Epiphany Celebrated January 5, 2024
Matthew 2:1-12

Pastor Wolfe

Christmas light and Epiphany gifts

Two of the most common elements to our celebration of Christmas are lights and gifts. At both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day we heard the beginning
of the Gospel of John. You know, the section where he describes Jesus as the Word who became flesh. The one who is light and life and came into our world of
darkness to save us from sin? That connection of Christ to light is the reason Germans first put candles in Christmas trees. Why we hold lights on Christmas Eve and decorate our
homes. As he would say himself later in life, Jesus is the light of the world, and in this year once again we celebrate this light born for us.
Gifts are part of the season for obvious reasons as well. Jesus is the gift of God, the fulfillment of Jewish hope going back 8 centuries before the birth of Christ. I can’t say with
any authority when or where gift-giving became a part of the holiday celebration but it’s a natural connection. As we give and receive gifts with others, we’re supposed to be reminding
each other of the greatest gift of a Savior.

Christmas light and the Christmas gift of God. That’s what Advent built up to and what our focus has been these twelve days of Christmas. But tomorrow (Monday) starts a new
season. January 6th is the Festival of the Epiphany. Epiphany is from the Greek verb in Titus 2:11 which says, “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared (Ἐπεφάνη)
to all men.” And for us who trace our ancestry to Germany, Mexico, or beyond, this forgotten Festival of the church year ought to rival Christmas itself. In the Christmas season
we see Jesus worshiped by Jewish shepherds, treasured by a Jewish mother, adored by Jewish Simeon and Anna. But in Epiphany we remember Jesus worshiped by men from the
East. Gentiles who didn’t have Abraham’s blood but did have his faith and trust in the Messiah. Epiphany is Christmas for the Gentiles. When we study this familiar account we
find that Christmas light is at the center of epiphany gifts. Jesus is God’s gift to us too, and the gifts the Wise Men brought were only the first to be returned to God by Gentiles like us.
Yes, you probably know all about the Wise Men and their visit to Bethlehem. But let’s go back there again anyway, and be renewed in the gift that brings us light as well.
We all know the account of the wise men, or at least we think we do. But how much of what you believe is tradition and how much is actual Scripture. Who are the Wise Men? How
many were there? Where did they come from? You might be surprised to learn that the answers may not be what you think.

First off, the Bible doesn’t tell us how many wise men there were. They brought three kinds of gifts, but we have no idea how many were in their traveling group. They weren’t likely
kings, as the song says, and they weren’t magicians, as people think by the title “Magi.” These men were Gentiles from the region around Babylon, the same place that God’s
people had lived in exile five hundred years before Christ’s birth. God’s prophet Daniel, in the time of the exile, was described as a leader among the Magi. These men were educated.
They studied astronomy and history. It would seem that Daniel taught them to watch the heavens for signs of the promised Messiah-King, and that this message had been handed
down to generation after generation. And now, this group of Magi saw the star, and travel to Daniel’s homeland to discover the promised King it revealed.

When they come to Israel looking for a king, they naturally go to the capital city and talk to the man on the throne. That man was King Herod the Great. He was known as a clever
warrior and diplomat. He built theaters and racetracks for entertainment. He rebuilt temples. He was also ruthless, merciless, and jealous. History reveals that he had his brother-in-law
drowned and had his own wife, mother-in-law, and three sons murdered to protect his power. Threats to his throne did not go unnoticed and he tolerated no competition for the
throne. No wonder all Jerusalem was disturbed when Herod is disturbed by news of a new potential king of Israel.

Our text finds the wise men asking, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” They came to
worship. Herod sent them to spy. He wanted to use them to discover the child’s location so that he could end the threat. (A plot easily dismissed by the way when God warns the wise
men to go home by another route. Side point: God can overcome.)

The Christmas account with Mary and the Shepherds is in Luke 2. The Wise Men’s visit is here in Matthew 2. That means we have to look for clues about how these separate events
fit together in terms of timing. While nativities around the world show the Wise Men there on Christmas night, it was likely months later. We read here, “After they had heard the
king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.” They worshiped a child, not
a baby. When Herod seeks revenge, he doesn’t murder just infants, but all boys up to two years old. Travel takes time. The child was now in a house. In the battle of tradition vs.
Scripture, let’s put our trust in the truth of the Word.

What’s important isn’t the trivia of their timing, but the purpose of their visit. “On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and
worshiped him.” The wise men knew this was no ordinary child. No, they couldn’t have known everything about him, but they knew he was special. And their faithfulness in seeking
him is a shining example to us. They followed the light of the Epiphany Star and neither distance, nor uncertainty, not even an evil king, could keep them away from worshiping the
Lord. The most important of the Epiphany gifts wasn’t gold or frankincense or myrrh. It was dedication. Faithfulness. Time. Effort. Value for worship.

One of the sad truths that I see in our congregation, and it’s certainly not unique to us, is how easily Satan can turn us away from worship. Why are we willing to travel hours on
questionable roads in dodgy weather to see a concert or a ball game, but we pass on worship with three snowflakes in the air and a ten-minute drive? Why will we push ourselves
and get dressed up to go to work or go out with friends, but call it good enough on Sunday morning if we just throw on our pajamas and “meet” God on a screen in our living room?
Fellow forgiven, the light the wise men followed was not just the light of a star, but the light of forgiveness in the Savior at the end of that star. And you have that same light revealed
to you in God’s Word. In a sense, that Epiphany star shines over our church every Saturday evening at 5pm and Sundays at 8 & 10:30. It’s here in our regular Bible study Tuesdays and
Wednesdays. If you thought there were three wise men, or thought they were there on Christmas night, maybe it would be a good thing for you to follow the light and worship the
King in his Word with us in Bible Basics starting in a couple weeks. The Wise Men traveled across desert for months to see Jesus’ Christmas light.

We can all learn from them about not just giving stuff, but giving ourselves. Think of the blessing you’re enjoying right now because you followed that light today. Just in the last half hour you confessed your sins and heard once again that you are forgiven. That this child in the manger died on the cross to rescue you from your sins. That you are
a part of God’s family already now, and that your home with him in heaven is waiting. We celebrate the light of this king not just because he is a light to all nations, but because he is
a light to us! The wise men show us what faithful joy looks like. “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. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.” This visit was their Christmas, New Year’s, and Epiphany all rolled into one. Their hearts rejoiced because they saw not a child, but proof that God keeps his promises. They found light in a world of darkness.

And their joy was marked by their gifts. Gold suggests royalty, fitting for Jesus as King of the Jews. Incense was used in connection with worship at the temple and the prayers of
believers. Myrrh was used at a time of suffering and death, particularly as one of the spices mixed into the burial wrapping of the dead. Strange gifts for an infant, but perfect gifts for a
Christ. All these carried for hundreds of miles and delivered cheerfully with joy at the sight of this child.

What fills you with joy this Christmas? A bonus at work? A social security increase? A new toy in the garage? A friendship or new relationship? Good grades? Time off work? A good
pro football team? But all those joys fade sooner or later because their light goes out. Money gets spent. Toys break. Vacations come to an end. But the light that flows from the child of Bethlehem never dims. That light shines on and gives us overflowing joy all year long. And so even though we move on now from our Christmas season, our Christmas joy doesn’t end. Doesn’t even diminish. We have knelt at the feet of our Savior once again in joy, marveling in Christmas light. We have treasured these things with Mary, rejoiced with the shepherds, and worshiped
with the wise men.

So let us perhaps return by a different route from the way we came too. Let us go away from the darkness that tugs at our every choice. Let us celebrate the gift God gives in the
Word made flesh. In the Savior from sin. And this Epiphany and beyond, let us come to him with our own gifts. Gold and incense and myrrh if we have it, but mostly time, and joy, and
worship. Let us follow his light and know his peace. Amen.