Of such importance is light that God creates it first: Genesis 1: 1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters. 3 And God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.

Light is the prerequisite for all the rest of creation. Genesis 1:1 speaks to us in the midst of tragedy just as it spoke to the people Isaiah knew three thousand years ago. Both of these passages from Isaiah and Genesis originate in Israel’s exile, amid hopelessness and despair engendered by having its country pillaged, temple ruined, cities wrecked. In ancient Israel, there were people who sincerely believed that the thick walls around Jerusalem couldn’t be breached – that the temple would stand forever. When it crumbled, dark despair went with them in exile. Who among us has not longed for light in the midst of a very dark night? When life seems without form and void; when darkness is everywhere; only the voice of God can help us see in the darkness. In fact, a good definition of faith is the ability to see in dark.

But sometimes the world seems dark because there is something wrong with our vision. I finally realized I needed glasses when the classrooms at Harvard seemed so dark I couldn’t see the board. Surely Harvard can afford good lighting, I thought. But Faith , my wife that is, convinced me to have my eyes checked. It was like magic. They turned up the lights! Actually, of course, there wasn’t any more light than had always been there. I was simply newly able to use the light that was already there. The prophet Isaiah tells his people that their light has come. They need now to see it and begin to reflect its glory.

Light may be one of those good things that have been carried to extremes of late. As we drove back to Des Moines last week, Faith and I couldn’t help noticing that the car dealers in Granger have lots of bright lights shining on their lots all of the time. They may be trying to attract attention. They may also be trying to discourage thieves and vandals. Lots of light is one of the most characteristic features of the developed, civilized world. We want and need to have everything illuminated. Third world countries and wilderness areas are noteworthy for how dark they are. You can actually see the stars when you stand outside in wilderness areas. No where does the sky look bigger and more star-studded than in northern Canada or western Wyoming. Where I live in rural Polk County the night is brightest on cloudy nights because the light of the city and shopping malls is reflected back to earth. This artificial light far outshines the light God created in the heavens on that first day of creation. There is something in me that grieves this loss of darkness which lets the true and natural light of the world be seen. Too much light can blind us even more than too much darkness. If Isaiah were to prophesy today, he might well reverse his image and tell us to turn down the lights of our cities, shopping malls and parking lots so that we could see the true light which only comes from God. We are blind today because of too much light rather than too little.

For whatever reason, modern people fear natural light and prefer the light we create ourselves. It’s not easy to live in the light which God provides so we replace it or hide from it. Nels Ferre, Faith’s father, wrote a book years ago which caused quite a stir. The “Sun and the Umbrella” tells the parable of a people who called themselves Sunworshipppers, but live instead under umbrellas which protect and hide them from a God who wants more of them than they are willing to give. We know from first hand experience that the sun can blind us, can cause skin cancer, can make the day so hot as to be unbearable. So we create umbrellas to shield us from the glare of the Sun. Unfortunately for Nels Ferre, he went on to say that the church itself was an umbrella, the Bible and even religious dogma are umbrellas that shield us from the true, pure, and penetrating light of God. His conservative religious friends ostracized him for such blinding opinions. Nels could see light where others saw only darkness. And he could live in a much brighter light of God than most of us can stand.

Whether too much or too little light is a favorite metaphor for the Bible. I typed the word “light” into an on-line concordance. This yields all the passages in which the word “light” appears. My search overloaded the system. There are hundred and hundreds of reference to light, 103 in the NT alone. Here are some samples:

the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned. And ´You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid.” And “Nor do men light a lamp and put it under a bushel, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.” And “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” And “to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace." And nearly a hundred more, ending, fittingly, when darkness is completely vanquished: “And night shall be no more; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they shall reign for ever and ever.”

It is no coincidence that Christmas falls at the winter solstice and that the Biblical story is preoccupied with light. All humans everywhere in the northern hemisphere for all of human history have felt anxiety as the days shorten and the nights lengthen. Will this descent into darkness reverse itself as it has in the past? Or will light vanish this time forever? Christians join with all people in wishing for and celebrating the rebirth of the world which happens each year as the sun returns, bringing the life giving light to illuminate our lives.

We Christians have seen a great light and this is the perfect time of the year to celebrate this intrusion into the long night. A light has shone into our darkness. That light is Christ, the light of the world. Arise, Shine, says the prophet. Having seen the light, we are now commanded to reflect that light in our lives so others will be drawn to the light, just as the magi were drawn by the star. Our task as Christians is to share the light, share the goodness of Jesus with the whole world.

Epiphany is the season of mission, that season when we are reminded that the light of Christ is meant to shine into the whole world. The star was visible in a far distant land to draw the magi to Jesus. They were not Jews, had no part of the sacred promises of God to Israel. And yet they were the first to bend a knee and worship the baby Jesus. The magi therefore remind us that God intends for this good news to be spread to all people everywhere. We, too, are meant to shine in the distant lands where we live, as Isaiah encouraged the exiles of ancient Israel. We, too, can be the star of Bethlehem, beckoning others to Christ.

So, how are we doing? Are we standing in the light to which Jesus beckons? Have we arisen and are we shining?

A few years ago, I awoke on Sunday morning, stumbled to my computer to finish the last minute preparations for church. I fired up my computer and checked my email. Down came a message from someone I had never met, a minister in western Canada. He read my sermons regularly on the Web, it seems, and liked them. He had broken his leg in a skiing accident several months before and the bones weren’t healing properly, so he was laid up, disabled, and not back to work. He said he had decided that he would find some kind of ministry to do while he waited to heal so that he could go back to work. He had decided that about all he could accomplish was a “ministry of encouragement.” So he wrote me an email to encourage me to keep doing my preaching and worship planning and mission work. He thought I was doing a good job and wanted to encourage me to keep doing it. Well! You can bet that I printed that puppy and framed it! It encourages me when I get down and wonder, as we all do from time to time, if what I do makes any sense or has any value. It also reminds me that the one emotion you can never overdo is gratitude. We could all take on the “ministry of encouragement,” for instance, and do a world of good. We could shine like the brightest star in the night sky if we just increased the number of times each day we said thank you or encouraged someone.

There is almost always a way for us to rise and shine. God’s light is supposed to reflect off of us to brighten the world for others. My new Canadian friend sure brightened my day. I’m sure that you have had experiences similar to this. You may be aware that some UMW groups engage in something they call the secret sister where each person adopts another member of the group and gives presents or assistance anonymously. This is a good illustration of a great Christian truth: we find God in the ordinary events and relationships of our life – often from people who are unknown to us.

One of the ministers at Plymouth Congregational UCC in DM a while back was Jim Newby. He has written a guide for individual and church spiritual growth called, Gather the Seekers. This book helps churches create small groups of people who gather regularly for study, prayer and mutual support. Most of the material for the meetings comes from the experiences of the members. Each member of the group gives a ministry experience report in which he describes an encounter with someone which offered an opportunity for ministry. Everyday events and encounters provide grist enough for most spiritual mills. The group asks the question: How is God at work here in the ordinary events of our daily lives? I intend to start a few seekers groups here this winter with the hope that it can help people improve their spiritual journey. If successful these groups can continue or spawn new groups to help this church improve its ministry to its members.

None of us lacks opportunity to let the light of God shine through us. I attended a meeting the other day with Jim Autry, a local author of books about how to be a Christian in the business world and still make money. He is now writing a book on retirement, hoping to help people prepare for the spiritual as well as the financial challenges of leaving the world of work. The short answer, of course, is to have purposeful activity. Too often old retirees just gather each morning at the Hy-Vee to drink coffee and kvetch. They go home to eat only to return in the afternoon. This can be a very sterile life without purpose. It’s a familiar scene and a sad one. I admire those in this church who have retired so well. As I work my way through the members who have moved on from the work a day world, I am continually amazed by the strength of their spirits. They seem to realize that they must continue to rise and shine even if they don’t have to get up early to go to a job. Just their continued involvement with a church indicates they are wise enough to know that financial planning was not sufficient for a healthy retirement. Faith and I have decided that our retirement location will be determined by our ability to find a church which offers us opportunities to worship, volunteer, and meet with committed Christians for study and prayer because we want to stay involved in the quest to strengthen our own spiritual lives and the spiritual lives of others.

The magi traveled a long distance to bring gifts to the baby Jesus. They brought what they had to give: gold, frankincense and myrrh. They traveled at night because they followed a star. Faith is being able to see in the darkness, I guess. The light of Christ guided their travels. The gifts they gave transformed their lives. Each of us has a gift to give, as well. Each of us has something to offer the Christ child. It may be to volunteer our time and money. It may be our talents at building and repairing homes for needy families or serving meals for the city’s poor and lonely. It may be as teachers in the Sunday School. It may be as leaders of youth groups. It may be as a friend to a colleague or neighbor. We can always take on a ministry of encouragement. The light of Christ shines in us whenever we reach out to someone in need. So “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” Amen.

Lord, Hear our Prayers for …………. Almighty God, your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ, came into the world, that we might have light in our darkness, life rather than death. Grant that your people, enlivened by reading and preaching of your word, and refreshed by your sacraments, might rise, might shine forth into all the world the radiance of the glory of Christ. May Christ be seen in us, worshiped by the world, obeyed by all, to the distant ends of the earth, now and always. Amen.

Caring God, you have "pity on the weak and needy, the poor and those who have no helper" (from Ps 72:12-13). It is in your love and in the spirit of Christ that we make this offering. May the light of your justice and righteousness permeate the earth bringing deliverance, hope, and peace to the nations. Bless our gifts and those who give their resources to share Christ's mission. Amen.