Today, January 6, is the festival of the Epiphany. It is one of the oldest festivals in the Church Year that has a specific date on the calendar. It brings an end to the 12 days of Christmas.

We commemorate the coming of the Wise Men with this festival. They followed a star on a quest for someone they hadn’t met. In fact, they did not know their final destination or what they would find. Their faith serves as a model for all of us. How often we are tempted to make our faith and our God into something that is reasonable and fits our own ideas. We think we need answers from God for all our questions. The Wise Men traveled to Jerusalem, not knowing the answers to the many questions that might have been in their minds. 

The Wise Men found a baby who was the Savior of the world. We find the same. By faith, we see that in Christ we have received untold and indescribable gifts from God. The Magi let whatever their eyes saw, their ears heard, or their minds thought be subservient to the desire to see the Savior. Martin Luther commented on their faith in a sermon on their story (Matthew 2:1-12):

"The light of nature and the light of grace cannot be friends. Human nature wants to feel and to be certain before it believes. Faith wants to believe before it feels. This is the reason why human nature goes no farther than it can see by its light. But grace steps out cheerfully into the darkness, follows the bare Word and Scripture, no matter what matters appear to be like; whether human nature thinks them to be right or wrong, grace clings to the Word." What Luther Says, p. 611

Standing on the Word of God you will see countless blessings in your life. You will see God’s love at work in you, preparing you for eternity. You will see God as you look at Jesus. Join with the Magi in worshipping the one born king of the Jews who is your Savior. Then live in the peace of knowing God's eternal love for you!

 

Pastor Tim Wempner

Pastor Joshua Zarling