The Epiphany of the Lord

January 4, 2026

Second Sunday after Christmas, Year A

Isaiah 60:1-6 | Psalm 72:1-2, 7-8, 10-13 | Ephesians 3:2-3, 5-6 | Matthew 2:1-12

When I was a little kid, my favorite Christmas decoration was my mom’s manger scene. I used to love looking at it and imagining I was there. It was unthinkable to me that the King of the Universe could be born in such humble circumstances, surrounded by animals, with a feeding trough for a crib!

I loved the stories of the shepherds and the three kings who came from miles away to visit. I read this week that the kings from foreign lands were estimated to have traveled 900 miles following the star just to see and honor baby Jesus. Again, this is incredible, especially with no airplanes, or even a bus. Their journey matters. Their seeking matters. The whole world was invited. That's what today, the Epiphany, is really about: the world coming to Jesus.

Isaiah foresees it with vivid language: "Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you." Picture it: thick darkness covers the earth. People are wrapped in gloom. But then, light. And not just any light, but God's glory breaking through like dawn after a very long, very dark night.

What happens next? "Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn." Read that again: nations and kings. Not just Israel, not just the chosen people. The whole world is being drawn to this light. Isaiah sees camels streaming toward Jerusalem, caravans from Sheba. And what are they carrying? Gold and frankincense. Hmm...sound vaguely familiar? Hundreds of years before that stable in Bethlehem, Isaiah already glimpsed what was coming.

Next, let's look at Psalm 72, a psalm that started as a prayer for King Solomon, but the early Church immediately recognized it was pointing to someone far greater: "May all kings bow down before him; all nations serve him."

Notice this question in the heart of this psalm and in the heart of everything we celebrate today: Why will kings bow down? Why will nations serve him?

The psalm tells us: "For he will deliver the needy who cry out, the afflicted who have no one to help. He will take pity on the weak and the needy and save the needy from death. He will rescue them from oppression and violence, for precious is their blood in his sight."

Kings don't honor this ruler because he has the biggest army or the strongest economy. They honor him because he cares for the poor; because the forgotten are precious to him; because in his kingdom, the person everyone else overlooks is the very person he came to save. That's a revolution, friends. That's not how the world works, but that's how his kingdom works.

Pope John Paul II spent his entire life proclaiming the dignity of every human person, especially the poor, the vulnerable, the unborn, and the elderly. He understood what Psalm 72 teaches: that the measure of a kingdom is how it treats those who can give nothing in return.

So, when the Magi show up in Matthew's Gospel, they're not just exotic figures from our family Nativity sets. They're a living sign that God's promise is expanding. The light is spreading. The invitation is going out to everyone. Think about it: these Magi weren't Jews. They came from the East, probably Persia. They studied the stars (not exactly an approved religious practice). And yet, God used a star to draw them to his Son. God met them where they were, spoke a language they understood, and led them straight to Jesus.

Billy Graham used to say that the ground is level at the foot of the cross. Nobody comes to Jesus with an advantage. Nobody is excluded because they started too far away. The Magi traveled hundreds of miles across deserts to find the King of the Jews, and he welcomed them. He didn't send them away because they weren't part of the original plan. They were always part of the plan.

Paul reinforces this notion in his letter to the Ephesians: "The mystery was made known to me by revelation — that the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and copartners in the promise in Christ Jesus." Coheirs. Not second-class citizens. Not an afterthought. Full members of the family.

This was the great secret hidden for ages: that God's salvation wasn't going to stop at Israel's borders. It was going to flood the whole earth. Every nation, every tongue, every people. All of us grafted into the same promise.

Now here's the thing, and this is where it gets personal: the Magi didn't just admire Jesus from a distance. Matthew tells us they "prostrated themselves and did him homage." They fell on their faces. Then they opened their treasures of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. They gave what they had, and they offered their best. They didn't wait until they had everything figured out.

This past year, as a husband and dad, I learned a lot about what it means to give what you have. Some days, honestly, I don't have much. I come home tired. I'm distracted. I'm running on empty. But you know what? My wife doesn't need a perfect husband, nor my kids a perfect dad. But, they do need me to be present as a husband and father. They do need me to show up.

This year, my year dedicated to Saint Joseph, I keep thinking about that quiet man standing in the background of today's Gospel. He's there when the Magi arrive. He's there protecting Mary and Jesus. He doesn't have any lines in Scripture — not one word. But, he was present. He did his part. He offered what he had.

That's what the Magi teach us, too. You don't need to be a Bible scholar. You don't need to have all the answers. You just need to follow the star; to take the journey; to fall on your face before Jesus, and give him what you've got. Maybe your gold is your time. Maybe your frankincense is your talent. Maybe your myrrh is your suffering, burdens that you can lay at his feet. Whatever it is, he wants it. He wants you, and he's not checking your credentials at the door.

Here is the good news: the light has come! The glory of the Lord has risen. The invitation is open. And you, right where you are, are part of this great procession of humanity coming to worship the one true King. A King who defends the afflicted. A King who rescues the needy. A King who says your blood is precious in his sight. So, rise and shine — the light has come!

And just like those Magi, once you encounter Jesus, you will never go back the same way you came.