Introduction
1Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. 2For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. 3And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. 4Lift up thine eyes round about and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. 5Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee. 6The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the LORD.
Isaiah 60:1-6
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1Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. Isaiah 60:1
Each year brings its own brand of adventure, intrigue, and brand of uniqueness. 2021 is in a class all by itself as we entered the portal of this year with looming challenges that are unprecedented in most of our lifetimes. There was an election that took place in November of 2020 and certified by the electoral electors count in December. It was considered a fraudulent election by some and attempts were made to disregard the votes in certain states. There was an insurrection occasioned by language of the person who lost, as well as others in the party he represents, coupled with white supremacist and groups of white militias to overturn the election results, reinstate the person who lost, by force and violence. Those efforts failed and our democracy’s principles, procedures and practices prevailed.
Epiphany is the second season of the Christian Calendar year. Beside Easter, Epiphany is the oldest Christian church festival. Epiphany means to “reveal or appear.” We celebrate this festival because God revealed the “Light of the World to us.”
Isaiah reminds us that our light has come. The light of the world has come. The One who dispels the darkness has arrived. The One who does this is Jesus. Jesus said of himself, “I am the light of the world, whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12). As we look at the life of Jesus, hear his words, embrace his miracles, we come to the conclusion that is expressed by John's gospel, “the word became flesh and dealt among us. We beheld his glory as the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth … in him was life, and that life was the light of all people. The light shines in darkness and the darkness could not overcome it.” (John 1:4-5) Jesus has lightened up our lives. As the word made flesh, Jesus has become “a lamp to our feet and light to our path.” (Psalm 119:105).
“Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:14
“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6
Consider what it means to see the light of the Lord in the life of Jesus Christ.
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“Rise and shine, for your light has come and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.” Isaiah 60:1
You are invited to put the light of your faith on display. The nation of Israel is addressed with an imperative, “arise and shine.” This is an invitation.
Arise and shine are cheerful words for a new beginning, starting all over. God’s encouragement through the prophet Isaiah is that we put the light of our faith on display for those around us. The Lord says rise and shine. We are to be beacons of light in the world. A beacon shines brightly to alert, guide and warn. Our lives serve as beacons in a world to provide the light needed for people to navigate their way through existence. Let others see the light that God reflects for you, off of you and through you.
A beacon flashing continually, shining brightly illumines your surroundings. You can see better with clarity because light enhances your acuity. Rise and shine as beacons in the world, putting the light of your faith on display, signaling and encouraging people to face life at its extremity; while inspiring people to engage what they need to assuage, so that they can be a part of fulfilling God’s purposes for humanity through them.
Consider how you put your faith on display as a beacon; a shining light that alerts, guides and warns people about the reality with which they live.
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Tuesday, January 26, 2021 |
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2For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. 3And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. Isaiah 60:2-3
Isaiah penned these words for a people who were languishing in the throes of captivity. It had been a long dark season for Israel (Babylonian captivity). Isaiah 60 is addressed to a people in crisis (a time of intense difficulty, danger and destruction). There was strife within the community, bitter contentious conversation with fraught attempts to rebuild what had been destroyed and a failing economy due to a war and foreign powers interfering with their politics.
We are experiencing a crisis of confidence in our democratic practices, principles, and procedures over the past four years with what has been taking place revealed. We have been made to realize that our democracy is fragile. There are breaks, cracks, fractures in the fabric of what we thought was safe and secure. We were covered with a dark cloud in a seasonal political reality of falsehoods, mingled with disinformation, coupled with unverifiable conspiracies, economic decline and negligence; along with selfishness designed to delude and disenfranchise voters by suppression. It is utterly appropriate for Epiphany and Jesus, who preached and acted out the good news of the kingdom or reign of God in a time when the people of Israel were again in crisis, in exile at home under Roman domination and oppressed by a kingdom ruled by Caesar who claimed to be God.
Consider the relevance of this description to our contemporary situation with strife within fracturing our unity, a failing economy due to mismanaging the Covid-19 pandemic and interference with disinformation and misinformation with false conspiracy theories.
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Wednesday, January 27, 2021 |
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4Lift up thine eyes round about and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. Isaiah 60:4
Now comes the season of light. It has been said that the darkest hour is just before dawn. The light is not self-generated. It is a gift of God. The symbolism of light as a gift of God is the only source of hope and possibility. We don't control the light. Light is given to us to awaken us to the promise and possibilities of what can be. In the life of the nation of Israel, God's coming is often presented as the coming of light. God’s glory shines. When God’s glory shines, Israel lives in the glow and basks in the aura of the ray’s radiant flow. Isaiah told of a time when the Lord would deliver his people from their captors. God’s coming will decisively transform Israel’s circumstances of despondency (60:1-2). What you need to live has been given.
Just as at the dawn of creation something unprecedentedly new occurred, birthing something else so light continues to do the same thing when it appears. Light dispels the darkness so you can see what you have been missing. Light energizes growth. Light attracts to what is seen. Light causes your eyes to see what lifts them from despair to delight. There is a huge procession from everywhere. Jerusalem thought itself abandoned, now all are making their journey there.
Through Isaiah, God foretold the coming of the ultimate deliverer, Jesus. In Christ, God has shined his glorious light on our lives and invites us to rise and shine. God urges us to come into the light that has been provided. What sustains the community – the only thing that can sustain us through times of crisis is the faith that we are loved by God and that we exist for a purpose that can support us in any crisis. The well-being of the people cannot be secured apart from their faith in God (Yahweh), nor can God be worshipped apart from the existence and well-being of a faithful people. God has always dwelt among the people and remains with them, particularly in times of crisis, and their faithfulness to God is critical to the coming of the light or the rule of God. Through their commitment to worship, study, and deeds of loving kindness, they contribute to making possible the coming of God’s loving justice. Focusing on the light that has come to us in the life of Christ Jesus is a good way to continue through the year.
Consider how the light of the love, life and legacy of Jesus provides the illumination your need to remain hopeful through what you have to face.
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Thursday, January 28, 2021 |
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5Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee. Isaiah 60:5
We are told about what the light of faith can do. The shining is so you can see as well what the Lord is doing. As we witness to the light of the Lord shining in our hearts there are opportunities for praise. Isaiah spoke of these opportunities when he wrote, “Then you will look radiant, your heart will throb and swell with joy; the wealth on the seas will be brought to you, to you the riches of the nations will come. We will praise the Lord with our lips and our treasure. The greatest gift we can give the Lord is ourselves. Giving ourselves for the Lord means that we are willing to expend ourselves and put ourselves at the Lord’s disposal. The text also speaks of praising God with our material possessions. Isaiah mentions gifts of gold and incense. As we hear these words, we are reminded of the wise men who came searching as they were guided to worship the Christ child. When they found him, they gave to him gold, frankincense and myrrh. This was their way of praising the Lord for sending Jesus into the world.
We are often faced with doubt about life and the way things unfold. The light of the Lord ignites our imagination about possibilities in the midst of our challenging moments. We learn to trust the Lord more as we open our eyes and see what God pictures can be.
Courage, brother! Do not stumble, / Though thy path is dark as night; / There’s a star to guide the humble –Trust in God and do the right.
Let the road be long and dreary, / And its ending out of sight; / Foot it bravely – strong or weary – Trust in God and do the right.
Perish policy and cunning, / Perish all that fears the light; / Whether losing, whether winning, / Trust in God and do the right.
Trust no party, church or faction, / Trust no leader in the fight; / But in every word and action / Trust in God and do the right.
Trust no forms of guilty passion - / Friends can look like angels bright; / Trust no custom, school or fashion – Trust in God and do the right.
Some will hate thee, some will love thee; / Some will flatter, some will slight; Cease from man and look above thee – Trust in God and do the right.
Firmest rule, and safest guiding, / Inward peace and inward light: / Star upon our path abiding – Trust in God and do the right.
The guiding light in our life is the light that comes from the life of Jesus which teaching us that if we follow him as the light of the world, we will not walk in darkness but have the light of life.
Consider what it means for you to trust in God and do the right.
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6The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the LORD. Isaiah 60:6
Damaged Jerusalem has become the pivot and possibility for a new beginning and opportunity. The exiles bring wealth not to prosper Jerusalem but to worship God. God’s presence creates newness for the entire world. In this poem, all – Jerusalem, the exiles, the nations – receive the gift of life. How refreshing after a long season of darkness, doubt and disgust mingled with bitter contention. We remind ourselves that that the light of the Lord transforms what’s been damaged into something in which we take delight. We go forth filled with thankfulness and joy which becomes contagious causing those around us to be joyful too.
The light of the Lord enhances the whole world with the possibilities for devotedness, newness and togetherness, a sense of unity about getting along with one another united by the common good for all. Over the centuries, the Judeo-Christian heritage has been used to justify exploitation, oppression, imperialism and the persecution. But as its true precepts have taken root in reformers, the Judeo-Christian faith has also been a powerful source of criticism of those practices. The Judeo-Christian heritage inevitably raises the question: What if everyone we favor, and everyone we fear, and everyone we help, and everyone we exploit, and everyone we love, and everyone we hate, were the reflected image of God — unique, valuable and destined for eternity?
This Christian vision of human rights and dignity has grabbed men and women by the collar in every generation and continues to do so now. The hypocrisy of the practice of faith is unsustainable. A seed gets planted. And a greater power emerges, revealing new leaders and shaming those who reduce Christianity to toxic Churchianity which reduces faith to a game of thrones.
Consider how the light of the Lord in Christ has as its aim as Jesus prayed in John 17:20, “That they all may be one; as thou Father, are in me, and I in thee, that they may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou has sent me.”
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Saturday, January 30, 2021 |
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1Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. Isaiah 60:1
“I am the light of the world, whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12) As we look at the life of Jesus, hear his words, embrace his miracles, we come to the conclusion that is expressed by John's gospel, “the word became flesh and dwelt among us. We beheld his glory as the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth … in him was life, and that life was the light of all people. The light shines in darkness and the darkness could not overcome it.” (John 1:4-5)
Reflect again on the projection in Isaiah, Jesus is the fulfillment of the one whom Isaiah was speaking: “Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:14 “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6
Jesus said of himself, “I am the light of the world; whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12) As we look at the life of Jesus, hear his words, embrace his miracles, we come to the conclusion that is expressed by John's gospel, “the word became flesh and dwelt among us. We beheld his glory as the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth … in him was life, and that life was the light of all people. The light shines in darkness and the darkness could not overcome it.” (John 1:4-5)
Jesus admonishes us, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” John 5:16
As we go forth filled with thankfulness and joy, we shine with the light of the life of Jesus with our good works that capture the attention and draw people to the One we lift up with our example.
Consider what it means for, “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.”
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Conclusion
Jesus wants me for a sunbeam, / To shine for Him each day; / In every way try to please Him, / At home, at school, at play.
Jesus wants me to be loving, / And kind to all I see; / Showing how pleasant and happy / His little one can be.
I will ask Jesus to help me / To keep my heart from sin, / Ever reflecting His goodness, / And always shine for Him.
I'll be a sunbeam for Jesus; / I can if I but try; / Serving Him moment by moment, /Then live with Him on high.
A sunbeam, a sunbeam, / Jesus wants me for a sunbeam; / A sunbeam, a sunbeam, / I'll be a sunbeam for Him.
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