It’s
Christmas Eve, a time of hope, symbolized by light; the wreath and
candles all leading to the lighting of the Christ Candle which symbolizes the
coming of Jesus to chase the darkness away. Light is powerful, it chases
darkness away, it takes the power and fear that darkness often brings and
replaces it with hope and strength. This evening we’ve heard the story of God’s
redemption, we’ve sang the songs of hope and peace, we’ve lit candles as a
symbol of how Jesus has come to banish the darkness of sin, and the different
forms of darkness that can creep into our souls, by shining his light on them,
forcing the darkness to retreat.
“Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the
glory of the Lord rises upon you.” Light has come bringing hope, courage,
and strength. Light and glory are intertwined as Isaiah connects the light in
Isaiah 60 to God, echoing back to when God lead the Israelites out of slavery
in Egypt by leading them through the wilderness with a pillar of fire and
cloud. Isaiah shouts out to the Israelites, “Get up, see the light shining, God
is on the move.” Jerusalem is in ashes, ruin, and despair. But just when it
looks as if the sun will never rise again, there are hints that dawn is about
to break, God’s getting ready to bring Israel home again.
Darkness may cover the land, thick darkness over the peoples, but when the light
of the Lord rises on us, when he shines his glory over us, there’s no way the
darkness stands a chance! I love how Rachel Hackenberg paraphrases these verses
and reflects on them, “For darkness shall cover the
earth like a fog, and dense clouds will hide all people from one another, but
the LORD will arise upon you and God’s glory will be over you. Seriously,
it’s time! The grace that you know, the passion for justice that you share, the
fellowship that binds you: these are needed to bear witness to the dawn! Lift up your eyes and look around: nations shall come to your
light; people will gather together; your sons shall return from their wars and
your daughters shall find healing. Do not be shy or fearful. Look
and see the light that you have been given to shine together. Live boldly as
the very best community that God has called you to be, and watch how others come to join with you in beaming with God’s
Spirit. Then you shall see and be radiant. Your heart shall thrill and
rejoice! You will be surprised by the gifts that are shared — brought by sea
and by camel — in joyful praise of the LORD. Let grace beget grace, let
joy beget joy, let light beget light, to the glory of God! You — and me, and
us, and all people as far as you can imagine with your arms stretched wide
— together we are the new thing that God is doing in this world, for the
sake of the world.”
Now
we move from Isaiah to Luke, to the light of the world coming during
another time of darkness in Israel. God begins a new thing by sending his son
to become human, to come and shine his light into the world and draw people to
his light. Luke 2:6–14, “While they, Mary and Joseph, were there, the time came
for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She
wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest
room available for them. And there were shepherds living out in the fields
nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared
to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will
cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has
been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You
will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Suddenly a great
company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his
favor rests.”
Close
your eyes a moment and imagine being outside on a dark night, no moon or
stars shining, and suddenly a light appears. See the difference the
light brings; imagine the relief and hope you experience in seeing the light.
Now imagine being with the shepherds the night of Jesus’ birth, sitting with
them in the dark of night, and suddenly an angel, a messenger from God appears
with God’s glory shining brightly in the darkness, sharing good news, God is
doing an amazing thing, the Saviour has finally arrived! The light of the world
has appeared! While the times may be dark and life may be difficult, the
darkness now has to contend with the creator of the world whose first words
were, “Let there be light,” and there was light and it was good. Professor Brett
Younger writes, “This child of light whose birthday we just celebrated—who
Isaiah dreamed was coming, who the magi traveled so far to see—took on the
darkness so we could see the light. It’s hard to explain and we can’t prove it,
but if we look carefully, we may see a flicker of hope even in the darkest
night.”
We
will light our candles from the Christ Candle as a symbol that Jesus
shines his light into our lives, and as a result of his light shing in us, we now
carry Jesus’ light into our communities bringing his hope, bringing joy, peace,
and love. By taking the light of Jesus out into the neighbourhood, we help them
see that Jesus can shine his light into their darkness, that hope has come for
all people. I love the picture here of people from every language, culture and
background all coming to the light of Jesus, to discover the hope, the
challenge, and the grace found in accepting Jesus.
We
hear God call to us in Isaiah 42:6 “I, the Lord, have called you
in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make
you to be a covenant for the people and a light
for the Gentiles,” repeated again in the
servant song in Isaiah 49:6, where God points to the promised Messiah, “It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore
the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also
make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of
the earth.” As Jesus’ light shines in your heart and life, take the
light of the world with you to shine it brightly into the lives of all those that
Jesus places in your life path.
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