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A Light to All People
Amid all the trappings of Christmas, let us not forget why Jesus came to earth. Share that good news!
Luke 2:29-32
There’s a man in the temple courts of Israel by the name of Simeon, a man who’s waiting for the comfort of Israel. And he’s not waiting in the way you or I might. He’s a prophet of God. He has the Spirit of God, and that spirit has promised to him that he will not die. He will not see death before he sees the Christ. And when Mary and Joseph come to the temple bearing the baby Jesus, when he sees him, he knows by that same spirit of prophecy that this is the one promised. This is the Messiah of God. And when he sees him, he takes him up in his arms. And he praises God, saying,
Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace in accordance with your word. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which we have prepared before the face of all peoples, a light unto the revelation of the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel. (Luke 2:29-32)
It’s a beautiful song, but that last verse in particular, I find really striking. It’s this image of Christ as light, of a light shining out from the people of Israel for their glory and beauty to the nations, to everybody else, to reveal something to them, and that something is the very glory the God of Israel, the one who has been their God for thousands of years, who has given them salvation and peace, as Simeon describes in the song by first of all, taking them out of Egypt by becoming their God, but also by giving them peace from their enemies, by fighting for them, by giving them a way of being with him in a sacrificial system, all of these things. That’s the God who this infant Christ is revealing, who’s shining out by taking on the body, by taking on a human nature, and coming out of the people of Israel to all people. By taking on flesh to live and die for the sake of Israel, and for the sake of all, to pay the penalty for sin, to suffer it in his flesh, to deliver us from death, and finally to give us peace with God. That’s the infant Christ, that’s who’s shining out of Israel and to the nations.
And it’s been about 2000 years since then, and we still celebrate that event. We still sing like Simeon did, but we also have feasts. We have lights, Christmas lights, candles, we have family celebrations, all of these beautiful things, light and life and joy in this time of year. And yet there’s always the risk in all of those adornments that we lose ourselves in them, that we allow the Christmas lights to over shine the light of the nations and the glory of Israel. That’s a risk for Christians, but it’s especially a risk for those who don’t know Christ or who forgotten him. So let’s remind them. Let’s sing the praises of the light of the nations and the glory of Israel by remembering ourselves, but also by saying, by telling others about that peace and salvation given to us by the incarnation of God in the flesh.
Christ has lived a perfect life and died an innocent death in our place to win forgiveness and righteousness for us. And he gives that to those who believe that he’s done it for them. It’s a strange thing that we celebrate in this time of year at all. It’s so dark and desolate. People didn’t bring light and life and joy into that for no reason. That’s the whole point of the incarnation. That’s how Christmas came to be. So let the people who don’t know the source of that joy know it. Let the glory you have in Christ shine out from you to them, so that Christ may be for them a light unto revelation and your glory. Amen.
