epiphany | january 5 — february 23, 2020

Epiphany is a season where we grapple with how to live in light of Jesus coming. If Jesus is all He promised to be, all He claims to be, then how does that change the world and change our lives? This year, we are going to take an in-depth look at a crucial moment in Jesus life: where He declares the scope of His life and ministry.

This particular moment comes in the context of community, family, and consistent worship. It is a moment fully enmeshed in the story of His life up to that point (both active and passive spirituality are at work here) and carried forward in His actions from that moment onward. He declares the prophecy in Isaiah 61 is about Him, and then He goes and shows us what that looks like. 

The teaching in this series will use the passage in Luke 4:14–30 as an anchor point. The series will also explore the life of Jesus more broadly to see how He did indeed fulfill this prophecy from Isaiah 61 and how we can get clues for how to the live the way of Jesus ourselves. There are supplemental texts for each week that will help show a more full picture of what is briefly mentioned in the prophecy.

Along with our time together on Sundays in Epiphany, we are asking our whole church to join in our shared practices for this season and walk in the way of Jesus. Scroll down to explore each spiritual practice in-depth and helpful resources.

Every day during Epiphany, we can join God in the renewal of the world through our prayers of intercession. As we pray we talk with and listen to God in many ways: confession, adoration, silence, contemplation, giving thanks, making personal requests, and on and on. Intercession is the form of prayer where we implore God on behalf of others and our world.

Throughout Epiphany, we want to make time in our daily rhythms to pray for others and for our city. You may want to keep a running list of prayers or make a plan to pray for certain people or things on certain days. As a church family, our goal is to make a habit of intercessory prayer. It is a way we join in the ministry of Jesus.

Here is how author Dutch Sheets describes intercession:

When I say our prayers of intercession are an extension of His work of intercession, the difference is in distributing versus producing. We don’t have to produce anything—reconciliation, deliverance, victory, etc.—but rather we distribute, as the disciples did with the loaves and fishes (see Matthew 14:17–19). Our calling and function is not to replace God, but to release Him. It liberates us from intimidation and emboldens us to know that:

The Producer simply wants to distribute through us.
The Intercessor wants to intercede through us.
The Mediator wants to mediate through us.
The Representative wants to represent through us.
The Go-between wants to go between through us.
The Victor wants His victory enforced through us.

The Minister of reconciliation has given to us the ministry of reconciliation (see 2 Corinthians 5:18–19). We now represent Him in His representation ministry. God continues to incarnate His redemptive purposes in human lives. We don’t deliver anyone, we don’t reconcile anyone to God, we don’t defeat the enemy. The work is already done. Reconciliation is complete. Deliverance and victory are complete. Salvation is complete. Intercession is complete! Finished! Done!

We must ask for the release and application of these things. So, let me offer the following as a biblical definition of intercessory prayer: Intercessory prayer is an extension of the ministry of Jesus through His Body, the Church, whereby we mediate between God and humanity for the purpose of reconciling the world to Him, or between Satan and humanity for the purpose of enforcing the victory of Calvary. Christ needs a human on the earth to represent Himself through just as the Father did. The Father’s human was Jesus; Jesus’ humans are us, the Church. He said, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21).

The prophet Micah famously wrote a simple description of the life of those who live in covenant with Yahweh: “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8)

It is a life of deep relational connection and it is a life of loving action. Our shared outward practice during Epiphany is to take up this prophetic invitation and the example of Christ. As we study the ministry of Jesus on Sundays, we must live the ministry of Jesus in our lives. We are called to serve our neighbors in tangible actions of love and not merely lofty ideas or sentiment.

Make a plan for how each week or each day you can serve or show love to your neighbors, especially the poor among us. We will have several shared opportunities to do this as a church family, but pray as ask God how you in particular are called to join in.

This description from The Second Mountain by David Brooks is helpful and inspiring:

If you wanted to generalize a bit, you could say there are six layers of desire:

1. Material pleasure. Having nice food, a nice car, a nice house.
2. Ego pleasure. Becoming well-known or rich and successful. Winning victories and recognition.
3. Intellectual pleasure. Learning about things. Understanding the world around us.
4. Generativity. The pleasure we get in giving back to others and serving our communities.
5. Fulfilled love. Receiving and giving love. The rapturous union of souls.
6. Transcendence. The feeling we get when living in accordance with some ideal.

Social science and much of our modern thinking tends to emphasize the first two desires. We often assume that self-interest—defined as material gain and status recognition—are the main desires of life and that service to others is the icing on the cake. And that’s because for centuries most of our social thinking has been shaped by men, who went out and competed in the world while women largely stayed home and did the caring.

These men didn’t even see the activity that undergirded the political and economic systems they spent their lives studying. But when you actually look around the world—parents looking after their kids, neighbors forming associations, colleagues helping one another, people meeting and encountering each other in coffee shops—you see that loving care is not on the fringe of society. It’s the foundation of society.

Listen to the Teaching Series

Caleb Clardy, Josh Staton, and Ele Mumford teach from Luke and Matthew in our Epiphany series “Today: The Ministry of Jesus in Our Time.” Explore the archives and subscribe to our podcast.

prayer resources

We recommend the following resources to practice intercession in your daily rhythms:

• Inner Room mobile app from 24-7 Prayer

• Intercessory Prayer by Dutch Sheets

• How to Pray: A Simple Guide for Normal People by Pete Greig

• Prayer: Finding the Heart’s True Home by Richard Foster

• Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference? by Philip Yancey

Join a Prayer Group

Our prayer groups exist to help us grow as followers of Jesus specifically around the practice of prayer. Each group meets regularly to commune with God and intercede for our lives, our neighbors, and the world. Pour out your heart to God in worship, honest sharing, and petition.

Find a prayer group that meets near you.

Don’t Walk By

Rescue Alliance’s Don't Walk By is an annual winter outreach to people experiencing homelessness in New York City. Volunteer teams canvass the streets and subway lines of Manhattan looking to meet and our neighbors in need.

Outreach teams meet new friends on the street and invite them to dinner at a host site to be offered a hot meal and a range of additional items and services such as clothing, basic medical care, overnight hospitality at a partner facility, and the option to enter longer term programs. 

Sign-up to participate and then add your name to our volunteer spreadsheet to let your friends from Trinity Grace know which date you are serving.

Join a Mercy and Justice Project

Our outreach ministry partners with local organizations supporting New Yorkers in need through gifting within our church community.

We are relationally connected to a broad range of terrific organizations supporting New Yorkers in need. Explore our service directory and invite your friends to serve with you.

Introduction to Practices

Get to know our shared spiritual practices as a church throughout the year. Look for how each inhale and exhale practice can bear the fruit of His kingdom in your life and in the city.