Epiphany 3, 2008: More Light

Third Sunday After Epiphany
Is. 9:1-4; 1 Cor 1:10-18; Matt 4:12-23; Ps 27:1, 5-13
Sermon: "More Light"  by Rev. Lisa Domke
Preached at Epiphany Church Seattle 1/27/08
 
I'd like us to start with a brief exercise.  Close your eyes and imagine how a dark day feels.  
This shouldn't be difficult.
 
Imagine: the worst of Seattle winter days.  A good day to stay in bed.  But you can't.  
You have to go outside and walk the dog, walk the kids to school, drive to work, buy groceries, put gas in the car.  
 
It is as if the sun has been extinguished,
and in its place is some vague, far-away, grey-tinged lightbulb,
hanging somewhere behind multiple layers of wet, cold clouds.  
 
It is not mild out....it is flippin' cold.  And windy.  
You give in and take the umbrella, because it really is pouring, but the wind just cackles at you and spits in your face...and all over your pants.  
Your waterproof boots AREN'T, so your socks are wet.  
You figure it must be near dinner-time based on how tired you are and how DARK it is.  
But no...it is 1:30 p.m.  
You make more coffee.  
You wonder what the weather is like in Hawaii.  
And so another dark day drags on.
 
Now close your eyes and imagine how a bright, sunny day feels.
 
Remember this past week.  It is still quite cold out.  
But that great shining orb...is it?...it is!! _the SUN is out.  
All.  Day. Long.  
You find a spot out of the wind and just stand there, soaking in the warmth of this visiting sun.  
You have an extra spring in your step.  
You consume half as much coffee as normal.  
You see and speak to your neighbors!  
People are smiling for no apparent reason.   
The greens are blinding in their green-ness.  
The birds are singing. YOU sing in the car.  

You think to yourself: "How can people stand to live anywhere else?  Seattle is beautiful!  Life is beautiful!"
 
I spent a fair amount of time reflecting this past week on the dramatic impact of light around here and thinking about the four lectionary passages, and their language about light dispelling the darkness.  This common metaphor (contrasting light and darkness) is powerful.  
Not just for Northerners in winter.  
But for all those who dwell in this country which has been called "a city on a hill" which bears high the light of freedom and justice.
 
For many of us, this has been a time of darkness in our nation's history.  
We have used our power unwisely.
We have started wars we cannot win.
We are viewed with contempt by other nations.  
Whatever our great aspirations might be as a country,
the reality is that our light has been greatly dimmed.  
 
Those long-ago hearers of Isaiah's message had endured occupation by the Assyrians, loss of land, loss of hope.  
The passage we heard ("The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light....")
speaks of salvation from a righteous king soon to take the throne and restore them.  (probably Hezekiah)
 
Likewise, in the US, we feel that we have lost much.  
We are not occupied by foreign nations, but we are in a sense ruled by the hostile powers of greed and its twin brother, consumption.   
We are ruled by selfishness, lust for power,
and a fear which alienates us from friend and foe alike.   
We have been living in darkness,
and even afflicting others with this darkness.  
 
I think that these coming presidential elections represent for us, and the rest of the world,
the hope for a new righteous ruler (so to speak).  
One who will help us begin the long process of restoring what has been lost.  
And that is a good hope.
 
Today's scriptures remind us, however, that our hope ultimately does not rest in any human ruler or power or created order.   
The Psalmist recalls us to our Rock and Redeemer:
"The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom then shall I fear?  
The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom then shall I be afraid?"
 
Matthew's gospel  quotes Isaiah, referring not to the reign of Hezekiah, but to Jesus of Nazareth, the righteous king whose light would dispel the darkness and liberate the people.  (Although not exactly in the way they had hoped.)
 
Into the darkness of that time, into a place of occupation and oppression, into a time of waiting and hoping for light....comes Jesus.  And what does Jesus, the Bringer of Light do?  
From that time on he proclaims,
"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."  
He finds two sets of brothers fishing, and says "Follow me, and I will make you fish for people."  
Matthew says that Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching and  proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and sickness among the people.
 
I find the simplicity of Jesus' message compelling and startling.  "Repent. The Kingdom of heaven is here.
With you.  In you.  Among you."  
To the fishermen-disciples he says, "Come follow me.  I will take who and what you are and transform it so that You become Light yourselves.  You will fish for people and they will be drawn from the darkness of bondage and futility into the Light of God."
 
John Foley, S. J., reflecting on this passage, marvels at the ordinariness of Jesus just walking along the beach.  
Did these sets of fisher-brothers know that Jesus was the "great light" which would dispel the darkness?  
Foley says, "No. They only knew that they wanted to be with him."  
Have you ever known someone like that?  
Someone so winsome, so loving, so "light-filled" that you just wanted to be around them?   
I have known people like that.  They stand out, don't they?  
 
A few years ago, I had the privilege of spending 4-5 days at a small workshop with a pastor-professor named Steve.  
Steve was so amazingly wise, and patient, and compassionate, and caring, that I came home and could only describe the experience to my husband Dave by saying,
"It was like hanging out with Jesus."  
People like Steve, who live in the fullness of God's light, have the impact of a sunny day in a Seattle winter.  
(But with more lasting consequences!)  
To be with them is a warm, transformative, relational encounter.
 
People who have heard Jesus' call to follow
--who seek to live into the reality that the Kingdom of God is among us-are luminous beacons of hope in a dark world.  
And when those people proclaim, as Jesus did,
the Good News of the Kingdom of God in word and deed...look out!
 
 
Right after the text we read from Matthew, comes the part about Jesus teaching the Beatitudes, where he tells us more about twhat these light-bearers will look like.
"Blessed are the poor in spirit, the meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.  
Blessed are the peacemakers, the pure in heart."
 
And then, in Matt 5:14 we have these words:
"You are the light of the world.  A city built on a hill cannot be hid.  No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lamp stand, and it gives light to all in the house.  In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven."
 
Some of you grew up in church.  What does this verse remind you of?  
It reminds me of a song I learned as a child in Sunday School but haven't sung very often since.  
We all sang "This Little Light of Mine" at Plymouth Church last Sunday.  
 
As a child, I learned this song as an exhortation to witness.  
The "light" was the message that all the lost people around me needed to get saved by Jesus so they wouldn't go to hell.  
And me shining my light meant that I really had better tell them about their precarious position.
 
Last Sunday, as we reflected on the words and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
the song took on new meaning.  
In the context of Jesus' proclamation "The Kingdom of God is among you!"
the song became something so much more.  
Suddenly being the "light of the world" meant carrying the light of Christ into the world.  BEING the light of Christ in the world.
  
So I taught that song to my son William that night, and I was able to tell him that this is a song about showing the light of God's love to everyone around us, everywhere we go.  
Let's sing it together:  "This little light of mine, I'm going to let it shine. This little light of mine, I'm going to let it shine, let it shine, let it shine, let it shine!"  We could go on for many verses:  Shine it all over in my church...in my home, in my neighborhood, in my school, in the grocery store, at my book club....I'm going to let the light of Christ shine in and through me.
 
What is the call of Jesus to us today?  
I believe it is simply to follow him.  
To let our lives be so transformed by the love and grace and forgiveness of God that we become more than we were before.  
 
We become a people who show forth the light of Jesus into a dark world.  We become fishers of people, made winsome because our unique selves are being shaped and filled by the God of love.
Jesus invites us to join in his proclamation of the truly Good News of God's Kingdom:
"The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness-on them light has shined."
And then Jesus invites us to join him in the work that continues to bring that Kingdom into being.
 
Let's pray:
God, we cannot help but notice the darkness around us.  
And we are so grateful for your light, which has come, and which continues to shine in our lives each day.  
We do hope for a righteous president and national leaders who will do what is just.  
But even more, we acknowledge our own need for righteousness and justice.  
We know that we need to be your light in this world.  
So today we invite you to fill us anew with your love and compassion for the world around us.  
Be our light.  Make us Your light in the darkness.
Teach us to seek your face, to hope in you,
to seek justice, to speak peace.  
We ask this in the name of Jesus.  Amen.