Most non-liturgical “free churches” do not observe Epiphany, though they do observe the Christmas and Easter seasons. But it is a day worth recognizing, since it marks a wonderful historical event in the Gospel record, the first manifestation (from the Greek word, “epiphaneia”) of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, represented by the arrival of the Magi. Some churches (especially the Eastern churches) also celebrate Epiphany as the manifestation of Jesus’ divinity at His baptism in the Jordan River by John the Baptist, and His first miracle as He changed water to wine at the wedding feast in Cana in Galilee.
The festival originated in the Eastern church where it at first included a commemoration of Christ’s birth. In Rome, by 354, Christ’s birth was being celebrated on December 25, and later in the 4th century the church in Rome began celebrating Epiphany on January 6. In the West the evening preceding Epiphany is called Twelfth Night, with the time between December 25 and January 6 known as the Twelve Days of Christmas. Epiphany is celebrated with special pastries in many countries, and children often receive small gifts in their shoes in honor of the Magi’s gifts to the infant Jesus. The holiday also has a number of traditions involving water as a reflection of Jesus’ baptism, including the blessing of houses with holy water.
For evangelical Protestants, Epiphany can be a celebration of the Magi’s worship of the infant Savior, marking the wonderful fact that the gospel is for all the nations, not just Israel, just as God had promised 2,000 years earlier to Abraham. He had told this patriarch that through him, all the nations of the earth would be blessed (Genesis 22:18). We see that taking place as these Magi from the east came to kneel before the infant Son of God. Scripture tells us that they followed the light of a star to find the place where the Savior lay. How did know about this? Some have suggested that the prophecies of Daniel six centuries earlier in Babylon (and then Persia) had been passed down through the years.