Turn Up the Light

Epiphany is all about Light. It starts with Light. It ends with Light. And Light fills everything in-between. Let me explain.

The season of Epiphany begins with, well, Epiphany, of course. The day of Epiphany is when we remember that wise men (or magi, if you prefer) came and visited the Christ Child. What led them to “come and see”? Upon coming to Jerusalem they said, “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” (Matthew 2:2). They followed a light in the sky to find the Light of the world.

The season of Epiphany ends with Jesus’ Transfiguration. What happened there? “Now about eight days after these sayings <Jesus> took with Him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray. And as He was praying, the ap- pearance of His face was altered, and His clothing became dazzling white” (Luke 9:28-29). Here they catch a glimpse of Jesus’ true, glorious nature. For just a few moments the Light of His grace and love shone through.

The season of Epiphany begins with a Light shining down on Jesus, revealing Him to the world. Epiphany ends with Light radiating out from Jesus Himself. It begins with a spotlight on the world’s Savior; it ends with the Savior Himself becoming a beacon to the whole world.

In-between all that Jesus says and does — and even is — reveals this Light to a world living in the darkness of sin and death. The Beatles sang,

“All you need is love,
all you need is love,
All you need is love, love.
Love is all you need.”

They were right on target with those words. The problem was, they missed that love right before them in the person of Jesus. Like so many even today they went looking for love, well, as Johnny Lee sang,

“I was looking for love in all the wrong places
Looking for love in too many faces
Searching their eyes looking for traces
What I’m dreaming of.”

Jesus came to give us God’s love. Jesus came to be God’s love for us. Jesus Himself said, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him” (John 3:16-17). Later He added, “Greater love has no one than this, that He lay down His life for His friends” (John 15:13). The Light of this love shines all through the season of Epiphany.

It radiated out at a wedding in Cana which had run out of wine. Running out of wine or having poor quality wine was a major social blunder. Jesus took care of the problem — turning water into wine — and the best wine at that.

It continued to shine forth in Jesus’ home town of Nazareth when, after reading the prophet Isaiah’s prophecy of the Messiah’s coming, He said, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21). Jesus’ words outraged His audience because they made a case for including Gentiles in the Messiah’s salvation. In doing so He mentioned Elijah and Elisha, who are examples of prophets who previously extended God’s grace to Gentiles.

That same Light of and for the world shines forth today. People are still sitting in the darkness of sin and death. People are still searching for meaning and purpose. They’re looking for love. And all the time Love is hanging on a cross, with His arms outstretched, for the whole world.

If you don’t have a relationship with that Love, with Jesus, today’s the day to be so enlightened. And if you have it, today’s the day to reach out to others — begin- ning with prayer — that they might “come and see” and, seeing, believe for themselves.

Regards, in Christ,
PJKreft