The Epiphany of Our Lord
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“I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ my Lord, or come to Him, but the Holy Spirit has called my by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith.” These words from Luther’s Small Catechism are a perfect summary of the theme of Epiphany. Our Savior is born on Christmas Day. He has come for all people, but all people do not know or believe this. Only a few shepherds came to visit on Christmas Day. Only a few wise men from a foreign land brought Him gifts. But God desires that all people would come to saving knowledge of the truth. How does God accomplish His saving purpose? It takes an epiphany.
An epiphany is a revelation. The Epiphany is the revelation of Jesus Christ. And how is He revealed? How are unbelievers brought to faith? Many pastors teach that this is our job, that it’s up to us to make people believe the Gospel. “Jesus died on the cross. That was His role in salvation. Your role is to go out and convince people of this truth. And if you aren’t out there witnessing for Christ every moment of the day, the people you didn’t reach are going to hell, because you didn’t evangelize. Every time you sleep in on a Saturday instead of knocking on doors, another soul is lost. Every time you watch a show on Netflix, three more people die without Christ and go to hell, and it’s your fault.”
As bizarre as this false teaching is, you might be surprised to hear that a former president of our synod used to teach this. As he traveled about the country speaking about his Gospel-sharing vision, he would often stand at the microphone and snap his fingers, counting off seconds. “Every second, one person dies without the hope of everlasting life in Jesus,” he would say. “Every time I snap my fingers another soul is eternally lost.” A friend of mine among the pastors listening shouted out, “For Pete’s sake, stop snapping your fingers!”
Humor aside, this false idea plagues many Christians. “We need to get out there and evangelize or else people will go to hell because of us! We need to take drastic measures to make the church grow! If the building is not full of young people, let’s figure out what they want and give it to them!” But all of these plans are bound to fail. Why? Because Epiphany is not the work of man; it is the work of God. Every Lutheran confesses these words, “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ my Lord, or come to Him, but the Holy Spirit has called my by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith.”
I believe that I cannot believe—apart from the work of the Holy Spirit. If you cannot believe, by your own reason or strength, then the same thing applies to those who have not yet seen the light of Christ. Consider the language of the biblical texts for this day: Isaiah writes, “Arise, shine; for your light has come! And the glory of the Lord has risen upon you” (Is 60:1). St. Paul writes, “God has made known to me the mystery [of salvation], as it has now been revealed by the Spirit (Eph 3:2, 5). And St. Matthew writes, “The star which [the wise men] had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was” (Mt 2:9). In every case the Scriptural language teaches us that man can never discover the Gospel. God must reveal it to us. The glory of the Lord rises upon us, God makes known the mystery of salvation, the star goes before until it stands over the place where Jesus is.
This is good news because it means that it’s not on you to make people believe the Gospel. That is God’s work. No one can believe unless the Holy Spirit does a miracle. Remember, how did you come to the faith? The Holy Spirit called you by the Gospel. How is it that you believe in Christ? The Holy Spirit enlightened you with His gifts. How can it be that after all these years you are still a member of the Church? The Holy Spirit has kept you in the true faith.
So what does this mean for evangelism? What about being the city set on a hill, the lamp shining in the darkness? Do we have a role to play? Yes, we do. Our job is to faithful to the Word of God, to cling to it for dear life, to suffer all, even death, rather than fall away from it. The true Church is found, not where the pews and offering plates are filled to capacity, but where the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ is preached and heard with gladness.
Consider the story of the Wise Men. These are men from the East, from outside of the land of God’s people, likely from Babylon, or modern-day Iraq. How is it that they would have heard of Christ? Did the ancient Jews have an 12-step plan of outreach to the pagans of the Babylonian Empire? No. Quite the opposite. The Babylonians were the enemy of God’s people. Five hundred years before Christ, the city of Jerusalem was reduced to rubble by the Babylonian army. The temple was destroyed, and the people of Judah were carried off as captives to the East, to Babylon, as punishment for their idolatry.
But what did the faithful among God’s people do in Babylon? They had lost their building and their homeland. They had lost everything that most people consider to be of value. But there is one treasure the had not lost, something they brought with them into exile: the Holy Scriptures. There in Babylon, captives in a foreign land, they devoted themselves to the Word of God. It was taught and read and cherished even when by all outward signs the Church of God seemed to be a dying institution. And where the Word of God is taught in truth and purity, there the Holy Spirit works to create faith—even among the enemies of God’s people. Five-hundred years later, long after the Jewish people had returned to their homeland, the faith that had been kindled in Babylon among the pagans continued to burn in the hearts of the wise men. Led by the Holy Spirit, they followed the star, traveling hundreds of miles to the place where the Christ Child lay. Truly, this is a miracle: God makes His enemies into dear children.
This is the same miracle that was done in your heart. You were born into the same darkness as the pagans of Babylon. But God did a miracle. He opened your ears to the Gospel. He opened your eyes to the light of Christ. And today He continues to lead you safely through the wilderness of this sinful world into the house where Christ dwells. Even if most of this happened to you while you were an infant, it is no less a miracle.
The light of Christ still shines in this dark world. Enemies of God are still being brought to the faith. But we don’t make this happen. The Holy Spirit does. We don’t bring about Epiphany. God Himself does this. So what do we do? We remain faithful to the Word of Jesus. We cling to it as though our very lives depend upon it, because they do. We hold fast to the promises of Christ, for they are life and salvation. And as we do, the Holy Spirit continues to work His saving miracle. “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ my Lord, or come to Him, but the Holy Spirit has called my by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith. In the same way He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian Church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith.” Amen.