Isaiah 9:1-7
I once brought some friends from the city to my home in the country for a visit. I handed them a flashlight and motioned for them to follow me. It was a dark, moonless night, so I should not have been surprised to see them getting nervous as I led them down a narrow dirt path. They jumped at every noise. They shined their light into the bushes. I asked them what they were doing. “Looking for snakes,” they said. I remembered my grandmother’s words when I had been afraid of the dark. Don’t go looking for snakes in the bushes, she said. Keep your eyes on the path. If you see something, stop. It will be afraid of the light and move on. But always shine your light on the path.
Isaiah spoke of lands where Assyrian rule and false gods had brought darkness and distress into the land. Foreigners were being settled into the Galilee area as part of Assyrian annexation, control, and oppression. So, God had “humbled” the land. It literally means “to take lightly”– as in: their false gods had no power over God’s plan. There would be no more gloom. God would shine great light on the path, a light not to be taken lightly, for it would shine in a land of deep darkness.
Ever been in a cave or mine shaft hundreds of feet underground and someone turns off the lights? That is deep down dark! It can bring fear and make us acutely aware of our vulnerability and needs – and our deep desire for light. And have you ever had to share a light with another on a dark path. You angle it differently so that they can see, too.
A pastor wrote that if a church is trying hard to meet all your needs, that church is probably off-mission. They are too focused on providing light for themselves while the world walks in darkness. Our mission is not to shine the light on ourselves, for ourselves, but to keep the light of the gospel on the path of Christ for others to follow.
Our calling and faith is not about our own zeal, but the zeal of the Lord; not about our increase, but the increase of peace by the Prince of peace; not how much we are able to shoulder ourselves, but how much the Son has shouldered for us as Wonderful Counselor and Mighty God. Yes, deep down dark is serious, but it cannot hold a candle to the Light that has dawned in a child born to us!
There was a grandmother who had her granddaughter with her for Christmas into the New Year. The granddaughter would watch her light candles every night and place them in the windows. After observing this ritual for several days, she asked: Grandma, why do you light the candles every night?
My dear, said Grandmother, we light candles to tell the darkness we beg to differ!
You might recall when 33 Chilean miners were trapped 2,000 feet down for 69 days. A book written about them is entitled: Deep Down Dark, capturing the essence of Isaiah’s words. The way they survived was by pulling together. They shared what little food they had equally. Their small area began to smell like a grave. When a bore hole reached them, they asked for tooth brushes – and I remember hearing that they asked for a Bible. Rather than focus on the darkness of their entrapment, they sought the light of God’s word and promise, telling the darkness: we beg to differ!
The light and love of Christmas should not be taken lightly! When others regard Christmas as just some sentimental, feel-good traditions and time off from work for food and football, we beg to differ. When the atheists raise their complaints – and they do every year – preferring Santa Clause over Christ, we cannot worry about snakes in dark bushes, for they will flee before the light. The more Jesus of Galilee is honored, for more they will be humbled and not taken seriously.
We will seek to follow Christ as He lights our way; strive to stay on-mission and on-message, ever increasing in joy, we pray; rejoicing in His justice and righteousness that frees us from our burdens. We believe this, and can do this, because the zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.
Friends, what we do this morning should never be taken lightly, for we are here to prepare ourselves for tonight when we confront the shadow of death itself and say to the darkness: we beg to differ!