The Light of Epiphany
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Introduction
Introduction
As you might already know, my favorite movie is Lord of the Rings, and yes, I treat them as one whole movie. But of the three movies, if I had to pick one, it would be the Two Towers. I watched that movie seemingly on repeat while I was in college. It would be on in the background while I wrote most of my papers in the time between it’s DVD release and the theatrical release of The Return of the King.
There’s a scene in that movie where Gandalf has to leave, but he tells Aragorn, "Look to my coming at first light on the 5th day. At dawn, look to the East." This is not a line from the books, so Tolkien purists will have to excuse me for a moment. While Gandalf is away, Aragorn and the people of Rohan move into Helm’s Deep, which is shortly besieged by orcs. Then, on the fifth day, you get this moment.
The battle has been fought in utter darkness, but now, light has dawned, and salvation is at hand.
Peter Jackson knows what he’s doing with this scene. Like Tolkien, he’s playing with biblical themes of light and darkness. Think about the scene I just described, and let me read the opening verses from our Old Testament reading again.
Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you.
Last week we looked at the prologue to John’s Gospel, and there we read:
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
This idea of light shining in the darkness of the world is the theme of Epiphany, and it is symbolized by the star that the wise men saw in the sky.
Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem,
saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”
These wise men are magi, that is, that are like Persian or Babylonian wise men and priest who were experts in astrology, the interpretation of dreams, and other various occult arts. Now you might say, “Oh! Astrology? The interpretation of dreams? Various occult arts? Those aren’t exactly the right kind of people to be coming to see the baby Jesus.” Well, you’re not entirely wrong, but you have to remember that there was once a famous wise man, an interpreter of dreams, in the land of Babylon by the name of Daniel.
I think Luke is leaving a bit to our imagination here, but given the prominence and importance of the book of Daniel on Jewish though in and around the first century, it is a simple imaginative task to connect these magi with the tradition of Daniel whose “one like a Son of Man” and “seventy weeks” led to all kinds of eschatological speculation.
Either way, with the appearance of this star to these magi, God is announcing that the good news of the birth of his Son is not good news only for the people of Israel but for the whole world. There is a lot we could say about the question the magi pose to Herod: “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews” but I don’t want to get lost in the weeds this morning. So, very briefly, Herod was not born King of the Jews. He was made King of the Jews by the Roman Empire, so Matthew, like Luke, is setting up from the very beginning a conflict between Jesus and the rulers of this world, but that is not our focus this morning.
For us, two thousand years removed, in a context in which the Jewish people have by and large rejected their Messiah and it is Gentiles who have embraced him, it can be difficult for us to comprehend how significant this moment is theologically. Just listen again to how Paul describes not this exact moment but the theology behind it.
When you read this, you can perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ,
which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit.
This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.
Of course, we know this. No one today is reading this and saying to themselves, “Oh my goodness! Gentiles are fellow heirs! This changes everything.” But that’s not really my point. While we know that the Gospel is for all nations, historically, many nations, not just our own, have tried to make the Gospel about them, usually to catastrophic results. It’s not exactly intentional, although in some cases it is, and it’s not always obvious, although it usually is.
When any people-group begins to think of themselves and speak of themselves as God’s special and chosen people-group among all others or to act as if they are the only nation or people group that matters, they are failing to follow the star of epiphany. What God has done in Christ is good news for the whole world, and so in Christian theology and in the value structure of Christians, by definition, the literal and metaphorical walls that separate nation from nation and people from people are at best irrelevant and at worst a danger that must be considered with caution.
But don’t take my word for it. Paul says in Ephesians, writing on the same subject of Jews and Gentiles:
But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility
We, as the church, now contain the light of Christ, the light of Epiphany, in us. The church does not belong or consist of any one nation or one people-group. The world, all nations and all peoples, lies in darkness, besieged by sin, death, and the devil, and they aren’t waiting for Gandalf. They’re waiting for us.
You are now the star that shines in the darkness to lead people back to Christ because you have the light of Christ in you. That is why, on Christmas Eve, all the handheld candles in the sanctuary are lit by light that comes from the Christ Candle. It is his light, shining in you, that will lead people back to Christ.
You are the light of Christ.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
Amen.
