Matthew 5:14-16

            {Prayer}

            With Christmas only a few days away, some of us will be traveling to see friends and loved ones. As with any trip, there is a certain amount of planning that needs to happen. We have to pack, figure out which way we’re going to, how many stops it may take along the way. Some parts of the journey will be smooth and scenic, others might involve construction zones and detours. You may encounter unexpected weather, or even moments where you wonder, “Are we ever going to get there?”

            Life is much the same. It’s a journey full of joys and challenges, unexpected twists and turns. The season of Advent also mirrors this journey. Advent is a season of anticipation, preparation, and hope. We know where we’re headed. This week we will arrive at the manger in Bethlehem to celebrate the arrival of our Savior. But the journey through Advent also asks us to prepare our hearts, to navigate challenges, and trust in God’s guidance.

            This what Mary and Joseph had to as they headed to Bethlehem. This is what the Israelites had to as they were fleeing from Pharoah, then crossing the hot and dusty desert of Sinai for 40 years. On that particular journey, the Israelites headed toward a future of promise. They were guided by a bright pillar of cloud by day and a burning pillar of fire by night, which lit up the desert so that they could see where they were going.

            Today, where we have apps on our phones and GPS programs installed in our vehicles to direct us, the Israelites had to rely solely on God to show them the way. That was until they didn’t. The books of Exodus and Deuteronomy tell us that despite God’s presence, God’s physical presence, the Israelites often lost sight of God and were delayed by a number of different problems. Instead of a direct walk that may have taken them some 40 days, they journeyed for 40 years before they were allowed to reach the Promised Land.

            At one of their stops along the way, the pillar of cloud hovered over Mt. Sinai. It was in this luminous, this bright cloud, that “to thy tribes on Sinai’s height,” God, “in ancient times didst give the law, in cloud and majesty and awe” as the verse from O Come, O Come, Emmanuel says.

            After speaking to God on the mountain, Moses’ face was lit it up, it radiated the glory of God. It shined in such a way as to bring the fear of the Lord to all who may have seen him. Moses was asked by that people that when he was among them, that he would cover his face. This was so they wouldn’t be terrified of the light of God and so that they would not see the glory fading between Moses and God’s messages.

            Paul in his writing sees the journey of the Israelites in general as a forerunner and preview of the Christian life. Paul sees Moses’ radiant face as a shadow, a preview of what is to come for Christians. He writes in 2 Corinthians 3, “But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory” (3:16, 18).

            According to Paul, the intimacy, the one on one that was reserved for Moses is not available to each of us. We can turn to the Lord with unveiled faces and behold His glory. In doing so, we are transformed, we are more radiant. Paul goes on in 2 Corinthians 4, “For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ” (4:6).

            Christ Himself says in John’s Gospel, “I am the light of world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (8:12). Like the pillar of fire in the desert, Jesus is a light in the darkness, lighting up our path and making sure our steps are sure and safe. If we follow Him, He say that we will have the light of life.

            Jesus says to His followers in our Gospel reading, just after He calls them the salt of the earth, “You are the light of the world” (5:14a). How are they the light of the world? They have their eyes fixed upon the face of Jesus. With the focus so directed on Him, His followers shine with the blessedness of His beatitudes, much like Moses did on Mount Sinai. The disciples, receiving Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, become like Jerusalem, they become like a shining city on a hill.

            Think of it this way. If you are the light of the world, as Christ says His disciples, His followers are, it is because you reflect the glory of God that is shining in your hearts which comes from the face of Christ. With our eyes fixed on Jesus, we walk in His ways. As we walk in His ways, as we live our lives in His ways so that others “see {our} good deeds and praise {our} Father in heaven” (5:16b).

            As has been said over the last few weeks, this season of Advent is a time of anticipation, preparation, and hope. Because it falls at the beginning of the Christian year and at the end of the calendar year, it is also a time in which we take carefully look at our lives, reflect, and decide what it is we want the next year to look like.

            Here in the northern half of the world, it’s also a time when we begin to keenly feel the impact of the year’s darkest days. Last night we held our annual Service of the Longest Night as a means to provide comfort in the midst of the darkness of grief and to express the hope of Christmas to those who may not feel like celebrating.

            Ironically, the darkness of this season gives rise to one of the fondest Christmas memories of many childhoods … the looking at Christmas lights. For many, my family included, driving around and looking at Christmas lights from the backseat of their parents’ or grandparents’ car is a treasured memory. The haze of the holiday lights in winter incites nostalgia in many people as they remember Christmas seasons long ago. 

            Isaiah says in chapter 51, “Look to the rock from which you were hewn” (51:1). This looking back for the Israelites of Jesus’ day, it was not call to remember some fond, good feeling memory. It goes deeper than that. The lights of Christmas should serve to as a reminder to us. A reminder of Christ’s light that has come to disperse the darkness of sin by His birth. Christmas lights should remind us that just as they light up our homes and towns at night, we are to be the light of the world. One thing about being the light … nothing can extinguish it. The light will always win over the darkness. John says of Jesus, “In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not overcome it” (1:4-5). Even on the cross, in the darkness of death, even though the light of Jesus was extinguished, it was only temporary. Easter morning, the light of Jesus shone brighter than it ever had before when He stepped out of that tomb.

            At the beginning of this sermon, I talked about preparing for a journey … planning the route, navigating detours, and wondering if we’ll ever arrive. As we near Christmas, we realize that this journey, too, is one of preparation, trust, and anticipation.

The good news is, we don’t travel alone. The same God who guided the Israelites with a pillar of fire now lights our path with the face of Christ. His light not only guides us to Bethlehem but also through every step of our lives.

So as you travel, whether it’s to visit loved ones this Christmas or as you walk through the journey of life, remember that Jesus, the Light of the World, is your constant companion. His light shines in the darkness, and nothing can overcome it.

Rejoice, for our Emmanuel is coming soon to lead us safely home. Amen.

            The peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, the Light of the World, now and forever. Amen.