Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. An epiphany is a discovery or understanding. It is, if you will, to become aware of something that was previously unknown. In the context of the church year, the day of the Epiphany celebrates the making known of the Christ Child to the Gentiles or, more specifically, the three Wise Men, as representatives of the Gentiles. Throughout the remaining Sundays of the Epiphany season, then, our lectionary leads us through events in Scripture through which God becomes known to the people.
Today is no exception.
The Old Testament lesson is one of my personal favorites. Last week, we heard about how Jeremiah, who protested that he was just a boy, and thus unsuited to be a messenger of God, was called to be a prophet anyway. This morning, we hear Isaiah tell of his call to be a prophet. Isaiah was rightly frightened to be in the presence of the Most High. You see, it was understood in his day as it is even in some circles today that a human being just couldn t look at the face of God and expect to survive.