An Epipha What

When I think of the word Epiphany I can’t help but hear two English accents from the movie Hook say,

“ I just had an Epiphany.”

 “An Epipha what?”

“Lightning just struck my brain.”

 “Oh, that must’a hurt.”

It sounds silly and pretty rudimentary, but it sums up pretty well what we think an epiphany is. Most people think of epiphany as being that “ah-hah” moment for them. In fact, the word epiphany is derived from the Greek word, Epiphania, which means “to show, make know, or reveal”. It wasn’t until 361 AD that the Eastern Church began to commemorate the birth of Christ and celebrate the epiphany.

As years passed other meanings were given to the Epiphany to include the visit of the Magi, the baptism in the Jordan River and Jesus’ first miracle at the wedding in Cana. Why were these three chosen? Let’s take a quick look.

The magi (or Wise Men) were the first Gentiles to publicly recognize Jesus through their offerings/gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. This is significant because it is the revelation that the little baby born to Mary and Joseph was (and is) “Lord and King”. All one has to do is look at the gifts that were given to Jesus to understand how important the magi thought Jesus was.

Gold is considered to us to be the standard upon which we place the value of our money on. It is thought to symbolize wealth and is one of the most highly valued and sought after metals by man. In fact at the time of Jesus it was a gift given to Kings by their subjects. But gold is also one of the purest metals on earth. A sign of God’s purity and longevity to us all.   

Frankincense is a highly scented resin that comes from a balsam tree. It was an ingredient told by the Lord to Moses to create a perfume that was to be “holy from you to the Lord” (Exodus30:34-37). Frankincense is a very powerful, very sweet smelling odor. The Lord told Moses not to make it for himself, but to create it only for Him. Giving this as a gift is a demonstration of the belief of who this child in a manger is.

Ok, so what on earth is myrrh? Myrrh was known for its medicinal properties and also used in perfumes. Now, this isn’t like giving your mother a bottle of perfume for Christmas or her birthday. Myrrh was also (and is still) used in anointing oil. In various places in the Bible, myrrh has been associated with bitterness (Mark 15:23 as a narcotic and John 19:38-40 where the last mention of myrrh is used to detail its use on the linens for Jesus’ burial) and in fact is derived from the Hebrew word “marah”, which means bitter. 

And what would it be to be a Christian without bitterness? How could we understand and value the gifts bestowed upon us, if we have nothing to compare it to? Wasn’t that the motivation in the Garden of Eden? Whether we knowingly look for it or not, bitterness is all around. And it is only through our tears of sorrow at the bitterness of Jesus’ death that man can attain the sweetness of life in the Spirit and have a seat in Heaven.

So now that we understand why the birth of Jesus is included when we think of Epiphany, let’s take a look at the other two.

If we look in Matthew 3:16-17 (our Gospel for the 1st Sunday after Epiphany) the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River by his cousin, John the Baptist, is described with the Spirit descending upon Jesus like a dove and a voice from the Heaven’s proclaiming Jesus as God’s son. This is yet another time when the divinity of Jesus is reveled to all. Another Epiphany.

The last one that people associate with is the miracleJesus performed at the wedding in Cana. Here is shown “the first of His miraculous signs” (John 2:11). Most of us have heard the story of how Jesus transformed water into wine, but we rarely readily associate it with the Epiphany. Yet, it is a revealing of Jesus’ powers as God’s son.

For many the Epiphany is a reminder of  the unlimited love and mercy of God, our Father, who extended this to all of man kind through the birth and death of His Son, Jesus. In Him we have the hope of salvation; the promise of love.

What greater gift can we give then that of hope and love?

Please come and join our Vicar, Georgi, and the children of our congregation as they play out the story of the Magi on Epiphany Sunday, January 6th.

And, think about what gifts we were given and how we can reveal to others that we know who the “Lord and King” is.