Receiving the Blessing of Epiphany

Spiritual Advantage with Sam Stone

I want to begin with a provocative parable by the great philosopher Zhuangzi.

Once upon a time, a man named “Mr. Knowledge” traveled north to the territory of the sages to seek an epiphany of the Truth. He encountered a sage named “Mr. Actionless Wordless” and asked the following three questions:

“How do I think and ponder to know the Truth?
Where do I dwell and strive to rest in the Truth?
What path and plan do I follow to receive the Truth?”

何思何虑则知道,何处何服则安道,何从何道则得道?

However, Mr. Actionless Wordless did not answer his questions nor did he even know how to answer them.

Mr. Knowledge was disappointed and traveled south to the place called “End of Doubt.” He encountered a man named “Mr. Wild Blurter” and asked the same question. He replied, “Ah! I know, and let me tell you.” But while he was about to speak, he forgot what he wanted to say.

Mr. Knowledge was again disappointed and went to the Emperor to ask the question. That was a sage emperor, like King Solomon. He said,

“Think nothing and ponder nothing to know the Truth.
Dwell nowhere and strive for nothing to rest in the Truth.
Follow no path and pursue no plan to receive the Truth.”

無思無慮始知道，無處無服始安道，無從無道始得道。

In summary, “Do nothing!” Then the Emperor said, “Those who seek the Truth daily diminish their doing. Gradually, they achieve actionless action. Then, there is nothing not done.”

It means our actions are in the way of God’s actions. Our doing is in the way of God’s doing. God always reveals Himself, but our busyness prevents us from capturing God’s epiphany.

Simply put, the secret to epiphany is “Let go and let God daily.” It’s not a one-time practice. You need to let go and let God, let go and let God, let go and let God, day by day, until you have nothing more to let go, and your life is filled with God entirely.

It’s like John the Baptist’s motto,

“He must increase, but I must decrease.” (Jn 3:30).

I am practicing this motto, but I still have much to decrease. Again, it’s not a one-time deal but a progressive practice. “He must increase, but I must decrease.” “He must increase, but I must decrease.” I must gradually chip myself away to let him take over. It’s called sanctification—becoming a saint.

Notice it says, “I must decrease.” Many people want God to increase without being willing to decrease themselves. It just doesn’t work that way.

You cannot serve two masters—your ego and God—at the same time. You cannot sit two kings on one thrown. Either you or God must step down. I know it’s uncomfortable for those with an inflated ego. I was one of them, but I’ve learned that it can be done slowly and steadily. He must increase, but I must decrease.

Let go, and let God. Let go, and let God. Let go, and let God. Then, you will see the epiphany. More than that, you will see what God is doing. You’ll see everything done in God’s power, your God-sized dream realized, your divine purpose fulfilled, and miracles happen.

Epiphany comes from two Greek root words, “epi,” meaning “above,” and “phainein,” meaning “reveal.” It means a higher revelation, revelation from the above, or higher consciousness of God at work.

Mr. Knowledge asked three important questions that we can translate into our quest for the epiphany of God:

“How do I think and ponder to know God?
Where do I dwell and strive to rest in God?
What path and plan do I follow to receive God?”

Few people ask questions like these. Mr. Knowledge is wise to ask those questions. People say there’s no such thing as stupid questions. It’s true, but smart people do ask smarter questions. Jesus said, “Ask, and you will receive.” It’s important to ask. If you don’t ask, you can’t complain about not receiving it. The Apostle James said,

“If any of you is lacking in wisdom, ask God, who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and it will be given you.” (Jas 1:5).

The answers to the above three questions are:

“Think nothing and ponder nothing to know God.
Dwell nowhere and strive for nothing to rest in God.
Follow no path and pursue no plan to receive God.”

As John Calvin said, we are born with a sense of divinity and a seed of spirituality. It is our overthinking and overdoing that prevent us from epiphany.

Today, we will look at how Jesus’ disciples received the epiphany based on this week’s scripture lesson so that we can also receive the blessing of epiphany for ourselves to realize our divine dream with divine presence. Let’s begin!