Epiphany: God Initiates Purpose
Isaiah 49:1-7 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Servant’s Mission
49 Listen to me, O coastlands;
pay attention, you peoples from far away!
The Lord called me before I was born;
while I was in my mother’s womb he named me.
2 He made my mouth like a sharp sword;
in the shadow of his hand he hid me;
he made me a polished arrow;
in his quiver he hid me away.
3 And he said to me, “You are my servant,
Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”
4 But I said, “I have labored in vain;
I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;
yet surely my cause is with the Lord
and my reward with my God.”
5 And now the Lord says,
who formed me in the womb to be his servant,
to bring Jacob back to him,
and that Israel might be gathered to him,
for I am honored in the sight of the Lord,
and my God has become my strength—
6 he says,
“It is too light a thing that you should be my servant
to raise up the tribes of Jacob
and to restore the survivors of Israel;
I will give you as a light to the nations,
that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”
7 Thus says the Lord,
the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,
to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nations,
the slave of rulers,
“Kings shall see and stand up;
princes, and they shall prostrate themselves,
because of the Lord, who is faithful,
the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”
John 1:29-34 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Lamb of God
29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel.” 32 And John testified, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. 33 I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Chosen One.”[a]
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Greetings,
Theophany is such a cool word! It suggests a powerful, intense display of God. Theophanies are really significant—the burning bush, the tongues of fire, or any of God’s own self-revelation. I think Epiphany is best seen as a longer period of divine self-revelation, along with how the texts we read suggest we should respond through the lectionary.
This week, we’ll explore Isaiah 49:1-7 and John 1:29-34. These first two weeks, focusing on the Baptism of Jesus in the gospels, start to show how this profound theophany, once settled into a community, becomes a path we seek and the godly kingdom we hope to build.
That said, the beginning of the journey comes with challenges and worries. So, for now, I’ll draw inspiration from the words of the “Fellowship of the Ring” as the character Bilbo advises his cousin Frodo about journeys worth taking:
“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off.”
Peace,
Zach