Exploring the Sunday Gospel - Fourth Sunday of Epiphany
Today is the Fourth Sunday of Epiphany. The Gospel reading takes us to the Presentation of
Christ in the temple. In Luke’s account, Mary and Joseph take the infant Jesus to the temple
in Jerusalem for the ceremony of the purification of the mother forty days after the birth. In
the temple the Holy Spirit inspires Simeon and Anna to prophesy about the infant Jesus’
future. In verse 32 Simeon speaks of Jesus as a light bringing God’s salvation to the Gentiles
as well as to the Jewish people.
For those of you who wanted to do some thinking and preparation for today’s service during
the preceding week, I invited reflection on the image of lights. In today’s picture from their
book, Light, Aled and Sian are playing ‘I spy’ and looking for different kinds of light.
Lord Jesus Christ,
you bring light in darkness
and hope in despair.
Send your light into our lives,
so we may live to praise your name;
through time and through eternity.
Amen.
Next Sunday, the Third Sunday before Lent, the Gospel reading is taken from Matthew’s
Sermon on the Mount. There Jesus calls his listeners to be the salt of the earth and the light of
the world. The image to help prepare for next Sunday’s theme is salt. You can find out more
about that theme by looking at the Educational Resources and the Preparation Resources.
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