Who is This? The King of Glory?

We just got done with the Christmas season two weeks ago, but I still feel the impact of the realization that Jesus came to this wretched planet in order to save us all from Death and Hell. That's not some easy task that you just role over one morning and say that you're gonna do. What most people don't realize is that there's another holiday dedicated solely to the revelation that Jesus Christ is the Word, the second member of the Trinity. It's called Epiphany, and every year it blows my mind.

It happens on January 6th each year, and it is not only the official church calendar's close of the Christmas season, but it is the day we commemorate the Magi finding Baby Jesus in a manger, or if you're in the Eastern Hemisphere, the day Jesus was baptized in the Jordan River. Both days are joined together by the same thing: the epiphany moment. This is what I call the moment right before you accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, right before you surrender your life fully to the call and commission of the Gospel. It's in that whirlwind of a moment that you suddenly realize that all of your preconceived notions mean nothing, and that the Savior you've been trying to resist won't let you resist Him. It's when you suddenly realize that there is a higher power, there is a God, and He does care, and He will save you if you let Him.

I had my epiphany moment in the summer of 2008. I didn't want anything to do with God. Well, I did, but in the same way one believes in Santa Claus when they get older: I feared the consequences if I didn't. I would pray to God, asking for guidance and forgiveness, but not really understanding what I meant. I just knew it was necessary. I felt like a two-faced, horrendous person through the first part of high school. No one but my friends knew how mean I could be when pushed by someone. No one knew how depressed I had become, and how everything around me felt meaningless and void. It wasn't until the summer of 2008 that the epiphany came.

I was in my house, playing the guitar really loud. I had been playing some ACDC song, probably Highway to Hell or something like that. I just remember that was the first time I felt completely wretched after doing something wrong. I was by myself. I had no one to make me feel guilty for my actions. I just remembered thinking, "I'm singing a song that actually describes me." I put the guitar down for what I thought was the last time.

That day I did what I had heard that the Bible said. I needed to be sure of what I needed to do, so I spoke with my pastor, and he explained how I needed to confess with my mouth and believe in my heart. And I really did. And I felt like a huge burden had been lifted from my shoulders. Had I not had that epiphany of the reality of Jesus Christ and the reality of my need for Him, I would've stayed on that highway to hell.

When I learned what Epiphany the holiday was two years later, I had just purchased the album "Economy" by John Mark McMillan. There is a song titled "Who Is This" that took me back to the realization of who Christ is. I remember hearing what He had done for me, and all I could think were the words of the song: "Who is this, the King of Glory?" Epiphany is a holiday I celebrate now, and of course "Who Is This" takes me back to that broken moment when I asked The Lord who He was, and when I heard, I had to give my life to Him.

My prayer is that you, the person reading this, have had that epiphany moment where you realize who Christ is, and what He's done for you. Feel free to call, text, or tweet me if necessary.

Your Brother in Christ,
Phillip G.
@PhillipJamesG
(904) 535-2342