Today, January 6, is the Christian holiday of Epiphany (it has a few other names too- don't get hung up!). 12 days ago, we marked Christmas, the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. Now, we observe the day when people said, "Hey, that baby born in a Bethlehem barn is someone special." Attended by shepherds, sorcerers, and seraphim, this kid was not simply an impoverished baby born into the underclass of the world's superpower, but a living God with the incredible power to heal human bodies and souls. Not only did Jesus feed, heal, and teach the people of his day, he also lived without wrong or regrettable action, his ongoing scandal the contrast between his perfect life and the flawed behavior of the religious leaders and teachers of the day. Those leaders found him to be a threat to their peace and power, and contrived to have him executed, a fate Jesus saw coming and neutralized by rising from the dead. By paying as an innocent for the guilt of all who choose to accept the gift, then overcoming even that final punishment, that little baby has offered us each a "get out of jail free" card and a "get into paradise free" card. You can be off the hook for all the wrong you've ever done, and you can have the most fulfilling, joy-filled, authentic life you've ever dreamed of--and all you have to do is have an epiphany about that man born thousands of years ago, that God who speaks even today.