Theophany (Ephesians 3)

     "...The Gentiles have become fellow heirs, members of the same body, and sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the Gospel." Paul's Letter to the Ephesians, chapter 3, verse 6.
     In the name of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.
     I'll speak for only a few minutes tonight. Some of you perhaps have come to church a little tired from four or maybe even 5 days at work, some of you are getting back to normal after a week or two off the job, with a few parties along the way, so I don't want to be long-winded and wear you out. And, it's Friday night, the beginning of a two-day weekend, when we were just getting used to three-day weekends, so I won't shorten the weekend any more than necessary.
     The twelfth day of Christmas. The arrival of the three kings, or the three wise men, or the magi, or the astrologers, at the birthplace of Jesus. We all think of the carols that celebrate their journey. We think of the appearance of the wise men, portrayed as kings in our Nativity scene, coming at the time when daylight is lengthening --- not too noticeable yet, of course, but it is happening. Just as we know that the sun will return to our skies, so the wise men knew that the true light of God was coming into their world.
     As we know, "epiphany" means "manifestation" or "appearance," referring to the appearances of the Roman Emperor before his people. I prefer the Orthodox name for this feast: "Theophany," or "God-showing." The word captures very well the sense of the mystery and depth of the revelation, which Paul mentions in today's epistle reading. The "God-showing" which Paul reveals is not just to the chosen people, but to Gentiles as well --- Gentiles --- that is, absolutely everybody outside the Jewish people. Gentiles --- everybody --- according to Paul, "have become fellow heirs, members of the same body, and sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the Gospel."
     Now, let's think about this for a moment. It seems to me that this means that every single person, without exception, who has lived, is living, and will live, is an heir to the boundless riches of Christ. No exceptions. And what does this mean to us Christians? Paul goes on to say that "through the church the wisdom of God in its rich variety may now be made known." In other words, it is up to us, the church, to make the wisdom of God known, "in its rich variety," as Paul says, to the Gentiles, to everyone. This is Paul's calling, and it is ours too.
     It is a good exercise to look at every single person we encounter, or see, in our daily lives, and to remember that he or she, no matter his or her condition, is a sharer in the promises of Christ. Let us remember this, as we leave church tonight, and look at every person we see, with this in mind. I promise you, this will change the way you look at everyone, sooner than you think. And then, God willing, the light of the Nativity will begin to shine through us, and that will help the wisdom of God to become better known. So there will be an epiphany, a manifestation, a God-showing, through us.
     The wise men have come from the east, from Persia, to do homage to Jesus. They are responding to a prophecy that a star will show them where the new-born king of the Jews is. For the wise men, the star is a sign of hope, of promise, of joy and light. I was reminded of this about fourteen months ago, when I was in Sweden visiting friends, whose newborn daughter they named Ester. Ester is a Persian word meaning "star." It was my privilege to lead a service of Thanksgiving after Childbirth, in which I was able to talk about Ester, a star, a sign of new life and great promise for the future. The occasion gave me a glimpse, a suggestion, of what the wise men may have felt when, as it says in today's Gospel, "they set out, and there, ahead of them, went the star they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was." And we know their response when they arrived: gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. These, of course, are very valuable, very precious gifts, symbolic of the generosity and love and hope that we all feel in the presence of a newborn child. And the gifts are also reminders of the generosity and love of God, to which we can only respond with all the generosity and love we have in ourselves. God's generosity, the Apostle Paul reminds us, extends to the Gentiles, to all people. The star of the Epiphany, of the Nativity, is a light that leads us to respond to God's generosity with our own, and to do our part to make him known to all people, who are "fellow heirs, members of the same body, and sharers in the promise of Christ."
     In the name of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.