[0:00] May the words of my mouth and the meditation of our hearts be always acceptable in thy sight. O Lord, our Rock and Redeemer, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.
[0:13] One of the greatest ways that God revealed himself in the Old Testament was when he appeared to Moses in a burning bush. It was quite startling for Moses, and it makes sense.
[0:24] If we walked by a bush that was on fire, and it wasn't burning up, and it told us that it was the God of our ancestors, I imagine that we would be just as startled. God continued to speak to Moses and told him that he had heard the cry of his people.
[0:41] He was going to deliver them from their oppressors in Egypt and bring them to the Promised Land, a land flowing with milk and honey. This act of revelation began the story of God's redemption for his people.
[0:54] He used Moses to bring his people out of Egypt and to give them what he had promised them, many descendants, a land for them to dwell, and blessing to them and to all nations because of them.
[1:07] Now by this, we see that God's revelation is always done by his act, through his action. God reveals himself as the one who acts in the world in order to bring restoration to it, to bring all things to himself.
[1:21] God's revelation to Moses in the days of the Old Testament was God's act of deliverance for the people of Israel. God was their king, not Pharaoh.
[1:33] The Magi also received revelation from God. When they came to Bethlehem, led by a star, they were encountered by something amazing. Just as the bush in Moses' day was on fire but not consumed by that fire, a little baby had the fullness of divinity within him and was not consumed by it.
[1:53] God had come to them, and they worshipped him. The baby was their king, and they recognized that he ruled over them, not Herod. Our king came as a baby.
[2:06] Our king is a man, one that has flesh and blood. Our king is God. This is his action in the world, the presentation of the God-man who is savior of both Jews and of Gentiles.
[2:20] Yes, his revelation was first given to the Jews, but the mystery that is made clear that was mentioned in the epistle to the Ephesians, that mystery to us is in the feast of the Epiphany, is that he has revealed himself to all nations.
[2:36] The Magi were the firstfruits of the Gentiles. There are still many to come. Let us all work in making Christ manifest to the people in the world. As the church, a people of many nations, we are all one in Christ.
[2:51] On this feast day, let us be reminded of our responsibility to bear witness of this reality, the reality that our Lord is the savior of all people.
[3:01] In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.