The season of Epiphany is the season of the church year when we remember the visit of the wisemen to the house of Jesus. We remember how they worshiped Jesus and then presented him with their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. You might even remember how wicked King Herod wanted to know where Jesus was born so he could kill him, and so the wisemen went back to their home by a different route.

The first Sunday after Epiphany is the celebration of when Jesus was baptized. Epiphany is all about revealing who Jesus is and what he came to do. At his baptism, Jesus was identified by God as the son of God whom God loved. God said that he was well-pleased with Jesus.

It's pretty incredible if you think about it. Jesus hasn't really done anything yet. He's hardly even said anything publicly. He hasn't done any miracles yet. He hasn't preached any sermons. And he certainly hasn't gone to Jerusalem to suffer and die on the cross. And already, God the Father says, "I am well pleased with him."

It's a reminder of Jesus' perfection. Already from the moment of his birth, Jesus was busy being perfect. As a little boy running around the house he obediently listened to his mom and dad. As a teenager, he diligently restrained his body and made good decisions. As a young man he made an honest living and understood the importance of providing. In other words, in every way he was perfect.

And that teaches us something quite important about Jesus, even before he preached a sermon or performed a miracle: he was busy being our Savior by being perfect.

We understand imperfection. We look at our bodies and we see they don't always work so well. We see a world that doesn't follow God, that tolerates evil, that grows more and more wicked. We know family members and the hurtful things they have said and done to us. We know sin. And we know that we are NOT pleasing to God.

But Jesus was. From the moment he took upon himself human flesh, he was busy living the life we couldn't, wouldn't and should live. He was busy doing things right--in our place. And he was doing that for you and me who are so plagued by our sin and the sin of others. And he covers you and me with his perfection. So when God said that he was pleased with Jesus, he could also say that he is pleased with you. Covered in Christ's perfect life, covered in his righteousness, God is pleased to call you one of his children. And by God's grace, that's what you are: a child of God who gives him great joy.