Epiphany 4 (year C)- Luke 4:31-44

 The Gospel from St. Luke 4:31-44 provides a picture of Jesus' early public ministry in Galilee, especially centered around Capernaum. During this period, He teaches and preaches in the synagogues on the Sabbath. Our Lord also engages in a healing ministry. Let us notice two aspects of His healing work. 1) There are extraordinary spiritual healings from evil spirits. Jesus overcomes the destructive power of evil through His holy divine power. 2) There were also miraculous healings from physical afflictions, such as the fever or infection suffered by Peter's mother-in-law. The goal of the healings is also to proclaim or "preach the kingdom of God" (Luke 4:43).

In both word and deed in His earthly ministry, Christ proclaimed the heavenly Father's holy, mighty, and gracious rule over the spiritual realm, over nature, and over human life. Through Word and Sacrament, our Lord is still at work. The living Christ still brings the kingdom of God into this fallen world and into our lives. May we be open to His gracious power which can redeem and heal our lives!

Epiphany 3 (year C)- Luke 4:16-30

The Gospel for this Third Sunday after Epiphany is  Luke 4:16-30. The passage is set early in our Lord's public ministry when He returns to Nazareth after initial work in Capernaum. This account shows several points. We are reminded that attendance at synagogue worship was a Sabbath practice for Jesus. We also see a sample of His teaching. Jesus applies the prophet Isaiah's words about the messianic Servant to Himself and His work. On a superficial level, the local crowd admires Him, but when Jesus starts hinting at a wider mission, especially one involving Gentiles, the crowd turns angry and threatening.

Thus, the Nazareth crowd recognizes  Jesus as a teacher, but they do not accept what He teaches. The crowd quickly moves from familiarity to resistance and then to open hostility. This sort of dynamic still occurs in reactions to Jesus and His message. Many people give Jesus Christ superficial praise without accepting Him or His teachings. Some people minimize His importance, and then they move on to resistance, especially to His message of divine redemption offered to people of all times, places, and backgrounds.

The Epiphany season is a reminder that Christ's Gospel can be a challenge. Jesus asks for more than politeness. He points out that all humans are sinners who need to repent and accept His gracious redemption which is offered to all kinds of people, The good news is not just for certain kinds of favored people. It is for people of any background who hear the Gospel and who, through grace, repent and respond with faith in Jesus Christ. May we be people who respond with such faith, and may we be people who share the message with others!

Epiphany 2 (year C)- John 2

 The Gospel for the Second Sunday after Epiphany recounts the miracle of the water turned into wine  (John 2:1-11).  This story has several associations. For example, this story does show that Christ graced the wedding with His presence and blessing, and there are times when we do well to focus on that connection. However, the central point of the story in John's Gospel especially at this time in the church year lies elsewhere.

The key issue is Christ's action and His disciples' response to Him. The miracle is a sign of who Jesus is. He is God's anointed, and He is Lord over creation. He transforms the purification waters of the Mosaic covenant into the best wine of the new covenant. He manifested His glory, "and His disciples believed in Him" (John 2:11). 

Although the disciples were slow to grow in faith, here they made an appropriate response. They saw that God was working through Jesus in a unique way. The disciples responded to this epiphany or manifestation of divine glory in faith. May we also respond to such signs by faith in Christ!

Epiphany 1 (year C)- Luke 3: 21-22

The Gospel for this First Sunday after Epiphany, Luke 3:15-22, points to one of the oldest themes of Epiphany. That theme is the epiphany or manifestation of divine glory when Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan.  Luke tells us, "Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened, And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased." (Luke 3:21-22 KJV). 

This event involves all three Persons of the Holy Trinity. By coming to John to be baptized, Jesus fulfills all righteousness and shows His dedication to His ministry. Jesus needs no purification, but He does receive a special outpouring of the Holy Spirit on His human nature as He began His public ministry. And the heavenly voice acknowledges Him as the Son of God. This moment is a unique manifestation or epiphany of the divine glory in Christ. It points ahead to His whole public ministry and work for human salvation. It also calls us to respond to Christ in faith.

Epiphany- Micah 5:2; Matthew 2:1-12

There are many things that we can think about at the Feast of the Epiphany, especially about the story of the Magi or Wise Men. Of course, these Eastern scholars and holy men were intelligent and learned in the disciplines of the time. In particular, they had a good knowledge of the skies. They also seem to have been people of natural goodwill and religious longings for redemption.

Yet, Matthew 2 shows that all their natural capacities only carried them so far. They needed more than their natural knowledge to find the Christ Child. In Jerusalem, they needed guidance from Jewish scholars of Scripture. Although many of these Jerusalem priests and scribes were not very spiritually sensitive, they did pay attention to Holy Scripture. And the Wise Men needed to learn from Scripture. The Judean scholars of Scripture pointed them to Micah 5, verse 2 where the prophet speaks of a great new ruler born in King David’s hometown, Bethlehem. The Wise Men were only able to complete their pilgrimage with this Biblical basis.

Thus, as important as natural knowledge and hopes are, they are not enough. They can not in themselves bring us to the Savior. Like the Wise Men, we need guidance from Holy Scripture. The natural world and our human nature can help point us toward our King, but we need more specific guidance from the prophets, evangelists, and apostles inspired by the Holy Spirit to write the Bible. Our Savior is not some unidentified light in the skies; our Savior is the One spoken of by the Scriptures. Jesus Christ is not some vague idea; He is the personal Incarnation and Revelation of God. He is the One born in Bethlehem, the same One later crucified and raised from the dead at Jerusalem and ascended into heaven. The manifestation of God suggested through nature must find completion in the specifics of divine revelation.