Good News: For the World

The Divine Service guides our worship as we receive God’s grace in Word and Sacrament and respond with praise, prayer, and thanksgiving. The star is a prominent symbol of the Christmas season. We make star-shaped cookies. We hang lighted stars outside our homes. We often adorn the tops of our Christmas trees with stars. But the star is really an Epiphany symbol. The star is important because it led wise men to see the Savior of nations. On Epiphany, we rejoice in God’s grace to all his people. This morning we celebrate that grace. In our readings and hymns, we see how the grace of God moves men to travel long distances to see the Christ-child in the flesh. Finally, we respond with thanksgiving and praise for the many mercies God has extended to us. Like the wise men, we have seen its light and have come to worship Jesus the Christ.