HAPPY EPIPHANY!

Those of you who have a background in liturgical Christian churches know that today, January 6, is "Epiphany"...the 12th day of Christmas...in Koine Greek, it's ἐπιφάνεια, epiphaneia, or "manifestation" or "striking appearance"...

It's the day of the Theophany, which in Ancient Greek is (ἡ) Θεοφάνεια, Theophaneia, meaning "vision of God"...it's a Christian feast day that celebrates the revelation of God as a human being in Jesus Christ...in Western Christianity, the feast commemorates principally (but not solely) the visit of the Magi to the Christ child, and thus Jesus' physical manifestation to the Gentiles...

The Magi (or three Wise Men), who are celebrated on this day, may be my favorite Bible characters...they were persian magician/astrologers who, as far as we know, knew nothing of the Scriptures predicting the birth of a Jewish Messiah, and still found the Christ...they certainly didn't know that the Prophet Micah had said that He would be born in Bethlehem...

Now pertaining to Jesus – being born within [the town of] Bethlehem, of the Judean [district], during the days of Herod the king – note and consider this: Great ones (magi: from the Persian magus = great ones, who were often Persian priests; wise men; scholars; astrologers; royal advisors; or: magicians) from eastern regions birthed their presence into Jerusalem[Hebrew: City or Occupation of Peace and Wholeness]. They kept on saying, "Where is He being the one born 'King of the Judeans'? You see, we saw His star (or: luminous heavenly body; meteor; flame of light) in [its] rising (or: within the East, the place of rising; or: we, [being] in the east, saw His star), and we come (or: came) to do obeisance (or: to kiss toward, fall down and give reverence, worship and pay homage) to Him."
(Matthew 2:1, 2 - Jonathan Mitchell New Testament)

...somehow they knew about Him by charting the stars, or the zodiac, and were so excited about His birth that they travelled to a foreign country just to worship Him...not to convert to Judaism...not to learn about the Hebrew Scriptures...certainly not to become  "Christians", because that concept didn't even exist yet...these three mysterious men transcended religious and national boundaries, and were not only enlightened in the magical arts, they were also global visionaries...they intuitively recognized who Jesus was as a baby in the same way that the pagan Roman Centurian recognized Him as an adult...

Now when the man Jesus was born as a baby in Bethlehem of Judea during the reign of Herod the king, astrologers from the East came to Jerusalem to inquire about Him. These astrologers, or “Magi” originated from a religious caste among the Persians who were devoted to divination (or the practice of the magic arts) and to the interpretation of dreams. They came from Southern Arabia, where they had long maintained a tradition of Israelite Messianic expectation that had survived in the region since the days of the Queen of Sheba; and this tradition survived alongside their practice of astrology. When they came to Jerusalem, they began to ask around, “Where is He Who has been born King of the Jews? For we have charted His star in the East through our understanding of the zodiac and have come to worship Him.”
(Matthew 2:1, 2 - Matthew In The Now


"Epiphany" is also known as "The Day of the Lights"...the dictionary defines an epiphany as: 

"a sudden, intuitive perception of or insight into the reality or essential meaning of something, usually initiated by some simple,  homely, or commonplace occurrence or experience"...


I love the way the Concordant Literal Version translates Matthew 2:1, 2:

Now, at Jesus' being born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, lo! magi from the East came along into Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He Who is brought forth King of the Jews? For we perceived His star in the East, and we came to worship Him." 

How awesome is that?! "We PERCEVED His star in the East"...

Perception is everything...

The little cartoon at the top about "Breakfast at Epiphany's" cracks me up, but there is also a subtle truth to it...the more sensitive that you become to the phenomena of having an epiphany, so more you see EVERYTHING as a miracle...

The United Nations has named 2015 as 'The Year of Light'...my prayer for you today is that you will walk in revelation and enlightenment and a continual unveiling of truth, not just on January 6, but in every day of this New Year...I pray for you to have the ability to think outside the religious box, as the Magi did 2,000 years ago, that you are able to transcend borders, as they did, and that you will find a deeper revelation of God on your own terms by following their example...

LET THERE BE LIGHT!