Isaiah 60: 1-6

This morning in the church is the first Sunday in the season of Epiphany, which has the unfortunate effect of being an in-between time. It's an in-between time in the sense that we have just finished the mad rush of Christmas planning, and now we get this brief breather before all the thinking about Lent and Holy Week and Easter has to begin. Meanwhile, nature, which in these parts likes to throw a lot of white stuff at us this time of year, invites us to think in terms of hibernation - cocooning ourselves in a nice warm blanket in front of a fire, or, in our home, on a warm register - and waiting out the winter, so we can seize the good weather when it comes in the spring.

I use the word 'unfortunate' for this, because the danger of overdoing this as a time of spiritual hibernation is that we might miss the important meaning of Epiphany. My on-line dictionary says that an epiphany is a 'perception of the essential nature of something, usually through a sudden manifestation.' And that's what the Epiphany season is about - how people learned the 'essential nature' of Jesus, through a series of events over the course of his life. One of those events was the arrival of the Three Wise Men from the East, whose epiphany came through a star that led them to bow before the child Jesus as the new king of the Jews. Another event was when Jesus was baptized, and the sky opened up, and a voice from heaven announced that this was the Son of God. Another was the first recorded miracle of Jesus, when he turned water into wine, so the wedding celebration could continue at Cana - that scripture in the Gospel of John said that Jesus thereby, 'revealed his glory, and the disciples believed in him.' They had an epiphany about who Jesus is.

For us, this season raises the question about how you and I grow to understand who Jesus is. The scripture lesson from the prophet Isaiah is on traditionally associated with this time; it begins, "Arise, shine; for your light as come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you." So the symbol for Epiphany is light, shining in the darkness of the world because we grow more and more to understand who Jesus is, and how God's light goes forth through him. The color for the season is green, because it's a color of fresh understanding, and new hope for a dark world.

And Holy Communion fits right in, because the Last Supper was a moment of epiphany for the disciples of Jesus. During that supper, Jesus was in the role of a head-of-household observing the traditions of the Jewish Passover meal. So, like a Jewish head-of-household, he lifted the Passover loaf, and prayed to God; but then, to their amazement, he shifted the meaning of the bread, saying to them, "Now this is my Body, broken for you." And again, in the Jewish tradition, Jesus lifted the cup before God, but now He said new words: "This is the blood of a new covenant, poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins." From now on, when you eat this bread, and drink from this cup, you will do it 'in memory of Me.' And so, this was a new understanding - an epiphany - for the disciples. Rabbi; healer; king of the Jews; Son of God and Son of Man - however they identified Him in the past - now he was also the Savior who would give His Body and Blood on the cross for their very salvation and the forgiveness of their sins. A new covenant with God. A new understanding of the essential nature of Christ's love for us. A new life.

How does that become true for you today? What happens in your life that helps you understand more fully the essential nature of Jesus Christ as a Savior for you?

I have observed that, just like in the Bible, epiphanies happen in a variety of ways. For some people, there are dramatic moments when the light dawns. The former football and baseball player Deion Sanders became a passionate preacher of the Gospel. He wrote about his earlier life when he was experiencing phenomenal success on the football field, as 'Neon Deion', one of the great athletes out there, and how he was constantly drawing attention to himself, and reveling in the limelight. Yet, inside, he was in spiritual turmoil. He would read the Bible every day, as he had been taught to do, but it would mean next to nothing to him. He was overwhelmed by a sense of emptiness, and sank into a deep depression. One night he was parked alone by the side of the road, deep in thoughts of suicide, when a policeman walked up to the car. Instead of seeing a man who was in need of help, the police officer saw 'Neon Deion', and asked him for his autograph, and then left with a big smile on his face. And Sanders realized what an empty burden his fame had become.

A few nights later, Sanders hit bottom. He was lying in his apartment, on the brink of despair, when he heard a roaring noise. To him, it was like an airplane landing in his room - lights and noise and wind. Then he was sure that God had come for him. In his words, "I was just trembling, and 1 said, 'Lord, if that's you, just take me.' 1 gave my life to Christ that night." Deion's epiphany became apparent from that moment on. The wild, attention-getting touchdown dances stopped; he began to pay attention to his teammates; and he began to preach powerfully for God.

And I know there are people in this church who have had conversion moments just as dramatic. The founder of Methodism, John Wesley, gives an account of his epiphany that is much like Deion Sanders'. That's one of the ways God works for many people.

But I think there are smaller, everyday epiphanies, too. These are not as momentous and life-changing, perhaps, but they are just as real. For some people, Jesus is a constant companion in the walk of life. A brand-new depiction of that is the television series that premiered this week, "The Book of Daniel". This program got a lot of negative publicity before it premiered, and was even boycotted by some Christian groups, and not aired in certain areas. Having seen it, 1 would have to say that its central message is much more permissive than you would hope.

But at the center of the show is Daniel, an Episcopal priest, who is deeply flawed, but is doing his best to live an authentic life of faith in the middle of a crazy world. And he's doing it by turning to Jesus. And so the other main character in the show is Jesus, who is his constant companion. Whether Daniel is driving in the car, sitting on the front lawn, disciplining his kids, making pastoral calls - Jesus is there with him at every crucial moment - a source of strength and conscience, and epiphanies throughout the moments of the day. And I have known people who walked with that wonderful immediate conversation with Christ every day.

For me, other people are a powerful source of Epiphany. Certainly, the blessing of my life with Sharon is that. Martin Luther once said to his wife Catherine, "For me, you are Christ." And I think what he meant was that the beauty of a blessed marriage is that spouses experience the surprising and joy-giving epiphanies of grace in that intimate covenant together. Others have close friends whose love and care are like Christ with skin on walking by their side. And here in the church - I can't begin to name the times that my breath has been taken away by some act of kindness, or loving word, or deep insight that one of you have shared with me. The church itself. when it is open to the flow of God's spirit, is a powerful epiphany of the nature of Christ.

Brian Stewart is an award-winning Canadian journalist. He admits that when he started his career, he had abandoned his Christian upbringing and was convinced that the church was tiresome and irrelevant. But after years of covering news allover the world, he was in contact again and again with Christian people doing God's work. For example, Stewart and other TV reporters were given credit for calling attention to the famine in Ethiopia in 1984 and saving millions of lives. But, Stewart said, those TV cameras were there because long before they came, Christian workers were there working among the people and begging the media to come and report what was happening. Stewart wrote. "Christian work on the front lines infects those around them, even those who are not Christian with a sense of Christ's deep mystery and power." That's Epiphany. Christ's deep mystery and power shining in and through us.

I have a friend from the Liverpool United Methodist Church - Mary Lee Armour - who I would call an apostle of Epiphany - she has dedicated herself to bringing light into the lives of others. And she writes about what she sees as one of the most beautiful sayings in the English language - "It dawned on me." We say that when we've had a sudden realization. It's an expression of epiphany. And think about what it means: the dawn is the beginning of a whole new day. The Psalms say that 'joy comes in the morning.' God's grace greets us new every day. Jesus said, "This is the blood of a new covenant." God said through the prophet. "Behold. I make all things new."

I believe that is happening all the time. And we have a choice. We can walk through life asleep or awake. But for those who are awake - for those who look around them with eyes to see the beauty of other people, and ears to hear the sounds of God speaking, and hands to take the hand of Christ beside you - a new day is ready to dawn on you. God is good; Christ is Lord; and it is well with our souls. Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.