Let me understand the teaching of your precepts; then I will meditate on your wonders.              Psalm 119:2

“Arise! Shine!”

Isaiah 60:1-2

Epiphany Sunday

January 6, 2008

Isaiah 60:1-2  Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you.  ² For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the LORD will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you.

            My night-vision is terrible. If I walk into a dark room, I know that my body will gravitate toward some hard object, and I am bound to stub my toe on something. It takes my eyes a long time to adjust to darkness. In fact it is my poor vision at night that first spurred me to get my glasses a couple months ago. I was beginning to notice that driving at night was getting more difficult, and I was feeling uncomfortable doing so.

            I bet many of you have a hard time seeing in the dark. Many of you can probably relate to the late night cries coming from another room in your house. You hear the cry, and you roll out of bed, half asleep. You walk around with your hands out straight making sure you don’t run into anything as you clamor into the room to take care of the crying child.

            This is why we put night lights around our home. Those night lights help us see in the dark. We plug them in prominent places like stairways, bathrooms and other places that we might traverse in the night. Night lights help to light our way in dark spaces, and prevent us from hurting ourselves in the night.

            As human beings, we tend to gravitate towards the dark. Deep down, we like the dark. We like the way the dark makes us feel – cloaked, and not easily recognized. We may even like the gratification that the dark brings us. We all have different darks that we enjoy. Maybe you enjoy the dark of the internet and all the self gratification that it can bring you. Maybe you enjoy the dark of those gossiping phone calls or conversations about the neighbor next door or the person sitting across from you in the pew this morning. Maybe you enjoy the dark of alcohol and drugs. You enjoy the release from reality the intoxication makes you feel. Our world is encapsulated with the dark. The most recent evidence we see of this is in the current events in Pakistan and Kenya .

            As St. Paul stated in one of the more well-known passages in chapter 7: ¹⁵ I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. All of those dark deeds that we have buried in the back of our closets are all things that we like to do, but we know, by the Holy Spirit’s revelation, that we should not be doing them. However, doing these things can make us feel so good, and so the struggle between our old selves and the new creatures we are in Christ continues!

            We live in a dark world that is encapsulated by sin. When Adam and Eve ate the fruit which they were not supposed to, they brought sin into the perfect creation the God had created. They were saying to God: “I know what you said about that tree, but come on, it looks so good and tasty. What harm could it bring by eating it?”

            We see the snowball effect that our defiance to God brings to this world. We also see the snowballing effect that sin has in our daily lives. Just one sin can bring with it devastating consequences. Habits are formed much faster than they are ever broken, it seems.  It is this snowballing effect of sin in our lives that leaves us in the dark. While our human nature would leave us in this situation, comfortable being cloaked in the darkness, the new creature that God is creating within us knows there is something so much better.  The new creatures we became through baptism have known the light, and knows that the light is so much better for us!

            This morning, we are reminded in our text that our light has come. In all of our mortal struggles, we fail to bring light on our dismal situations.  The good news is that your light has come. Your light is Jesus Christ, your Savior and Messiah. The Light, Jesus Christ, has come and eliminated the darkness. The darkness of sin and death are no longer a threat to you or me. God saw that we were clamoring around in the dark, in desperate need of light, and he sent Jesus Christ, His one and only Son—your light.

            Jesus Christ came and he told us in His very words that He was the light of the world. In John chapter 8 Jesus states, I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life. The light has come into this world for you. Jesus came, and He walked into your dark world. Jesus knew the need you had for light in your life. He knew that you could not find the light on your own. He came to this earth and He brought light to your life. Jesus erased the darkness of your sin, and He brought with him a new light. Your sins are all forgiven. They were forgiven by Jesus’ death and resurrection from the cross over 2000 years ago.

            Your received the light of Jesus Christ the day that you were baptized. Through the water and the Word, Jesus Christ came to you, shedding light upon your sinful state. And Jesus will come to you again in a few moments as we kneel around this rail to receive Holy Communion. Jesus brought the light to this earth, and He continues to bring it to you in your darkest moments. When we gather around this altar you are assured that Christ forgave all your sins. Your dark past is no longer on the record books. It has all been washed clean by the blood of your Savior, Jesus Christ.

Today is a Sunday of light. Today is Epiphany Sunday. Traditionally Epiphany is the day that we celebrate the wise men coming to present gifts to the Christ child, as we heard in our Gospel reading from Matthew. Matthew tells us that the wise men were guided to the Christ child by way of a light, a star.

The word epiphany comes from the Greek noun epiphaneia, which means "shining forth.” The Epiphany of our Lord is the Christian festival that celebrates the many ways through signs, miracles, and preaching that Jesus revealed Himself to the world as the Light of the World.

Epiphany is one of the most important festivals of the liturgical year because it shows the church how God comes to His people.  We are so full of sin and deserving of divine punishment that we cannot hope to approach God.  Knowing that we cannot come to Him, God took the initiative and came to us by becoming one of us.  The most holy and almighty God condescended to take on human flesh in order to reveal His salvation to the world.  This is the mystery of the Epiphany of our Lord.

            What is interesting about the text this morning from Isaiah is that it not only tells us that we can now rise out of our darkness, but that we can shine! Isaiah commands us to: Arise! Shine! Now that we have been washed clean by the blood of the Lamb, our Savior Jesus Christ, we are now able to shine like children of the light. Now that our sins have been forgiven, we are able to shine and become beacons of light to others and the world around us, because the true light, Jesus has come into our lives.

            How do we shine in this very dark world? We shine, by standing out in the crowd. Peer pressure is a big factor not just in the lives of teenagers, but also in the lives of adults. We suffer from wanting to do as the world would have us do. We don’t like to be singled out as the odd ball, the “Christian”. We want to blend in and look like the rest of the world. However, as forgiven Christians we shouldn’t bend to the desire to blend in anymore. Because your sins are forgiven and you are standing on your Rock, you can now shine like a star shines in the night sky.

            Your life as a Christian is a shining example to the world around you. Paul encouraged the Philippians in chapter 2 verse 14 Do everything without complaining or arguing…so that you may shine like stars in the universe. You have been forgiven, and it is through the forgiveness Christ won for you on the cross that allows you to shine like stars.

            We are all stars in this dark world. Your life is a beacon of light to everyone around you. When people see a difference in your life, they begin to wonder what you have that they do not. You have the light of Christ. You have the forgiveness of sins. You have the Holy Spirit. When you are a shining light in this dark world, friends, neighbors and family will see the difference in your life.

The next time you gaze at the beauty of our God’s creation and as you see the vastness of the universe in the night sky, remember that you are a star shining in this dark world, showing all the love of the Lord. So now, as Isaiah commanded us, I ask you now to Arise! Shine! Because your Light, Jesus Christ has come!             

Amen.