The Epiphany of the Star, January 4, 2015

The Epiphany of the Star

Isaiah 60:1-6, Matthew 2:1-12

Grace Presbyterian Church, Crystal City

January 4, 2015

Rev. Dr. Richard E. Miller

 

Epiphany Card  I’m a bit disappointed this morning. Next Tuesday is “Epiphany of the Lord Day” and I haven’t received a single “Have a Happy Epiphany” card from anyone. But then I guess it’s understandable since Epiphany doesn’t seem as important as Christmas in peoples’ minds. But I suggest to you this morning, that sending and receiving Epiphany cards is most appropriate. Why? Maybe I can answer that question by sharing some thoughts on Epiphany.

What exactly is An Epiphany?  Among the ancient Greeks, an epiphany was the manifestation or appearance of God to his people at a particular place and time.  We find epiphanies throughout the Bible since God’s appearance to his people was always accompanied by outward and visible signs. For instance, the burning bush of Moses , or the cloud and fire that led the Israelites to the promised land, or the great trial by fire of Elijah and the prophets of Baal where God’s fire consumed a water-soaked sacrifice. Or when a light from heaven flashed around Saul on his way to Damascus and blinded him resulting in his conversion as the Apostle Paul. In each of these, God made himself known to his people in quite dramatic ways.

Christian Epiphany About 1600 years ago, the Church decided to celebrate three particular epiphanies in which God revealed his glory in ways connected to Jesus. (1) The first was when the great Star of Bethlehem led the wise men to Jesus. This revealed the fact that salvation in Christ was for Gentiles as well as Jews. (2) The next was when Jesus was baptized in the River Jordan by John the Baptist. This showed the disciples and the world that Jesus was the Son of God, the Messiah. (3) And the third was when Jesus changed water into wine at the marriage at Cana in Galilee.This revealed Jesus’ divine power.

The Church set aside January 6th as Epiphany of the Lord day. This date is the twelfth day since Christmas and became the conclusion to the Christmas season which we thought was long over. Thus, the song “The Twelve Days of Christmas” is the observance of what we call “Christmas Tide.”

The Great Star  Over the next three weeks, we are going to look at the star, the baptism and the marriage. This morning we will begin with the great star that led the wise men to Jesus.

The Wise Men Who are these wise men? The word that appears in the original Greek is “magoi” from which we get the word “Magi.” Basically, the word means magician or astrologer. There were two kinds of magi in those days. One were magicians who traveled from town to town putting on magic shows and telling peoples’ fortunes. The other kind consisted of very learned men who were well educated in literature, the stars, and the natural sciences. These magi were a part of a small tribe of priests who lived in Persia. They were the teachers and counselors of the Persian kings. It is said that no religious sacrifice could be made unless one of the Magi was present. According to the account from Matthew the wise men were Gentiles who were acquainted with the scriptures of many religions, including Judaism.

How many were there and what were their names? The Venerable Bede called them Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar. Actually, scriptures never give us their names and we have no idea how many wise men traveled to see Jesus. Tradition has placed the number at three since there were three gifts. However, over the centuries, paintings have depicted anywhere from three to twelve wise men.

Importance of Stars  People of that time believed that each person’s life was linked to a particular star, and that new stars forecast important events on earth such as births of emperors, kings or great leaders. In the book of Numbers, it states that “A Star shall come out of Jacob; a Scepter shall rise out of Israel.” [24:17] From this developed the belief that when the Messiah was to be born, a great star heralding his birth would appear in the heavens.

Since the wise men were also astrologers, they had studied the stars in the sky for many years. Thus, they believed that the brilliant light in the sky was a sign that the King of the Jews had been born. And when it began to move, they immediately followed to see where the star led

The Star of Bethlehem There has been some fascinating research done on the star seen by the wise men. It has been proven that in the year Jesus was born, Jupiter and Saturn were so closely aligned that they appeared as one extremely brilliant star. Jupiter was considered to be a royal star, and Saturn was thought to be the special star protecting Israel. In the year of Jesus’ birth, Jupiter and Saturn came together three different months - in May, October, and December. This fact, along with the year of the census, and the dates that Herod and Quirinius were in power, pinpoints Jesus birth. [cf. Keller, Werner, “The Bible as History,” 1956, pp. 345-354]

Isaiah  This great star takes on additional significance when we read the 59th and 60th chapters of Isaiah. At this point in history, the Israelites are mired in despair. Their leaders were prisoners of Babylon and were living in exile. Their hopes had been completely dashed. They said to one another, “Justice is far from us, and righteousness does not overtake us; we look for light, and behold, darkness; and for  brightness, but we walk in gloom.” (Isaiah 59:9) Then Isaiah came to them and proclaimed, “Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you, and nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. And all from Sheba will come, bearing gold and incense and proclaiming the praise of the lord.” (Isaiah 60:1,2,6) In light of this prophecy, the wise men following the great light and presented their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to Jesus.

The gold was an acknowledgement that Jesus would one day be the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Frankincense was used in Temple worship as an ingredient in the holy anointing oil for sacrifices which gave grain offerings a pleasant aroma which they felt would please God [Leviticus 2 and 6]. This pointed to the time when Christ would be the great High Priest whose personal sacrifice on the Cross would be pleasing to God. Myrrh was a resin used in embalming and this gift foretold the time when Jesus would suffer and die. And so gold was for royalty, incense for priesthood and myrrh for sacrifice.

Jesus as Young Child  We should also remember that the wise men didn’t actually meet Jesus until Jesus was close to two years of age. We know this because when the wise men told Herod when the star had appeared, Herod ordered all male children two years of age and younger to be killed [Matthew 2:16]. And Matthew says that the wise men came to the house where Jesus was staying, not to a stable where he had been born.

Epiphanies Today  As we enter the new year, we might ask if epiphanies still take place today. The answer is “of course!” However, such epiphanies depend upon four factors: what we know, who we follow, where we look and what we give.

What we know First of all, what we know. Had the wise men never studied the Jewish scriptures which foretold the birth of the King of Israel, they would not have realized that the great star heralded his birth. They never would have found Jesus. In like manner, if God is to interact in our lives, we must be well acquainted with the scriptures. It is there that we learn that God is love and that he loved us so much that he gave his only son to die for our sins on the Cross. So you can join a Bible study class here at Grace or in the community, and you can study the scriptures on your own through using a guide on meditation and prayer such as “These Days.”

Who we Follow   Next it is important to choose who we follow in life. The wise men followed the star and the star led them to the Christ child. In the Book of the Revelation, Jesus says, “I am the bright morning star.” [22:16] The bright morning star in astrology is Venus, visible just before sunrise. It heralds the coming of the dawn. Soon the darkness will be dispelled and all will bask in the warmth of the light. Jesus is the bright morning star who says to us this morning, “Follow me!” for I will lead you to salvation and eternal life.

 

 

Where we Look Where we look is vital. The wise men first thought the new born king of Israel would be born in the capital city of Jerusalem. So at first, they looked in the wrong place. Then the star led them a few miles south to Bethlehem and there they found Jesus. Where we look for the hope, peace, joy and love in life is important. We won’t find them in the mall. We won’t find them in our bank accounts. We won’t find them in our houses, cars and possessions. We won’t find them in drugs. We won’t find them in our good works. We find true hope, peace, joy and love only on our knees in the manger of Bethlehem.

What we give Finally, what we give. What can we give Christ this coming year? We can’t give him gold, frankincense or myrrh.

Gold  However, since the gift of gold reflects the kingship of Christ, I suggest that first of all we give King Jesus our gift of obedience.

Frankincense  Since the gift of frankincense foretold Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross, let us give him the gift of gratitude for opening the door to God’s forgiveness and for reigning as our Great High Priest who intercedes with God on our behalf.

Myrrh  And since the gift of myrrh anticipated Jesus’s death and resurrection, let us give him the gift of joy for eternal life.

So as you leave here this morning to embark upon the New Year, I challenge you to know your scriptures better, follow Jesus more completely, look only to him for your ultimate happiness, and then give him your hearts to love him, your minds to know him, your voices to praise him, and your will to choose him. By so doing, epiphanies will be cascading about you in profusion! Amen!

 

Isaiah 60:1-6 NRSV

  Arise, shine; for your light has come,

   and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.

For darkness shall cover the earth,

   and thick darkness the peoples;

but the Lord will arise upon you,

   and his glory will appear over you.

Nations shall come to your light,

   and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

Lift 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.

Then 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.

A 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.

Matthew 2:1-12 NRSV

 

In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, ‘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.’ When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:

“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.” ’

 Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then 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.’ When 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. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On 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. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.