Dear friends, today we're observing Epiphany Sunday.  The word "Epiphany" comes from a Greek word that means "to reveal".  Epiphany, also called "Twelfth Night" in some Christian traditions, recalls the coming of the Wise Men to see the child born of Mary.  Among Orthodox churches, January 6 is celebrated as Christmas, so yesterday several hundred million of our fellow Christians around the world held their Christmas Eve candle light services and opened their gifts.

          For those of us here, it's a sort of birthday, recalling the first contact made to begin Epiphany Lutheran Church of Castle Rock on January 6, two years ago.  God led a group of men and women on a journey to begin a new congregation.  With today's move to this high school cafeteria, I guess you could say we are following God's direction as well.  Wise men and women will follow the Lord.

          The Wise Men, or Magi, were star gazers - probably astrologers from Persia, educated in medicine, religion, astronomy, and perhaps magic.  Somehow these mysterious visitors knew a baby would be born King of the Jews.  Persian Magi were considered the highest intellects.  Some say there was a group of Zoroastrians in southern Jordan who mixed observation of the stars with prophecy.  Perhaps the Magi were part of this group, as they would have come from the East.

          The Wise Men saw a star that had been prepared in some special way by God.  Whether it was a specially created star or a confluence of planets, God made sure it was bright enough so they could see and follow it.  The Wise Men believed this was the star prophesied by Isaiah over 400 years before, so they decided to find the new king and worship him.  Wise men and women still seek Him for worship yet today.

          "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews?  We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him."  Their question must have scared what little life was left in King Herod.  Old Herod was nearly dead, but still alive enough to tolerate no rivals.  Satan doesn't look at our age.  He will stir up our pride and lust no matter what our age.  Herod's decadence and evil show he was merely a pawn of the devil who sought even then to kill the Son of God.

          After hearing Bethlehem was the place, the Wise Men followed the star again and came to the house where Mary and Joseph had moved.  And there they worshipped the baby Jesus.  It's always amazing to me to know that these Wise Men were pagans.  They were not Jews, and they were certainly not Christians, and yet they were among the first to bow the knee in worship to a newborn king who would deliver them and the world from the grip of sin.  They showed their intelligence by worshipping the Lord.  These guys weren't called Wise Men for nothing!  And wise men and women still worship that same Lord today.

          Did they understand all that was happening?  I don't believe so, any more than Mary and Joseph understood everything as it was happening.  But they knew this birth was something greater than themselves.  They were wise to seek God out, even if they didn't know or understand Him fully.  True wisdom does not need complete understanding or perfect theology.  True wisdom looks for signs and seeks out God.  Wise men and women still worship Him.

          These men had an "epiphany", a revelation.  God revealed Himself and showed His power through a star and a baby.  When they bowed down in worship, they somehow knew this Child was from God.  Their knowledge was not from the head only, but also from the heart.  They did not live as so many of us do today, as if everything depended upon our cleverness.  They knew life depends on God.  They were not tied to the treasures of this world, but to the treasures of the Holy One.  These pagans are a great example for us.  If we want to be wise, we must do as they did;  learn important things, seek out the Lord, and humble ourselves before Him in worship.

          Their worship, like ours, included gifts, costly gifts that provided the new family a living during those first months.  We often hear we should give until it hurts, which is a poor analogy.  The Wise Men gave until it felt good.  They gave the best gifts, not just leftovers.  They gave because it was to God.  If you think of it, our Sunday offerings began right here.  It's not something the church invented, but the Wise Men.  Their gifts honored God.  They weren't just a donation, but a true offering.

          Just as we'd never serve leftovers to our guests at dinner, so we should not give God leftovers.  There was a boy named Jimmy who loved his dog Rex and wanted to give him something special for being such a good dog.  He found nothing in the refrigerator that looked good, but he saw his mother putting out T-bone steaks for supper, and he thought, "That's what I'll give him - Rex will love one of those!"  Just as he was reaching for one, his mother said, "No you don't mister.  We'll wait until supper is over and Rex can have the bones and all the scraps.  But he's not getting a fresh steak."  Afterwards Jimmy took the plate of bones to Rex and said, "Sorry Rex, I wanted to bring you an offering, but all I have here is a donation."  How many of us give God a donation?  Just as we'd never serve leftovers to our guests, so we shouldn't give God our leftovers, either.  The Wise Men show us that.

          Some 50 years after the Wise Men, St. Paul said in Romans 12:1, "I urge you, friends, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship."  This kind of talk offends some.  "A collection is okay, Pastor, but offering myself?  What's God want here - my life?"

          Frankly, yes, because He gave it to us in the first place.  In the past I've had some people leave the church if the topic of giving was brought up too often.  During the coming year, we'll be hearing more about offerings, because we must begin a capital campaign for our building needs.  Like the Wise Men, all of us, young and old, need to grow in the grace of giving.  Keeping what we have is simple - anyone can do that.  It's human nature to grab and keep.

          But giving, especially to a God we can't see, is a grace we all must learn.  Giving is an act of faith.  It says we honor God enough to give to Him, but we also trust Him enough to know He'll give back.  I've never yet met anyone who gave God so much that they were shortchanged.  God always gives us back far more than we can ever give away.

          Paul said, "Offer your bodies as living sacrifices."  It almost sounds like human sacrifice, and in a way it is.  We all need to sacrifice ourselves to God -- our pride, our time, and our human nature.  That's what real worship is all about, but it's not easy to understand or accept.  "Why does God demand so much?" we think.  "Why isn't it good enough if I come on Sunday now and then and give Him a donation?  I work hard for my money.  God's getting in the way of my plans!  Why does He ask so much of me?  Couldn't He make things easier?  Isn't believing in Him enough?"

          It's true - believing in God IS enough.  You and I don't have to give God anything;  offerings are not required.  We don't have to do anything to gain salvation.  Faith is enough.  But offerings do show our faith.  They show our thankfulness.  Imagine if this past Christmas you received no gifts from family or friends.  You'd feel very sad because gifts show love and appreciation.

          If God seems demanding and faith an imposition, just remember we're not destined to live on earth forever.  But we will live somewhere forever.  Most of us have it pretty good.  We may have some problems, but how bad are they, really?  Most of us are fairly healthy.  We live in the richest nation on earth.  We have more than enough for our basic needs.  We're not at war, and plagues don't threaten us.  Terrorists don't murder us or our loved ones in the middle of the night.  Life in Colorado is pretty great, and worshipping God with a gift is a small way to thank Him for all He's given us.

          The Wise Men visited the baby Jesus long ago.  Wise men and women still will worship Him today.  He is our Savior, who took our punishment for our sins.  We're all sinners, every one of us, and we deserve nothing good.  The Heavenly Father sent His only Son to bring us the best - a forgiven life here and an eternal life there.

          Jesus is the king who sacrifices himself for the worthless peasant.  He's the boss who's fired in place of the lazy employee.  He is the general who is court marshalled in place of the insubordinate soldier, and the parent who is punished for actions of the rebellious child.

          There's a Russian fable about a master and his servant who went on a journey in winter to another city.  Before the two men could reach their destination, they were caught in a raging blizzard.  They lost their direction and were unable to reach the city before nightfall.  The next morning people went searching for them and found the master frozen to death, face down in the snow.  When they lifted the dead man they found his servant, very cold but still alive.  The servant survived because the benevolent master had given his life for him.  Jesus is our benevolent Master.  He died that we might live.

          Joseph and Mary moved around a lot, from Nazareth to Bethlehem, from the manger to the house, on to Egypt, and finally back home to Nazareth.  We've moved again, too, but after this place we'll finally get home.  2001 will be an interesting and challenging year, but it will also be exciting.  I pray that wise Epiphany men, women and children will worship Him every Sunday and bring Him gifts.  I challenge you all to make Sunday worship a top priority.  It's the wise thing to do.  Amen!

Copyright © 2001 by Pastor Bob Tasler.  All rights reserved.