Light in the Darkness

"The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned."

- Isaiah 9:2

This is a classic Christmas verse that we hear every year at some point during the Advent season. It has become one of those sentimental texts that hits our ears and somehow provokes a nice reaction in our hearts, without being absorbed fully in our brains. Darkness becomes light. A nice positive message over which we should rejoice, right?

Or is it?

Have you ever been in a situation of darkness for a long time, when your eyes have become totally adjusted to it and you're actually able to make your way around? What would be your initial reaction if someone immediately shined a light in your eyes? Would you welcome the light?

No! Whether you've just been awakened by someone turning on your bedroom light, or you're seeing approaching headlights while driving on a lonely, unillumined road in the dark... Your eyes are used to the darkness, and your first reaction is not to welcome it but to shield yourself from it, fearing its penetrating brightness. You must make a choice to allow your eyes to adjust to the light, in order that you might see the things the light reveals.

John's Gospel tells us that "Light has come into the world, but people loved the darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. All those who do evil hate the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed" (John 3:19-20). All humans live in a state of willful rebellion against their Creator. Until recently this was generally accepted as the doctrine of Original Sin. To such rebelliousness, the Divine light of truth is not something that is initially welcome, for it will expose those things which made darkness so appealing.

In American culture the Christmas story has become so "sanitized" that it no longer makes the impact that should be made by a bright light shining in darkness. It has become a cutesy children's tale, enmeshed in elements of paganism and commercialism, that does nothing to penetrate beneath the surface of our lives and shock us with a prophetic indictment that should accompany the proclamation of God's Word.

Can we reclaim the message of Luke 1, which tells us that the cultural, political, and religious establishment generally fails to grasp what God is really all about, and that we must be receptive to messages of Divine truth from unexpected places, from the fringe of life?

Are we willing to view Mary and Joseph in a different light...not as iconic, perfect saints but as a scared young couple willing to put everything on the line for the sake of the call God placed on their lives? Are Christ-followers willing to be more like that second option, instead of unfairly holding themselves and others to the standard of the first?

Can we discern a deeper meaning in the story of the Magi, whose faith in pagan religious practices and in their own wisdom led them to the evil dictator Herod, while it was the Word of God alone that led them to Baby of Bethlehem?

Is there a political message in the story of King Herod, who ruled with lies and fear rather than with truth and justice? Will the "Herods" of our day (of all political affiliations) learn to bend their knees before the true King of Kings and be willing to expose all their deeds to the light of Christ's truth?

Most importantly, are we willing to acknowledge that so much of what we define as Christmas today...commercialism, entertainment, obligatory gifts, and wanton busyness...that these things have nothing to do with the One whose birth we celebrate and whose life we claim as our standard of everything that is true and good.

May the light of Christmas break through the darkness of sin, injustice, and apathy, that we may truly sing, "Joy to the world! The Lord is come!"