down like rain upon ^| the mown field,

like showers that wa- ^| ter the earth.

⁷In his time may the ^| righteous flourish;

and let there be an abundance of peace

till the moon shall ^| be no more.

¹⁰May the kings of Tarshish and of the ^| isles pay tribute,

and the kings of Sheba and Seba ^| offer gifts. R

¹¹May all kings bow ^| down before him,

and all the nations ^| do him service.

¹²For the king delivers the poor who cry out ^| in distress,

the oppressed, and those who ^| have no helper.

¹³He has compassion on the low- ^| ly and poor,

and preserves the lives ^| of the needy.

¹⁴From oppression and violence he re- ^| deems their lives,

and precious is their blood ^| in his sight. R

Second Reading

Ephesians 3:1–12

What had been hidden from previous generations is now made known through the gospel ministry of Paul and others. In Christ both Jews and Gentiles participate in the richness of God's promised salvation.

This is the reason that I Paul am a prisoner for Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles — ²for surely you have already heard of the commission of God's grace that was given me for you, ³and how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I wrote above in a few words, ⁴a reading of which will enable you to perceive my understanding of the mystery of Christ. ⁵In former generations this mystery was not made known to humankind, as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit: ⁶that is, the Gentiles have become fellow heirs, members of the same body, and sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.
⁷Of this gospel I have become a servant according to the gift of God's grace that was given me by the working of his power. ⁸Although I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given to me to bring to the Gentiles the news of the boundless riches of Christ, ⁹and to make everyone see what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things; ¹⁰so that through the church the wisdom of God in its rich variety might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. ¹¹This was in accordance with the eternal purpose that he has carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, ¹²in whom we have access to God in boldness and confidence through faith in him.

Gospel

Matthew 2:1–12

God's promise shines bright in the night as magi follow a star to honor a new king. Strangers from a faraway land, they welcome the long-awaited messiah of Israel.

In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, ²asking, "Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage." ³When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; ⁴and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. ⁵They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:
⁶'And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who is to shepherd my people Israel.'"
⁷Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. ⁸Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage." ⁹When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. ¹⁰When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. ¹¹On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. ¹²And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

Reflection

     Matthew is the only Gospel to tell the story of the three wise men.  This short story is not much to go on.  Where exactly did they come from?  What were their names?  How long did they journey?  Was Jesus 2 or 3 or 4 when they got there?  None of these facts are in the Gospel lesson, yet many legends have grown out of the story.  In fact very often the Wise Men are part of the Nativity scene.

     Most importantly, they followed the star in searching for Jesus.  They were overjoyed at finding him and worshiped him with gifts; gold for a King, frankincense for a priest and myrrh for anointing the dead. These gifts speak to the three major aspects of Jesus’ life.  More than likely the Wise men arrived before Jesus was 2 as Herod later ordered all male babies 2 and under killed and more than likely, Mary and Joseph were able to flee to Egypt with Jesus because of the gifs of the Magi.

     After the wise men meet Jesus they were changed in that they did not report back to Herod, but went another way.  Isn’t this true for all of us?  If we find Jesus, we too are changed. 
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Quote

“The Supreme Court has ruled that they cannot have a nativity scene in Washington, D.C. This wasn't for any religious reasons. They couldn't find three wise men…”  Jay Leno

Prayers

We pray for:

…increased “acts of kindness” in our communities throughout the new year.

…those who have found Jesus and are changed.

…those who have not found Jesus that they continue their search.

…a helping hand for those who are helpless.