Epiphany Defined:
a (1) : a usually sudden manifestation or perception of the essential nature or meaning of something (2) : an intuitive grasp of reality through something (as an event) usually simple and striking (3) : an illuminating discovery, realization, or disclosure b : a revealing scene or moment
READ: Matthew 3:13-17
What strikes you? What confuses you? What troubles you? What encourages you?
Based on the above definition of Epiphany, what is revealing about this scene and moment?
John's was a baptism of repentance. Check out this quote from CS Lewis about repentance. How does this contribute to the epiphany of this scene in Matthew?
"Now repentance is no fun at all. It is something much harder than merely eating humble pie. It means unlearning all the self-conceit and self-will that we have been training ourselves into for thousands of years. It means undergoing a kind of death. In fact, it needs a good man to repent. And here's the catch. Only a bad person needs to depend: only a good person can repent perfectly. The worse you are the more you need it and the less you can do it. The only person who could do it perfectly would be a perfect person - and he would not need it." ~ C. S. Lewis
Read Galatians 3:27. If being a Christian means "putting on Christ," what does this mean about the Christian's capacity to repent? What does this mean about the pleasure with which God views the Christian?
How does this scene transform our understanding of reality? What do we learn about God? How does this make you feel? How does this move you to act differently?