On the Twelfth Day of Christmas
No, there are not a dozen drummers in my living room, nor is there a Shakespearean fantasy opening on my back porch tonight! (Just in case you were wondering.) There is however, a tradition that the Wise Men visited the Child on this day years ago. (The Magi’s gifts gave evidence that they understood who He was: King, God, Sacrifice.) But since I didn’t put out any straw in my shoes, no camels are likely to stop here. Still, I am hopeful of an epiphany happening here.
Epiphany means “manifestation of God,” in other words something that makes Him plainly visible.
Originally, it was the celebration of Jesus’ baptism, when the Spirit came to rest on Jesus, looking like a dove, and the Father spoke from the air: “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased!” The Triune God made Himself known visibly, audibly, tactilely!
Jesus, Himself, was a living epiphany! He told the Eleven in the upper room, “If you have seen me, you have seen the Father.”
One of the benefits of Him coming to live a human life on His way to a sacrificial death on our behalf, is that we really got a chance to see the Invisible God! God with skin on, God interacting with humans as He has ever done, but directly, eyeball to eyeball! The same God who smoked and shook the mountain and declared that if even a beast touched it, death would result, now walked as a servant in the dust of the planet He had made for us humans to rule.
Now, as His agents in the world, we must actively seek to make Him visible to the world around us. I have a pretty cool Christmas manger display where friends and neighbors have traded their broken hearts for His promises; I may have a website where I talk or sing about Him; I might even have a prayer-counseling ministry, but none of those are sure to make Him visible to the world.
The kinds of things He says will cause the world to recognize that He has sent us and that we are His include: Loving one another (you know: those other difficult people who have chosen to follow Him), soaking up His heart so that we know just how and what to ask when praying, caring enough for His desires that our lives look like it. Sound difficult? You betcha! He never intended for us to be able to live those kind of lives on our own! He knows it will only happen when we are “abiding.” Without the constant contact and flow of Holy Spirit “sap” between Him and us, we are dead, lifeless and good only for kindling.
So, as much as you and I may be aware of how we want to make Him visible to our neighbors, relatives and store clerks, we will fail utterly on our own. We must take the path that He took, the path of continuous, intimate dependence on and interaction with God.
So, on this twelfth day of Christmas, join me in bringing Him our desperate need for His life-producing Spirit sap in us, surrendering our self-rule to the King of the Universe and pursuing knowing Him, so that our lives look like His. That will be Epiphany for sure!
Still following Jesus every day in the everyday,
Christi
P.S. Let me know how He shows up!
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