January 3, 2010
Matthew 2:1-12 Message Bible
Isaiah 60:1-6 NIV Bible
“I Should Have Had A V8…”
A Reading from the book of Matthew…
Good morning…well, here we are at the beginning of a new year, a new decade…Happy New Year to you and yours. It seems like just yesterday we were celebrating Easter and now we are celebrating the Epiphany of the Lord Sunday…when the Magi came to worship the new born king. Where has the time gone?
The word “Epiphany” is a very interesting word to me…so much so that I decided to look up the definition. What does this word mean anyway? Well…to have an epiphany is to have a sudden realization or comprehension of the essence or meaning of something. This definition kind of reminds me of those old V8 commercials… you know what I’m talking about, the ones that the person has just discovered that what they were drinking had no real nutritional value and they could have had a V8 instead that would have given them nutritional value. That sudden realization that there was something more out there than what you are living with or doing.
These Magi…these Wise Men…they had their “epiphany”, their V8 moment before they ever came to visit the babe born in a manger. These Magi…these scholars of the stars…they knew who this child was that they waited for a long time to come into the world. They knew the path that He would travel. Look at the gifts that they presented this new born king.
Gold →The meaning of this gift represents Kingship on earth. They knew that Jesus was a king. But not just any king…He was the King of King’s and Lord of Lord’s.
Frankincense →This incense that they offered represented priest ship…priesthood. They knew that Jesus was the High Priest. They knew that He was the one who would lead…would be king of…the Jews.
Myrrh →This was an anointing oil…an embalming oil and was the symbol of death.
All three gifts were ordinary offerings and gifts to a king. These gifts are also sometimes described more generally as gold symbolizing virtue, frankincense symbolizing prayer and myrrh symbolizing suffering.
These Magi “fell to their knees” when they entered the house where Jesus was. This falling to the knees represented great respect and was typically used when venerating a king. These Magi had it right…they knew who and what Jesus really was. They knew that this infant born in Bethlehem was the true king that would bring justice to the poor and save the lives of the needy.
But in this story of the Magi, there is another epiphany, so to speak… the epiphany of King Herod himself. Remember what happened when Herod heard of the Magi coming to visit the newborn King? He was terrified. Now I am sure that there were other kings around and Herod was not afraid of them but this one king, this king of the Jews…well this was a different kind of king and Herod knew it. This would be a king that would turn the world that he knew upside down. As a matter of fact, when Herod called his priest and scholars together, he didn’t ask where this new king was supposed to be born. Oh no…he asked where the “Messiah” was suppose to be born. He knew…he had his V8 moment…his epiphany of what was to be. He knew that the prophecy was being fulfilled…the prophecy of the prophet Micah that was told so long ago. And he was afraid…
Epiphanies…I think most of us have them in some shape or form. They may not be as monumentus as the one of the Magi but they still rock us to the core with a sudden realization of something. My prayer for us as individuals and as a church is that we all will have that epiphany that will bring us ever closer to our Lord Jesus Christ this year…That we will have a revelation of who Christ is to us and who we are to Him…That we will embark on new journeys that will lead us to a new and exciting place where we will encounter our Redeemer in new ways.
Let us pray:
We have seen your star, O God, shining brightly over us and all the peoples of the earth. Teach us to trust your light.
Help us take risks, that we might step out in faith into the unknown. Guide us to the place where you abide, that we may be overwhelmed with joy like the magi before us. Guide us to the stable of your love, that we may offer you the gifts of our lives. Give us that Epiphany moment that draws us closer to you. (Abingdon Worship 2010)
Amen.
Matthew 2:1-12
Message Bible
Isaiah 60:1-6 NIV Bible
Worship Theme: “A Sudden
Awareness”
Unison Prayer –
“Epiphany”,
United Methodist Hymnal,
#255
and sermon, “I Should Have
Had A V8”
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
sermon blog
meditation blog
“God’s
Whisper” blog
Suncook United Methodist
Church
Suncook, NH
January 3, 2010
Epiphany of the Lord
Sunday
&
Philippians
4:13 (NKJV)
and
writing challenge
“Monday
Manna for January 4, 2010 – What I Can’t Do”
posted
by Joanne Sher on her blog,
“An
Open Book”, at:
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