Light in the Darkness
Christmas in many ways has become about the lights. We put lights on the Christmas tree and lights on our bushes. We light candles and display them… maybe more than any time of year.
We also make jokes about the lights. If you’ve
ever attempted to un-tangle a bunch of Christmas lights, you know what I mean.
It can test our patience and sometimes take us far away from the peace that we
are working to obtain.
The light shines in
the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.
–John 1:5
(Sure, tell that to the person who has finally
untangles said lights, hung them on the tree and plugged them in, only to find
they no longer work!)
Sometimes our frustration in obtaining the light
is that we fail to acknowledge the darkness. That may sound like a strange
posture to take during “The most wonderful time of the year…”, but it’s an
intricate part of what actually makes the Christmas story ultimately beautiful.
There was darkness. For 400 years before the birth
of Christ the people had not heard from God. Prophets were silent, angels
failed to visit and miracles ceased to exist. Darkness at its most profound
point plagued the people of God.
Advent is about the light that came into the darkness to change the world. Our classic Christmas Eve service captures it well. We plunge our sanctuaries into darkness and then begin to light candles, one by one.
Notice what we do before we light the candles. We make it dark.
Why? We do that because it causes us to pay closer attention to the candles…the
light. It helps us to take notice. To see. To Behold.
Behold has been our Advent sermon series title
this year. To behold is to not only look at something, but to really SEE it.
God wanted us to really SEE Jesus that first
Christmas day. Jesus arrived on the backdrop of 400 years of spiritual
darkness. The candles we light can also be a reminder that Jesus came as a
baby. A tiny flame filled with bright light…just like a candle.
“The people who walk in
darkness
Will see a great light;
Those who live in a dark land,
The light will shine on them.”-Isaiah 9:2
The very flame of light that we are passing is
the symbol of the light of God we are to pass to one another each day of our
lives. That baby in a manger brought light to the world and through the power
of the Holy Spirit passed that light on to us in order that we continue to bring light to
the world.
Picture a string of lights. A single light on
the string doesn’t cast a great deal of light into the room, but a whole string
of lights does. When we as Gods people live our lives as a string of lights
together we too cast a great deal of light into the world.
Sometimes our light gets tangled though.
Sometimes they go out or dim. The world can be a dark place, constantly challenging
us to burn a little brighter. Sometimes we become frustrated in trying to bring
our light to life.
For some, this time of year is very much like
taking the lights out of the box only to find they don’t work. We find ourselves frustrated that we are
supposed to be “Merry and Bright”. It’s as if we feel expected to cover all of
the darkness in our life with a giant blanket of joy, hope and peace as we
pretend everything is ok.
More
times than not this causes more stress than peace. Depression actually
increases this time of year.
Back in the day, if one light went out on the
string of lights they all went out. Thankfully that’s not the case anymore. The
other day I noticed that one of the tiny lights on the tree had gone out. It
wasn’t noticeable though because it was right next to lots of other brightly
burning bulbs. Sometimes we survive on the light of those around us.
But sometimes our burned out bulbs can get lost
among the others. Do we take notice of the burnt out bulbs around us this time of
year? Are we aware when someone in our life, family, church is burning a bit
dimly?
The first Christmas was not a pristine, perfect
time. King Herod was having babies killed, Roman oppression and conquest was
running ramped. We tend to sterilize this reality with a perfectly depicted
manger scene filled with beauty; yet, the manger probably smelt bad and the bed
where Jesus lay was probably dirty.
The beauty wasn’t in the actual reality of the
surroundings and circumstances that first Christmas. The beauty was in the
promise of things to come. The beauty was in the hope of a Savior.
Who needs to know this hope? Who around us needs
to know that it’s ok that they don’t feel “merry and bright”?
The beauty of Advent is that light is brought to
the darkness. Where can you cast your light? Who might need some encouragement
and hope this Christmas season? Who might be feeling joy as a burden rather
than a gift?
The gifts this time of year aren’t really about
the ones under the tree. The gifts this time of year come in the way of “Beholding”.
Christ brings His light to the world not just in order for us to see Him, but
to see each other and to illuminate the path for those who are living in
darkness.
Ephesians
5:8
says “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.
Live as children of light.”
Be the light in the world this Advent season and each day
forward. Take notice of those around you and if their light seems a little dim
or has gone out altogether….share your light with them.
“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. -Matthew 5:14-15
-Pastor Patti
Jesus is my light.
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