Sunday, January 7, 2018

Thoughts for a New Year Series Part 1 - Arise & Shine

At the beginning of a new year most people resolve to do better, stronger, slimmer, healthier…or some kind of positive change.  To do that requires looking back over what didn’t go so well, or examining the pain of what has been in order to plan what must be done to change.
For these first few weeks of 2018 I would like us to think some positive new thoughts for a new year.  Let’s begin with Isaiah’s word:  Arise & Shine!
Arise, Jerusalem!  Let your light shine for all to see.  For the glory of the Lord rises to shine on you.  Darkness as black as night covers all the nations of the earth, but the glory of the Lord rises and appears over you.  All nations will come to your light; mighty kings will come to see your radiance. Isaiah 60:1-3(NLT)
Isaiah spoke/wrote those words roughly 800 years before the birth of Jesus.  But every bit of his ministry proclaimed the Lord’s arrival would be the dawn of a new day.  If you break his prophecy up into two 33 chapter novels they both follow roughly the same three-part story line: 
·       Sin (darkness) of the leaders and people destroyed Israel’s greatness
·       Conquest by invaders brought captivity and despair
·       God gave them a glorious, new light-filled day of release and homecoming
To say that Isaiah’s prophecy relates well to our time is to understate how much like broken Israel we have become.  We are hardly one nation under God in the 21st century! 
But I would like to get past the darkness this morning and think some positive new thoughts for 2018; today is a new day; time to arise and shine!

Isaiah said the night was over

Obviously darkness represents sin and wandering away from God our Creator.  In the Genesis record Moses tells of God making a very definite statement that light is in contrast to the darkness...the light was very good, and God separated it from the darkness.
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.  The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters.  And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.  Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.  And God saw that the light was good.  Then he separated the light from the darkness.  God called the light “day” and the darkness “night.”  Genesis 1:1-4(NLT)
Isaiah picked up on Moses’ theme of darkness and light and announced that the Lord’s rising was like the sun rising on a new day; darkness had to slink away. 
Isaiah’s vision and characterization of the people of Israel in darkness is that of a woman shackled in chains.  Her head is bowed-down in shame and despair; it’s the picture of grief, like someone wallowing in the dust of mourning.  Isaiah says that God is calling this woman, God’s treasured Israel, to come out of the darkness, to put away the dust and ashes; He wants her to begin the celebration. 
Both New Testament apostles, Peter and Paul picked up on Isaiah’s theme:
For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord.  So live as people of light! for the light makes everything visible.  This is why it is said, “Awake, O sleeper, rise up from the dead, and Christ will give you light.”  Ephesians 5:8, 14(NLT)
God told Isaiah to paint this picture of the night past because Jesus, the child of promise would be the light…and that light would be very good!
This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you:  God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all.  So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth.  But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.  If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth.  But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.  1 John 1:5-9(NLT)

Jesus says our morning is here

Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”  John 8:12(NLT)
This word Jesus spoke to the crowds that day in Galilee were the fulfillment of everything Isaiah came to say about God’s light and life rising for all people. 
And now we need to understand the rest of the story.  Isaiah said that God said:  Arise (out of your darkness)…but God also said:  Shine! 
The light came and was a blessing to save everyone who would receive that light.  But it wasn’t just a light turned-on so we can be saved and blessed.  This light was shined on us so we can also shine…so the light can radiate to all people around the world. 
And this begs our last point:

Jesus wants to shine through us

Do you recall what happened when Moses went up on the mountain to speak with God and receive the 10 Commandments?  Spending time with that intense light of God made Moses’ face shine; he got such a dose of God’s light the people couldn’t stand to look at him.  Moses’ face had to be covered.
This is the key for what God wants in Mt Zion and Pleasant Hill churches this year; this day – He wants all of our faces shining His marvelous light so that the world’s darkness has a difficult time with us.  The problem most of us experience with being that is we’re not like Moses; we spend so little time with God we don’t have the light of Jesus – we settle for this little light of mine!  Beloved, it isn’t your light the world needs; they need the reflection of Jesus’ light radiating from you.
But you are not like [the darkness], for you are a chosen people.  You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession.  As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.  1 Peter 2:9(NLT)
Do you remember the hymn “Let Others See Jesus in You”?  It can happen if we spend time with Him and allow Him to have control of our lives. 
What to do about what we’ve heard
In light of Isaiah’s prophecy I believe God wants us all to do two things:

1.  Say goodbye to the darkness

What “night” have you faced this year, or this week, or has been dogging you for all your life?  What sin, oppression, sadness, disappointment, disability, disease, pain, sickness…what shackles you to the dust of mourning?
Hear the words of Jesus about all that:
And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.”  Revelation 21:5(NLT)
Say goodbye to the darkness

2.  Embrace the light…and shine

How do you embrace the light?  Simply open your heart right now to everything God wants for you.  Tell him that in the simplest of prayers:
God…I want everything you want for me.
Have you heard the song, Shine, Jesus, Shine?
Lord, the light of Your love is shining
In the midst of the darkness shining;
Jesus, Light of the World, shine upon us,
Set us free by the truth You now bring us,
Shine on me, shine on me.
Shine, Jesus, shine – fill this land with the Father’s glory;
Blaze Spirit, blaze, set our hearts on fire.
Flow, river, flow, flood the nations with grace and mercy;
Send forth Your word, Lord, and let there be light.
If you can sing that…and you really mean it, Jesus will sing it back to you.  He will sing:  Shine, child, shine, let me shine through you; together we’ll fill this land with the Father’s glory!
Beloved you shine this week, in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Amen!

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[1] Title Image Courtesy of Pixabay.com

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