Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, February 17, 2021. This year’s devotional series focuses on how to live between two worlds while holding onto your faith.

What are these two worlds?
City of Man which exists as a world of troubles, injustice, and strife. 
City of God in which every tear will be wiped away,
everything will be made right, and all troubles will end. 

What’s a Christian to do right now
to live in the City of Man as a resident of the City of God? 
Endure.  That’s about all we can do. 
Persevere.  That’s what the Bible instructs us to do. 
Remain faithful.  That’s what it takes. 

Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace:  But God.

Gracious living in a broken world requires wisdom.
Come pray with me as we seek God’s wisdom in this matter.

Listen and let this worship song written by Paul Baloche about God’s grace minister to your spirit

But for Your grace I could not be saved
But for Your grace I would go my way
I’m forever grateful
That You have been faithful to me, Lord
For Your amazing grace
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost but now I’m found
Was blind but now I see

But for Your grace I could not be saved
But for Your grace I would go my way
I’m forever grateful
That You have been faithful to me, Lord
For Your amazing grace
For Your amazing grace
For Your amazing grace

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2021 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
• Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
• Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.

If, as I asserted previously, there is discernment of hills to die on and ones to die to, I’d like to offer this pattern which mirrors the thoughts of Gavin Ortlund in his book “Finding the Right Hills to Die On” about issues that chronically divide the Church.   Summarized by Challies : In theological triage, Ortlund identifies four ranks of doctrines:

• “First-rank doctrines are those that are essential to the gospel itself.
• Second-rank doctrines are urgent for the health and practice of the church to such a degree that they tend to be the cause of separation at the level of local church, denomination, and/or ministry.
• Third-rank doctrines are important to Christian theology, but not important enough to be the basis for separation.
• Fourth-rank doctrines are unimportant to our gospel witness and ministry collaboration.”

I would like to suggest Ortlund’s ideas can be applied to the intersection of faith and politics as well. This is incredibly important for any Christian trying to live his or her faith in the public square, being in the world but not of it. Or as Scripture says, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is– His good, pleasing and perfect will (Romans 12:2).

It’s important because we’re not supposed to be keeping the aquarium clean but fishing for men.  That happens only when we engage with others who do not know Jesus…and that’s the public square.

Our faith should not be private since that’s not the Gospel way.

Our first priority should be what is essential… the character of God, the Gospel’s meaning, and the Great Commission of Jesus Christ (free proclamation as His command).  Without these the Gospel is meaningless and our faith is in vain.

Our second priority should be those items urgent to the Gospel meaning and proclamation as a human endeavor, our witness itself.

Our third priority are items of importance to Christians but aren’t necessary to fulfill the Great Commission.

And our fourth rank might be those things unimportant to Gospel witness and for earthly social benefit alone.

Pairing those ideas with what I wrote in 2013 about Understanding the Christian Right, Understanding the Christian Left, and Bad Company, I’d like to suggest that we read 1 Corinthians 15:1-19 in light of “First Things.”

1 Corinthians 15:1 Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand.  2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.

3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. 9 For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them– yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.

11 Whether, then, it is I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed. 12 But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.

15 More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise Him if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.  18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.

Lord Jesus, thank You that our hope is not in vain.  We praise You for the Gospel of Your saving grace, the redemption of mankind by Your shed blood.  Keep our hearts focused on items of first importance, for Your glory’s sake.  Amen.

Come’on, Barb!  What are Christians supposed to do, just lie down and take it?
Yes and no.
What does it mean to submit to leaders whom God has given for His purposes
when we look at Scripture
and don’t believe that those leaders stand for the same things God stands for? 
I hear you.

This truly calls for discernment and it’s hard, I know. 
I can sum it up with this, “Discernment is knowing which are hills to die on, and which are hills we die to.”

We need more men of Issachar who understand the times.  If you go back to 1 Chronicles 10 to 13, there are some stories, each interesting on its own, but worth connecting to understand and apply to our world. 

David had been promised (by none other than God Himself) that he was to be king.  In 1 Chronicles 10, King Saul falls on his own sword and the Lord fulfills His will (1 Chronicles 10:13-14).  David had been chased throughout the wilderness and had assembled a group of like-minded individuals who sought David’s rule and reign throughout Israel.  But some conquering would still have to happen.  So, David assembles this army of “mighty men” and the Scriptures point to swords and spears, “every weapon” at their disposal and “ready for battle” as their disposition.  They were ready to fight, ready to make David king, and they were warriors!

Huh. The men of Issachar in that list of mighty men don’t have weapons for their names (1 Chronicles 12:32).  Theirs was a different weapon altogether: discernment.  They understood the times. 

Scripture continues and David says, “If it seems good to you and if it is the will of the LORD our God, let us send word far and wide to the rest of our people throughout the territories of Israel, and also to the priests and Levites who are with them in their towns and pasturelands, to come and join us. Let us bring the ark of our God back to us, for we did not inquire of it during the reign of Saul.” (1 Chronicles 13:2-3). 

Time out.  Hill to die ON: Free worship of God. 
Inquiring of Him in the way God Almighty commanded.

Of course, a good intention (done man’s way) becomes a problem as the story continues.  A hill to die TO.  Their way instead of God’s way.  They chose man’s way, and Uzzah paid with his life (1 Chronicles 13:7-10). God is not to be trifled with, disrespected, or mocked.  There’s a holiness that God demands from those who worship Him. 

After Uzzah is struck dead, David’s reaction is much like that of many Christians post-election in the United States whose passion for God surpassed their submission to Him.  David was clearly shocked, sad, confused, etc. because he had all the best intentions.  He was angry with God and afraid of Him because Uzzah’s death didn’t seem right.  After all, he was just protecting the Ark… to keep it from falling off the cart… (SPOILER ALERT: the cart was the problem)  

Let’s apply these Scriptures to what has happened with so many Christians feeling like God didn’t come through for them or answer their prayers.  Among those who voted for Joe Biden, we can surmise some of you are still very happy, but there is increasing evidence some have regrets and feel played.  At the very least we can—irrespective our votes—recognize our brothers and sisters in Christ are trying to understand, perhaps like David feeling angry, doubting, or betrayed.  They, like David, had the best of intentions whether with a D or an R next to their vote.

A hill to die ON is something so foundational and fundamental
that were it to be lost, the Gospel is compromised.

King David hadn’t stopped believing God was real or deserved to be worshiped.  But he had to abandon doing things man’s way.  A hill to die TO is the one we bring to the altar and sacrifice it to God, asking Him to make things right, inquiring His way forward, and accepting that His ways are not our own. After all, Saul was king for a good 40 years before David succeeded him.

So, let’s bring it home:

Taxation: a hill to die TO
COVID response and mask mandates: a hill to die TO
Social justice as federal mandates: a hill to die TO
Minimum wage: a hill to die TO
Federal debt: a hill to die TO
Prescription drug costs: a hill to die TO

Freedom of religion: a hill to die ON
Freedom of speech: a hill to die ON
Representation meaning something important: a hill to die ON

The lists go on, but the more things I list, the more people will tune me out.  Seriously though, do you see how the Gospel can thrive with a mask mandate, high taxes, high debt, etc.?  But in cases of our freedoms, the Gospel is forced underground when those freedoms are taken away.  It doesn’t mean the persecuted Church can’t grow because it will…when God is in charge.  But in the triage of concerns, the Gospel thrives best when we’re free to share it. Therefore, let’s make our proclamation of the Gospel be our top priority…the hill to die ON.  And let’s take the rest and make every thought captive to Christ who represented us on the Cross and represents us now before God.

Let’s pray 2 Corinthians 10:3-7.  Lord, though we live in the world, we [accept that we] do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, [Your truth as our weapon, has] divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience [in our churches to hold Christians accountable], once [our] obedience is complete [and in order.  Please, Lord, do not let us judge] by appearances. If anyone is confident that they belong to Christ, [we] should consider again that [every Christian belongs] to Christ just as much as they do.”  Grant us discernment for which are hills to die on and which are hills to die to.  Keep our doctrine pure and help us to watch our lives and doctrine closely as evil has its moment. We lay it all before Your throne, Lord Jesus, and offer ourselves to You as living sacrifices, ready to do Your will, Your way.  For Your glory. Amen.

Continuing our look at how Christians should respond to last week’s Inauguration, let’s acknowledge something we can call reality. For the Christians who voted for Joe Biden, you got what you wanted.  For the Christians who didn’t vote for Joe Biden, you didn’t get what you wanted.  But in both cases, God got what will further His will.  Just like in 2016.  Hence what Dr. Michael Brown (who I offered as one example) said in 2016 and now says in his recent post (Joe Biden is president – by the sovereign will of God (wnd.com) ) is once again, true.

How should Christians respond?  Argue among each other about the faults and flaws of the one who is President and the one who was before and ran for a second term?  Nope.  Trash their wives and kids because of their family name?  Nope.  Rip theologians and pastors who don’t agree with you?  Nope.  Look to doxx the enemy voters and send them to re-education camps?  That’s one Big Nope.

I, for one, will not do what some Christians did at the election of Donald J. Trump.  I will not set myself against my fellow Christians who voted for Joe Biden or Donald Trump.  I will never hate either individual or their voters.  Here’s why:  They all bear the Image of God.

The “Hating Christians” are the reason people outside the family of faith hate Christianity
and hate Christians. 
It’s hypocrisy at the most insidious level on the part of Hating Christians
and it reflects poorly on Jesus Christ.

The hate that consumed the past 4 years of American life was never grounded in an understanding of earthly reality or Gospel truth.  People who aren’t Christians are doing it out of ignorance.  People who claim Christ have no excuse.  There is no way that hatred each other was ever grounded in faithful Christianity!  We witnessed Christians tearing apart other Christians, protesting them, threatening them, insulting them, and digging non-stop for that speck of sawdust in someone else’s eye (Matthew 7:3-5).  And that, my friends, was horribly, terribly wrong.

It is every bit as wrong now as it was then.  As I wrote yesterday, true Christians take this to heart:

“Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul.  Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.  Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right.  For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people.  Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves.  Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.”  (1 Peter 2:11-17)

More on the idea of submitting to authority soon, but for now just know, it’s a sinful desire to hate anyone. Therefore, anyone who loves God should stop from their present gloom and doubt—or heaven forbid, their desire for retribution against their fellow Christian—and instead, see everyone’s dire need for a Savior and that only Jesus Christ will do. 

Let’s pray, Lord Jesus, please use this time of political turmoil to open the eyes of people–both wayward Christians and those who have never known You.  We ask, Lord, that people would find hope in the shed blood of Christ for sin.  May they repent and believe what the Bible says that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8) as an expression of His great love.  We ask Lord that those Christians who are consumed by politics (denouncing Christian nationalism or elevating social justice in non-Gospel terms) or failing to see the larger picture of salvation in Jesus Christ as being predominant would repent of their hypocrisy so that the world might see Christ in us instead of Christians who hate.  Let love be our language.  Let peace be our response.  Let the Gospel be our banner for Your glory, Lord Jesus.  Amen.

Still taking a break from the series on Epiphany to address a current and important need for calm, peace, and faith as millions of Christians experience doubts about God’s goodness and sovereignty.  Irrespective of your view of the recent Inauguration, one thing is true: millions of Christians feel confused.

Given the volume of people reading my post from 4 years ago called Prayer for a Peaceful Transition of Power, some of you may wonder if I still believe it.  You bet I do.

Dr. Michael Brown echoed thoughts I had in 2016 about Donald J. Trump’s election and he has reiterated them in his recent article entitled Joe Biden is president – by the sovereign will of God (wnd.com).   Stick with me here.

This is not so much a political article or political post as it is a reflection on the larger picture with the goal of forging peace and a sense of understanding.  
Peace with each other.  Understanding each other. 
This is a wrestling with what we don’t understand instead of wrangling with one another. 

More people could use a “Dead Baby Theology.”  Sounds horrible, I know, but I’ve lived it.  It’s highly useful, and I’m glad God gave me the opportunity more than 20 years ago to wrestle with Him and His goodness in the face of something no one calls good.  My faith has been stronger for it.

When my third child Julia Marie was stillborn on my due date 3 days before Christmas in 1998, I didn’t know it, but God was giving me a theology lesson like no other.  You see, some events aren’t so easily reconciled as saying “It’s God’s will.”  Once and done in simplistic platitudes.  In fact, the more we wanted something that seemed so good … but that we didn’t get, the harder it is.  To make matters worse, in some cases what we got (death) can be called “bad” unapologetically—even Scripture calls it an enemy—but oh how we prayed fervently for the opposite (life)! 

Did God betray us, let us down? 

Some doctrine requires wrestling for months, even years due to questions like those.  I concluded that you can’t take a dead baby photo, put a nice frame around it, and call it good.

So, it begs the question:  Why does a good God allow something that is so clearly “not good?”  The answer, of course, is for the eternal good He alone can bring from it.  The bigger picture is crystal clear to God Almighty.

True Christians take this to heart:

“Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul.  Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.  Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right.  For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people.  Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves.  Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.”  (1 Peter 2:11-17)

Just like with my stillborn daughter, some things are hard to understand.  But God’s perspective is eternal.  His interest is in furthering His kingdom by seeking and saving the lost, not so much elevating the United States, even though nations of the world without religious freedom admire that part of our Constitution.  So, friends, join me in praying that the events of November 3, 2020 and beyond will open the eyes of those who are truly lost—too deep in politics to see the problems of this world are … primarily spiritual.  Let’s pray,

Father God, we acknowledge that Your ways are not our ways.  We submit to You and ask that You would give us—not answers to the hard questions, some of which we are incapable of understanding—but that You would give us… Yourself.  More of Jesus in our lives and in our world.  Give us the mind of Christ and Your peace that transcends understanding.  May we know Your Holy Spirit’s comfort.  Help us to be still and know that You are God. Amen.

Taking a quick break from Epiphany because the Lord laid on my heart that someone needs to hear this.

If turning water into wine (John 2:1-11) was an epiphany revealing Jesus as Lord over Creation (a miracle since water usually requires multiple steps involving also sun, grapes, and time to become wine), this second sign Jesus performed displays His identity as the Lord of life. He didn’t even lay hands on the guy. It was just His Word, just like at Creation in Genesis 1.

John 4:46 Once more he visited Cana in Galilee, where he had turned the water into wine. And there was a certain royal official whose son lay sick at Capernaum. 47 When this man heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and begged him to come and heal his son, who was close to death.

48 “Unless you people see signs and wonders,” Jesus told him, “you will never believe.”

49 The royal official said, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” 50 “Go,” Jesus replied, “your son will live.” The man took Jesus at his word and departed.

51 While he was still on the way, his servants met him with the news that his boy was living. 52 When he inquired as to the time when his son got better, they said to him, “Yesterday, at one in the afternoon, the fever left him.” 53 Then the father realized that this was the exact time at which Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live.” So he and his whole household believed.

54 This was the second sign Jesus performed after coming from Judea to Galilee. (Jn. 4:46-54 NIV)

Signs and wonders in Jesus’ day were done so that we would believe in our generation based upon the written Word.  Believing, that’s what Jesus suggests in verse 48 and what John concludes at the end of his Gospel. 

“Then Jesus told Thomas, ‘Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.’ Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:29-31)

Today’s prayer thought: Jesus is the Lord of life, as truly in our generation as He was at Creation. Now He gives life to those who believe in His Name.

Father God, thank You that Jesus is the Lord of life and that He gives eternal life to all who believe in His Name.  Thank You, that it’s only through His sacrifice for our sin that makes our salvation possible.  Thank You for deliverance!  Thank You that our troubles of today are momentary but eternal life is–by its definition–everlasting.  Strengthen us for the times ahead.  Keep our eyes on Jesus.  Do not let us be distracted by the evil one. Help us to persevere in listening for Your voice, and to acknowledge You, sharing Your Gospel as a means of loving our neighbor, no matter what comes.  May we display this mark of being a follower of Christ’s: love. Toward that end, be the wind in our sails, Lord, until that day You return or call us home.  Amen.

The early life of Jesus of Nazareth is largely a mystery.  After the return of His family to Nazareth after their flight to Egypt while He was a toddler, and one instance at age 12, pretty much nothing is known about Him until His ministry came of age.  Even then, His hour had not yet come.

John 2:1 On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, 2 and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.”

4 “Woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.”

5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” 6 Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.

7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim. 8 Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.” They did so, 9 and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10 and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.”

11 What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him. (John 2:1-11)

It’s stories like this one in the Bible that I always find hard…because they prompt a whole lot of questions for me.  Random things like, had Jesus spent His childhood practicing miracles like some kids practice magic tricks or skipping stones?  Or did He never do one until waking up one day at age 30 with the Father telling Him it was time to do them now?  How did Jesus’ mother know to ask Him to help (if His childhood/young adulthood had been completely uneventful)?  Why, in the only command she issues in the entire Bible, does she tell the servants to do what He says?  If He’d been a regular guy, maybe she was thinking He’d send the servants out to buy some and it had nothing to do with the miraculous…but I always wonder.  Are we to believe that throughout His entire childhood, Mary never once told Him the story of the Nativity, as if she kept that from Him like some parents keep the adoption of their children secret?  How is it possible that Jesus could have had an intimate spiritual relationship with the Father from infancy and yet been a completely average child?  How exactly did changing water into wine reveal His glory?  Was this really all it took for His disciples to believe in Him or was it a tipping point?

Come’on, Barb, you say.  Aren’t those questions stupid like how many angels can dance on the head of a pin?  Not really.  Far from frivolous questions, every one of them points to the hard question of how Jesus could be both fully man and fully God at the same time in the same person.  It’s hard to make sense of these things.

But we’re told “What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in Him (John 2: 11). 

Epiphany…manifestation, revelation.  No one said it would be easy to understand. It’s a call to faith and a sign of His glory.

Today’s prayer thought: So much in our modern culture doesn’t make sense and it’s passages like this “first of the signs” that remind us epiphany often produces more questions than answers.  It drives us to prayer for understanding.

Father God, we’re living in confusing times.  I don’t know what to make of it all.  I look for Your working in our world and in our times.  Might each of us pray, Lord, I do trust You! I trust that Your will is being done even in the midst of our confusion. I trust that You work all things together for the good of those who love You and are called according to Your purpose, just as Your Word proclaims! I trust that Your ways are not my ways and Your thoughts are far higher than my thoughts. I repent, Lord, of any secret sins, of any thoughts I have of knowing more than I really do, of judgments upon my fellow man that I make in ignorance, and I ask Lord that You would redeem the days in my life by way of faithfulness to pursuing the call that You have placed on me for Your purposes.  I pray that I would be patient and hold fast to my faith in You.  Use my faith, Lord, to produce fruit … abundant fruit … for Your glory. Thank You, Father, that Jesus revealed You to us and that His work is and was complete.  We ask Lord that Jesus would return soon to put an end to the questions by His coming and that we might have tears wiped from our eyes as we begin to see the answers that You alone have today.  May we be comforted by our faith, encouraged in our hope, and stand ready to offer the Gospel in these times that “try men’s souls” (Paine).  We praise You, Lord Jesus, in Your Name we pray. Amen.

Jesus was revealed as Christ the Lord to the lowest among humanity in the Jewish world: shepherds. (Luke 2:8-14)

They didn’t just say, “Cool!” and go on their merry way, watching wayward sheep.  They didn’t keep the news to themselves, a “knowledge is power” idea or even fun fact for Jewish Jeopardy. 

No, they acted upon what had been revealed to them and they did it promptly.

Luke 2:15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”   16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.

19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.   

20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. (Luke 2:8-20)

Epiphany—revelation—comes with a responsibility to use our open eyes, believe with open hearts that which is True, and moreover, a responsibility to act on the Truth that has been revealed to us. 

Today, on this “Three Kings Day” or “Epiphany” we should consider the Magi from the East, pagan astrologers, who also came to worship the Christ who was no longer a newborn but a child.  The Magi were overjoyed.  They worshiped immediately.  They brought gifts of great value for their day on their journey and presented them immediately.  One thing they did not do when they saw His star was to say, “That’s nice” and sit at home doing nothing.

When revelation happens, we ought not ignore the importance of what has been revealed…and the trust we have been given with a responsibility to be faithful. 

1 Corinthians 4: 2 Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. … 5 Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God.

Today’s prayer thought: What did it mean to the shepherds and the Magi to be “proven faithful” with revelation of the Truth?  What did faithfulness with this trust require of them? What did it cause by way of actions in their lives?  What should it do in yours?

Lord Jesus, we praise You that You revealed the Father to us. We thank You for this high privilege! We ask, Lord, that You would take the light of revelation being given in our lives this day and You would help us to be proven faithful with this trust. May we never take revelation of Your goodness lightly. While we recognize that Your revelation during Your earthly ministry was on a level never seen again after Your ascension, yet we have Your Word. May we never ignore the revelation of Your Truth. May we never yawn with complacency or refuse to give revelation the full weight You intend. By the power of Your Holy Spirit, may we be proven faithful to You and to Your will, and that we would earnestly and immediately seek You in order to worship You, bringing our everything to You–whether it be our material possessions, our allegiance, our time, our voices, or our very lives. We ask that You would use our faithfulness for our good and Your glory. Amen.

Christmas 2020 is over.  But Jesus’ birth wasn’t the beginning or the end.  Jesus existed before all time in the Divine Godhead.  He still exists as the Son of God throughout eternity. 

His birth, however, leads to the pivot point of all human history. 

Sure, there are happy and chipper things about Christmas:  the lights, the gifts, the holiday cookies, and in a normal year for many people, being able to gather with family and friends for something that isn’t the least bit dreary.  For others though, the loneliness at this season is typical and depression an unwelcome but familiar guest. Certainly others know a new kind of pain is new this year as COVID caused us to see what we are now missing. 

In an odd sense, COVID–which sought to steal Christmas–has instead helped to point to the dire need humanity has for rescue.  A Savior.  A Redeemer.  A Leader we can follow without shame or uncertainty. 

In the birth of the Christ Child, the manifestation, the revelation,
the appearance of God in human flesh, this changed everything. 
Jesus prayed to the Father saying,
“I have revealed You to those whom You gave Me out of the world.”
John 17:6

That revelation of Emmanuel (“God with us”) began with Jesus’ birth when the Word was visibly made flesh (John 1:14).  Jesus came to show us who the Father is.  There is His revelation to Jewish shepherds from the hills outside of Bethlehem.  There is revelation to the pagan Magi who came to the house to see the Christ Child (Matthew 2:1-12), commonly commemorated as “Three Kings Day” or Epiphany.  But the revelation didn’t stop there.  Jesus revealed Himself in the Miracle at Cana, at His baptism, and throughout His 3-year ministry.  We’ll look at a few of those moments in the coming days.

Epiphany on the Church calendar is traditionally celebrated as 12 days after Christmas: January 6.

Many people look to 2021 as a ray of hope after a dismal year of COVID and conflict.  In this light of hope there is an enhanced ability to see.  I pray you will see not just a change of calendar month and year, but with this revelation, the Light of the World, and in Him, a Savior who is the Christ the Lord.  I pray you will experience Epiphany and a deeper relationship with God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  Amen.