On this Sunday of the Epiphany of the Lord, we hear about gifts in the Gospel reading. The image of ‘gift’ is an appropriate one since today we acknowledge and celebrate the gift of God’s saving grace offered to everyone in the birth of His Son Jesus.
Every year on this Feast, we hear the account of the visit of the Magi from the Gospel of Matthew. There are three important truths revealed in this well known story. First, God alone directs the history of salvation. King Herod tried to get control over the newborn Christ the King, gathering the chief priests and scribes of the people and then meeting secretly with the Magi. He tried to conceal his true motives, to harm and kill any “king” who might challenge his power. But we see that God protected the newborn infant and his family as he directed them to safety.
A second revealed truth on Matthews account of the visit of the Magi is that God prepared us for this gift through the words of the Jewish prophets. Another sign that it behooves us to know the past – to know our history as a human people in relationship to God and also our family history, and to place God in the midst. We hear that the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem fulfills what the prophet Micah had foretold nearly eight centuries earlier: “Bethlehem, … from you shall come a ruler, who is to shepherd my people Israel (Micah 5: 1).
The third truth revealed to the world is that Jesus is God’s gift to all nations. The Magi who brought the gifts to Jesus are traditionally identified as Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar. These three astrologers from the East represented the other major nations of the world in the time of Christ, and so God has now invited every person, everyone in the whole world to come to adore Him.
Epiphany celebrates the visit of the three Magi and reveals to us that the only Son of God, born to us as a poor refugee is available to all as common flesh and blood, but also as the Divine God. Come let us worship and give our gifts in thanksgiving to God through our service and stewardship in and throughout this new year.