TO SEEK OR NOT TO SEEK

I think it’s still January 6th, somewhere in the world.   I was physically unable to blog sooner, but there is something I really want to tell you about this day –  January 6th,  Epiphany.

  Epiphany is when something is revealed to us;  not just shown to us,  but  something that brings deep meaning.

He had an “epiphany”!

 

In this case,  we celebrate the coming of the Wise Men to the Christ Child — where after a long journey, the Son of God was truly  revealed to them.   That’s what we would tell a five year old:  “The Wise Men came to see Jesus and bring Him gifts.”   That’s quite enough to set the story in his mind and to spark his imagination.

When the child  is a little older, we might tell him what those gifts were, and what they mean.   The child would understand “gold” – a gift fit for a king.   But “frankincense”? that’s for a priest to use.   And “myrrh”?     Why would you give a baby something to bury him with?     These questions set the stage for a much deeper realization as the child matures, an understanding that the Holy Infant is our King,  our Priest,  and our Sacrificial Victim.

How many Wise Men were there?  How far did they come?     Most importantly,  why did they travel?    After all, they were from Persia, most likely,  a sort of intellectual capital; and they were seeking a Jewish baby, not one of their own people.

They had access to many kinds of religious texts.  Not that they are all of equal value,  but most of them seemed to hint at a specially appointed Child, an Anointed One, a Messiah, sent from heaven above.   A divine King.   A divine Savior.   But it was the Jewish Scriptures which had the most detail and urgency, and the Jewish Scriptures indicated that they should travel West, to somewhere near Jerusalem.

So here’s an epiphany for us all:    Wise Men take this prophecy seriously and seek this divine King.   Everyone else just goes about their business,  finding pleasure,  finding fulfillment,  seeking whatever it is that interests them.    If they’re lucky, they have a pretty nice life.

But they are not “Wise.”  It is a narrow way to seek out God.  It is uncommonly narrow to care about what happens after death.   It is a narrow and precious way to come, bringing praise and glory to the  Son of God.

Two kinds of people:   those who seek Him and those who don’t really care about their eternal life, which is sure to come to us all.

“To seek or not to seek.” 

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