and this life was the light of the human race;
Jesus is the light of the world. He is the dawn from on high that shines upon us. He is the LORD restoring Zion. He is the one whom the glad tidings proclaim. He himself is the content of the good news.
Until Jesus is born God seems distant. He seems like a God who is mainly "in the beginning" and not active in the dirty darkness of the present. Sure we hear from him through the prophets occasionally, but never with the directness we desire. It never seems to make the difference we need. There is so much darkness that the world always seems sliding back down into it. It claws toward the light but it seems futile. It seems like darkness is the truth and the light is a fleeting dream.
Today we learn that God is not distant. Today we learn the darkness cannot win. We learn that light is the deeper truth and darkness the passing illusion.
the light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness has not overcome it.
Jesus shows us that he is the light. He puts to flight our fears of darkness. And byy the light of his own life and love he reveals the truth about the Father.
No one has ever seen God.
The only Son, God, who is at the Father’s side,
has revealed him.
Because Jesus is "the refulgence of his glory, the very imprint of his being" we can no longer think of the Father as disinterested. We can no longer think of darkness as the deepest truth of reality. The most truly real thing of all is light and life.
Now that we have seen the saving power of our God, his wondrous deeds, and his victory over darkness we are free to embrace him. We are now free to believe this testimony about the deeper truth of God. If we just put aside our doubts and misgivings and accept him he gives us the power to become "children of God", children of the same Father.
Jesus comes to us this morning. By the light of his coming he reveals the goodness of the Father from whom he comes. He invites us to share in this same relationship. He is cosmic, sustaining all things by his powerful word. But this morning he is revealed to us in the face of an infant. The deepest truths of light and love are revealed in the gaze of a babe.
Distant? Dark? No! Look at these eyes! Dispassionate? Aloof? No! See the gentle hands too small to grasp. See how he presses into the caresses of Mary of his mother. He longs to be so close to us all. This is the grace and truth he brings. This has been the plan from the beginning, when he was God and with God. But this morning the light shines! Bask in it! And then proclaim it!
How beautiful upon the mountains
are the feet of him who brings glad tidings,
announcing peace, bearing good news,
announcing salvation, and saying to Zion,
“Your God is King!”
No comments:
Post a Comment