3^rd Sunday after Epiphany at Epiphany on January 27, 2008

Grace, mercy and peace to you in the name of Jesus Christ who shines the light of His Gospel in the darkness of our world. Amen.

Matthew 4:12-23 When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he returned to Galilee . ¹³ Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali-- ¹⁴ to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah: ¹⁵ "Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the way to the sea, along the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles-- ¹⁶ the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned." ¹⁷ From that time on Jesus began to preach, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." ¹⁸ As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee , he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. ¹⁹ "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." ²⁰ At once they left their nets and followed him. ²¹ Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, ²² and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him. ²³ Jesus went throughout Galilee , teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.

Walking out of the shadows

Darkness. It can be overwhelming. A depression has enveloped you. Tears come to your eyes when you see certain pictures. You shake your head at missed opportunities. You don’t want to watch TV. You don’t want to listen to the radio. You refuse to read the newspaper. You don’t care what happens next Sunday. You hope that in a few months the pain will go away and you’ll be able to move on. But right now you are in mourning. It is hard to function – all because the mighty Green Bay Packers have lost.

That is the darkness felt from a football game. Imagine the real darkness that consumes us from real life tragic events – a spouse who has died, a friend who is dieing, walking into a nursing home of dementia patients, a family member in Iraq , a child with cancer …

There is a great darkness in our world. Every night on the news you can hear reports of crimes committed. Murders, rapes, burglaries, car jackings, drug deals. These crimes aren’t perpetrated by psychotic nutcases. They are done by regular people – people like you and me. When the neighbors are interviewed, how do those neighbors describe the accused? “Well, he seemed pretty normal to me. He was kind of quiet, but we didn’t think anything of that. He was just a quiet neighbor.”

There is a darkness like that inside each of us. I've seen regular people, who in the grip of road rage, have used their vehicles like guided missiles, weaving in and out of traffic, cursing and shouting at anyone who gets in their way. I’ve seen wonderful, loving parents go to a child's basketball game, football game, any kind of game; go to a dance recital, an art contest, a science fair, and become raving lunatics as they criticized judges, referees, coaches, teachers. I've seen people wait in line to buy movie tickets, for entrance to an athletic event, to apply for a driver's license. They all seem pleasant; but when someone, even inadvertently, tries to cut into line, those nice people go wild.

There is nobody, not the kindest of little old ladies, not the most gentle of grandpas who, when they are being completely honest, won't admit to the darkness that is inside of them. They are not happy about it; they may have spent their entire life hiding it, done a wonderful job of hiding it, but the darkness is there.

I know you can watch Oprah, Dr. Phil and other daytime talk shows promoting the idea that there is an untapped well of goodness inside of you. They will tell you that you can change things if you follow this regimen or apply this program. Humankind has come up with many wonderful ideas, but no human invention can dispel the darkness, the loneliness, the lostness. The truth is, you knock down the darkness in one spot, it crops up in another. You may, by sheer force of will, be able to keep the darkness at bay, but you know it is there, ready to snap and growl, to tear and rend. You know it. I know it. We all do.

So far I've called that nasty thing which is inside of us "the darkness." The Lord and His Word call it "sin." And God, who is Light, in whom there is no darkness at all, hates the darkness that is in each of us. It's the dark deeds that we do that He can't tolerate. That's why, when God wanted to show His displeasure to the Pharaoh of Egypt, one of the plagues that came upon that land was darkness. It isn't by chance that on the day Jesus was crucified, darkness fell over the world. It will not be coincidence that when Judgment Day comes, and people are found without the Light of the Lord, they will be cast into outer darkness.

Does all of this talk of darkness sound discouraging and depressing? It should. This world has produced some brilliant surgeons, but not one has found a way to surgically remove this darkness. There are drugs on the market that altar moods and change attitudes, but none which can dispel the darkness. Politicians can promise lower taxes and higher minimum wage, but none would be so bold as to say he can take care of your darkness. No philosopher, artist, composer or scholar can drive out the darkness. It is part of us. It is inescapable. It is damnable. Now I know that makes some people upset. They would rather have me talk about the good things people do, there are many; the sacrifices some folks make, they are prodigious; the gentleness some individuals show, it is wondrous. But having said all of that, the darkness remains. Ask one of the good people; the ones who have sacrificed; the individuals who are gentle; they will tell you the darkness remains. All of us, on our own, are helpless and lost.

What a sad message this would be if it had to stop here. What miserable lives would be ours, if that were the final word. But darkness is not the final word. There is more. There is Light. In the darkness of creation God called out, “Let there be light.” There was light and it was good. In Matthew 4, there are a lot of different events that could be discussed – Jesus beginning his ministry with preaching and healing; Jesus calling the disciples; the evangelism of becoming fishers of men. But hidden in the middle is a simple verse of prophesy from Isaiah 9:2. “The people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned." Every man, woman and child will experience this overwhelming darkness of the shadow of sin and death. However, there is hope for those living in darkness. There is Light. As you approach death, the darkness doesn’t have to fall, because at that moment, there will be God’s Light.

Jesus, God's sinless Son, was born into this world of darkness for the express purpose of saving you. When He was born in Bethlehem , the darkness of the world was not pleased with His arrival. Sly King Herod did all he could to snuff out the Light. During Jesus' life, Herod was joined by others. The people that Jesus grew up with tried to kill Him. So did the religious leaders and the government. Satan tried to extinguish the Light through varied temptations. Jesus rejected the temptations to move into the darkness, to become a servant of the darkness. The punishment that we deserved; the punishment that should have sent us into eternal darkness, Jesus took upon Himself. Jesus willingly went into the darkness of death for us. But He did not go as we would have, stumbling and staggering and blindly groping. Jesus was the Light, He is the Light, and in His presence, the darkness of damnation was dispelled. Jesus' resurrection, His return to us, shows that darkness is no longer master. Jesus is the Light of the world.

To be the Light was Jesus' work. To be the Light is who Jesus is. To destroy your darkness was the reason He lived, died, and rose. Now all who know Him as their Savior are freed. They are no longer groping in the dark. Jesus the Light lives within their hearts. And where the Light of Jesus lives, darkness has no place to stay. That is why the apostle John reminds us to live in the Light: “Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness. ¹⁰ Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble. ¹¹ But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him.” (1 John 2:9-11)

As Christians we have walked out of the shadows into the wondrous Light of Christ. That is why as Christians we live differently than we did before; why we live differently from the rest of the world.  As Christians we may be touched by all manner of dark things, but Jesus rules. Even when it comes to something as dark as death, Christians are different. The Light is in us. We mourn for a loved one who has died, but not as people who have no hope. With the Light of Jesus, we know that death is but a shadow; and for a believer, eternity is something wonderful. Of course, you don't have to take my word for all this. Listen to what the Savior said: "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 ).

Darkness. It is impossible for most of us to understand real darkness. Rose Crawford was someone who could. Rose Crawford had been blind for 50 years. It is understandable that Rose wept with gladness when the bandages were removed from her eyes following surgery at an Ontario hospital. For the first time in her life, Rose could see. There are words to describe the overwhelmingly bright, overpoweringly beautiful world that she saw for the first time. It was a beautiful moment for her, and all those around her. That was the good news.

Here's the bad news. Twenty years of Rose's blindness had been unnecessary. For two decades, Rose remained unaware of advances in technology that could have restored her sight. Nobody told her. She had given up. Rose could have seen at the age of 30, rather than 50. The doctor who did her operation said, "She just figured there was nothing that could be done about her condition. Much of her life could have been different."

81 years ago, the people of this congregation believed things could be different. They wanted Christ’s light to shine among a new congregation and community. Epiphany means “a revealing,” “a shining forth of light.” Today we thank and praise God for his great goodness in shining the Epiphany light of Christ into the hearts and minds of you and me and thousands of children and adults through this congregation and school over the past 81 years.

Are you, my friends, still living in the shadows? Do you assume that this darkness is permanent? Do you feel like there is no hope, and your tomorrow will be just as dark as today? If that is your thinking, you are wrong.

The Light shines. The devil tried to blow it out, but the Light shines. The enemy has tried to steal your joy, but the Light shines. You may feel like giving up, but the Light still shines. Jesus doesn’t just shine on your good days, but Jesus will shine on your bad days. The harder the times, the greater He shines.

This Light shines not just for the Jews, but also for the Gentiles, for people like you and me. This Light isn’t just for saints, but it is for us sinners, too. The Light shines in the desert, it shines in the valley, it shines in the city, it shines on the mountain, and it shines on the sea. They can try to put up a wall to keep it out, but the Light will shine. They can try to burn the Bibles, but the Light will shine. They can preach other words, but the truth will shine. They can kill a missionary, but they can’t kill the Light. They can destroy the body, but they can’t put out the Light in the soul.

Where the Light of Christ shines, demons tremble, giants fall, enemies scatter, because He is the Lord of all. Where people sit, the Light helps them see. Where the people are bound, the Light sets them free.

Maybe today you only see darkness in this world, look to the Light and you will see the glory of heaven. No matter how hard the test, no matter how heavy the load, the Light will carry you, you will run and not be weary, you will walk and not be faint. Don’t sit in the shadows of your personal darkness. Christ offers you a bright present; a brilliant future; a clarity beyond imagination; an eternity beyond comprehension. This little Light of mine, let it shine, let it shine, let it shine. Amen.