2026-01-04 Epiphany (Observed)

Scripture Readings

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father and our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen!

“Beam me up, Scottie!” I’ll bet at least a few of you recognize those words. They come from way back in the 1960s. On September 8, 1966 the very first episode of Star Trek was aired on TV. It followed the adventures of the starship USS Enterprise, commanded by Captain James T. Kirk, with First Officer Spock, and Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy. And of course, it had the now iconic mandate, “to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before.” It became one of the most influential science fiction franchises in television history, spawning books and movies and an entire Star Trek universe with fans galore! These wild and crazy “Trekkies” even influenced NASA in 1976 to name the first Space Shuttle orbiter Enterprise after the mother ship of the original Star Trek series. And as much influence and impact as the Star Trek series has had on our culture, there is another star trek that has had even more.

Enter: Epiphany. Actually, we are a couple days early, but then again, we tend to be over-achievers around here - liturgically speaking anyways! We commemorate the visit of Wise Men who were on their own “star trek” to find the Saviour. Who were these wise guys? They were probably from Persia, in the neighbourhood of modern day Iran. The Greek word used to describe them, Magi, means a magus, a magician, a sage, an astrologer, a wise and learned man, perhaps also a sorcerer or wizard. In that they were following a star, it makes sense that they were more so stargazers than they were pulling rabbits out of hats at kids’ birthday parties.

The other odd thing is that we always tend to think of there being three of these wise men. But the Bible doesn’t tell us that at all. We tend to go with three because of the three gifts they bring: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. But there could have been a whole big group of them, bringing multiple offerings of these gifts. The scriptures just simply say “Magi from the East,” from the place where the sun rises. They venture out and eventually arrive in Jerusalem asking everyone “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship Him” (MT 2:2).

We talked about all of this at length last Sunday with the commemoration of the Holy Innocents. We know what happened when these wise men started asking questions. We recall how psycho King Herod was threatened by the birth of a baby and what that represented: a challenge to his throne. A rival King is not a good thing at all. Trouble starts brewing and “all of Jerusalem” (2:3) could feel it. Satan was working overtime in the midst of an evil alliance of Herod, Jerusalem and the religious leaders. Herod summons his own wise guys to figure out where the Messiah would be born. “In Bethlehem of Judea” (2:5) they say citing the prophetic scriptures of Micah.

The other really odd detail about this story is that the first seekers of the Messiah aren’t Jews at all. They are pagans of somekind or maybe, as some scholars have proposed, Zoroastrians. But whatever the case, they were not members of the tribe of Jacob. They were foreigners from afar, and they are searching for the newborn King on the greatest star trek the world has ever seen. From the East, to Jerusalem, to Bethlehem. There they will find the light of the world that shines brighter than any star.

And of course, when they get there, they present their gifts and offerings to baby Jesus and His family. At first glance, these are kind of odd “baby gifts!” You’d expect blankets and clothes, maybe some toys or diapers. But instead we have the now iconic gold, frankincense and myrrh. Perhaps these were a little less than practical or traditional baby gifts, but what they lacked in baby-appropriateness they exceeded in cost and meaning.

Gold. It has universal value across all time and cultures. It was prized in antiquity, by the Egyptians, the Romans, the Aztecs and everybody in between. As a metal, it doesn’t rust or tarnish or corrode, allowing it to last virtually forever. A single ounce of gold can be stretched into a wire over 50 miles long or hammered out into a sheet covering 100 square feet! This made it ideal for jewelry and coins. It also has that universal aesthetic appeal of deep yellow lustre.

In more modern times, it has proven to be an incredible conductor of electricity and heat. It also has an air of scarcity to it too, further adding to its value. All the gold ever mined could fit into a few Olympic swimming pools and this amount only grows around 1-2% annually giving it stability. There is objective value in gold that the fake value of government printed money can never compete with. This is given to Jesus precisely because it is ultra valuable. This is a gift fit for a King. And practically, it probably paid for the “hot-holiday” to Egypt when Jesus and His family needed to flee from Herod’s wrath.

Frankincense. This was an aromatic resin, harvested from the Boswellia tree. These trees are found primarily in southern Arabia, Somalia, and the Horn of Africa. Not unlike Maple trees, which are tapped for syrup, these trees are “tapped” by cutting the bark, allowing milky sap to harden into “tears” of resin. It’s long process to make and harvest. It was traded for over 5,000 years along the ‘Incense Route’ where ancient Egyptians imported it for incense, perfume, and mummification. The ancient Romans imported tons of it annually. It was burned in temples as offerings, being specified in Exodus 30:34-38 for sacred use. And Psalm 141:2 characterizes it as prayer rising to heaven. “May my prayer be set before you like incense; may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.” To this end, as a gift for Jesus, it represents His divinity and priestly role.

Myrrh. This gift is like Saskatchewan - notoriously difficult to spell! It was a reddish-brown resin from the Commiphora tree. Like Frankincense, it also comes from Arabia and Northeast Africa. It is likewise harvested similarly by tapping the bark of the tree. It has been used in perfumes and medicines, offering pain relief due to its anti-inflammatory properties. Also in anointing oils and especially for embalming where it was mixed with wine as a tonic or for burial preparations. Egyptians and later Jews used it extensively; it was a key trade item alongside frankincense. As an embalming spice it is mentioned specifically in John 19:39: “Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight.” So as a baby gift, it prophetically points to our Lord’s sacrificial death on the cross. It foreshadows His suffering and death, showing us our very Lamb of God who would readily die the life of the world. All of these gifts were extravagant honors for a newborn king. Spiritually, they reveal to us the full scope of Christ’s life—from birth to death and resurrection.

In the gifts of the wisemen, we see so beautifully the gift that the Christ child is for us and for our world. Our King. Our God. Our Sacrifice. He truly is the most costly and precious pearl of great price that everyone needs! Regardless of Jew or Gentile, Jesus, who receives the gifts of the Magi, shows Himself to be God’s gift to the world. He is our gift of forgiveness, life and salvation incarnate by faith alone. He is the light of the world that shines in the darkness. He reveals our redemption now and forever more. In His Name, Amen!