REVEAL CHRIST TO THE WORLD BY YOUR LIFE
(Isaiah 60:1-6, Psalm 72, Ephesians 3:2-3,5-6, Matt 2:1-12)
The word Epiphany is from the Greek word epiphaneia, which implies “appearance”. The feast originated, and is still recognized in the Eastern Church, as the anniversary of the baptism of Christ. In the Western churches, Epiphany commemorates principally the revelationof Jesus Christ as the Savior to the Gentiles, as portrayed by the coming of the Three Wise Men as mentioned in the Gospel. Today Christ is revealed to the world especially to the gentiles who are represented by the Three Wise Men, popularly known as the Magi. The new born must be proclaimed to the world but this time by our very life. It is through authentic Christian living that we bring Christ to the hearts and lives of people.
The first reading from Titro- Isaiah (third Isaiah) promises good things for the people of Israel, who were captives in Babylon, anticipating deliverance from Yahweh who has promised to come to their aid in such difficult moments. The prophet tells them to be happy as they wait patiently for their deliverer. Even though the situation seems to be hopeless, God was going to restore them to their former times to the amazement of all people “For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the LORD will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you” Is 60:2. The wonders that God will perform in their lives will catch the attention of all nations to come and see the glory of God for the people of Israel. The gentiles will come to realise that the God of the Israelites is a great God who is capable of everything. In coming to acknowledge the wonders of God and His wisdom in the lives of the Israelites, the gentiles will bring gifts just as the Magi did for Jesus to show that truly He is a great person the world has had and acknowledged Him as the King of kings. These gifts from the nations is a sign of total restoration for the Israelites because of what they lost through their captivity. God was going to bless their land again beyond their imagination. This is what God wanted them to see coming even in the midst of the situation they found themselves. Through the lives of the Israelites, God was going to reveal Himself as the King of kings to the world.
My dear friends, the visit of the Magi is a sign that Christ came for all. These are people coming from the Eastern part of the world but the star of Christ appeared to them leading them to come and pay Him homage and offer gifts. The gift of gold is a symbol of His kingship, whiles the frankincense is a symbol of His priesthood, and myrrh was pointing to His death with the myrrh being used to preserve His body. It was through the Magi that the leaders in Jerusalem got to know that a saviour has been born. They as gentiles had to proclaim Jesus to the Jews themselves who were rather waiting in hope for the Messiah. The Magi were opened to God to see the fulfilment of the prophecies of the Old Testament. They came and adored Jesus and also to announce Him to the world.
In the gospel reading, the Three Wise Men indicated that they had seen the star of Christ, which had appeared to them. Hence they had come to worship Him as the King of the Jews. In fact, the star which had appeared to them was that of a King. These were people who were able to interpret nature and give deeper meanings to natural happenings. The star of Christ was able to bring these people from such a far distance to Israel. This is how powerful the star of Christ is. The same applies to all of us if only we believe and trust His word. Kings and nations will follow our stars and come and bow at our feet. When we allow God to take charge of our lives, our stars also shine and pull great personalities to us. The star is the favours we receive from God which pull people like magnet to us. These favours propel us to a higher height in life. In fact, beyond the sky then becomes our limit. Your star must also shine this year for people to see the greatest and the power of God. Your success in life is also a sign of how powerful and gracious our God is. God want to uplift you to a different level this year. But all depends on you if only you will allow yourself to be directed by Him. For our stars to shine then we must allow His will to be done in our lives. The more we are in tune or in touch with Christ, the more our stars also shine to cover and extend to all corners of the world. This star will bring people from far distance to come and witness the great things God is doing with our lives. It is this star which sends us far in our lives. If your star is not shining, then there is a problem somewhere in which you must discover and ask God to intervene.
Beloved in Christ, we have a duty to present Jesus to the world by word and by deed. But as Pope St. Paul VI once said and I quote “The World Need Credible Witnesses not eloquent Preachers”. The world is truly fed up with too much talks and they want to see us put those talks into action. We should walk the talks but not preach something else and live a different thing. Our lives should rather tell people that we are truly Christians.
It was in Antioch that the disciples were first called Christians (Acts 11:26). People saw Christ in them, hence they called them Christians. Can somebody boldly also call you a Christian because of your way of life? In fact, most of us are living double lives defeating our calling as Christians. Our very lives is a contradiction to our Christian calling. Some of us our lives are full of hypocrisy because we are living double standards.
Some of us our lives are drawing people away from God instead of bringing Christ to their lives. The Magi visit revealed Christ to the world even to the Jews who were to know better. Some of us are joking with our Christian lives. As we have embraced a New Year let us make it as part of our resolutions to bring Christ to the door steps of people by our very lives. May your life touch at least five people this year to give their lives to Christ. It is through this authentic Christian living that the favours and graces of God will locate us wherever we find ourselves. May the Holy Spirit help us so that we can make this year a soul winning year for Christ. AMEN.
Thank you for journeying with me during last year. I ask for your corporation during this year. Once again happy new year.
REV. FR. Matthew Akakpo
