Advent, Day 18

THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD

Jesus is the light of the world, but some of his radiance was not yet visible at the time of his birth. Sure, the very stars of heaven came and rested over him, drawing wise men from afar. It was as though the cosmos itself were paying homage to this light from God. All the laser light promises of the past joined together in one single place.

Jesus himself would go on to testify, I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life (John 8:12). A day would come when Jesus would stand on a mountain and be transfigured. Matthew describes he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light (Matthew 17:2).

But darkness wasn’t done. It pushed back. Jesus would also have to fulfill God’s promises about the Servant who would suffer for our sake. Jesus bore a criminal’s cross, and on a day shrouded in gloom, He was crucified. The silence of heaven would return, though a thousandfold quieter than ever before. Jesus would be laid in a silent tomb, surrounded by blackness.

But none of that could stop God’s plans because God isn’t afraid of the dark, nor of silence, nor of enemies, betrayal, fatigue, anguish or defamation. Jesus walked right through the darkness of death and burst through the other side! Death had no claim to hold him. Jesus was not implicated by the mutiny of the first humans. Adam was not Jesus’ father. God himself was Father to Jesus. A whole new line of humanity had opened. Eden’s curse of death had no claim on Jesus.

Jesus fulfilled the promise from the Book of Daniel and ascended to God’s presence, receiving authority over everything. When the apostle John saw Jesus in heaven—Jesus as He is now—John described him, the hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire… and his face was like the sun shining in full strength. (Revelation 1:14, 16)

And then John looked even further into the future. He saw a bright new day, still to come, when Jesus will return to the earth. God’s light will fill the whole renewed creation. Every sad part of the whole story of human history will come untrue. The light will flood into every dark nook. God will wipe away every tear, and death will be no more. The whole Earth will be reforged into all it should have been before the human rebellion. And when John saw the beautiful city of heaven resting upon that earth, he exclaimed, the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. (Revelation 21:23)

Someday, there will be no more darkness. That is what we celebrate at Christmas, the entrance of God’s light into the world. The Light has come, and God will not stop until all the world is radiant. Like our ancestors, we live in two simultaneous realities. The Church has spent two millennia waiting for a second advent. We live in a world full of gloom, where faith in God’s promises draws us toward a second story. The nations of the earth are rising and falling like a tumultuous sea, just as they were before Christ first came, and some people today wonder if God’s promises are bluster and bravado, too ancient to be taken seriously. But we must not forget that God is not trapped inside time like us, his hand forced by haste, boredom, or eagerness. God knows every story that could possibly be, and He chooses what is best, even if it requires long epochs of quiet. God is not slow, but He is very, very patient.

The Apostle Peter explains this delay, The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance (2 Peter 3:9). God’s timing is precisely calibrated, and his defining aim is that men and women everywhere should repent.

But the Scriptures admit that many people will not repent. Romans 1:21 describes, although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Many will cling so tightly to darkness that they will be swept away with it.

One day, the ordinary laws governing creation will suddenly by cracked open, and in the rift, we will witness the most incredible and fearful sight of our lives. The advent begun long ago will be complete. God’s light will chase away darkness finally and fully. A world without sin and darkness will be born. The apostle Paul invites each of us to become citizens of this new world, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world (Philippians 2:15).

So which story is your story? Are you trying to live like a firstborn, with all the prestige and privilege you can manage? Are you fighting for scraps with weaponized power? Are you like the orphan calculating whether to give up his scraps to enter a palace? Enter in and find a bigger story—a rags-to-riches love story—where God’s deliverance is inbound and ready to flip power upside down, and set every broken thing back to right?

If you are worried about whether God wants you in his family, don’t be. Come with your mess, your brokenness, your doubts, and additions, and struggles. If you haven’t noticed, God is not afraid of any of that stuff. Never fear that you are too ordinary or inadequate. God loves people of little regard—He goes out of his way to find nobodies.

If you have not yet been transformed by Jesus, at a deep-down heart level, the prayer on the next page is especially for you. The advent of Jesus is all about light coming to darkness. That happened once before, on the first Christmas. It will happen again when Jesus returns. But there is a third advent God desires for you. Let Jesus fill all the darkest places of your own heart, and set you free with the light of God’s endless love.

Because God is a master artist, and all your darkest struggles are just little black blots of ink in a bright and beautiful tapestry that stretches from eternity to eternity. When someday you finally get to stand back, Jesus’ arms around your shoulders, and see God’s entire plan, you will behold the most incredible story you ever dared to dream, a journey from darkness to light. On that day, may the Lord make his face to shine upon you (Numbers 6:26).

DAILY SCRIPTURE READING
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.

The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
– John 1:1-12

REFLECTION QUESTIONS
– What themes of this story have been most impactful to your understanding of the Christmas story?
– What do you think of the God who is described in this story?
– If you’ve been following Jesus for a while now, meditate on all the ways He’s brought light into your life. What most stands out to you? How will you remember His light this Christmas?
– If you do not yet follow Christ, what is holding you back? Reflecting on the prayer below. Consider whether you are ready to lay down the scraps of an orphan and enter a palace.
– Do you want to live in God’s invisible story? What is the next step for you?

PRAYER
Father, I believe in your promises. Please, free me from darkness and cause Jesus’ light to shine on me. Please transform me at a deep-down heart level. Help me live in the invisible story of your incredible rescue mission through faith in your promises. I give my life to you—all that I am in exchange for all that you are. Help me to walk in the light, which includes fellowship and honesty with Christian community. Please set me free from darkness and protect me from it. I know that millennia of history had shown that humans cannot hold steadily to our partnership with you, so I ask you to carry and uphold me. Thank you that you help us from the inside out. Please fill me with your Spirit and walk with me all the days of my life, until I see you finally in all your beauty and radiance. In Jesus name, Amen!