What do you do when the power goes out?
That is what I asked my class the other day. We were talking about severe weather, like tornadoes and thunderstorms, and how sometimes the electricity to a neighborhood or even a city could go out for a few days. Hopefully you have a plan already in place. But whether you do or not I imagine one of the first things you will think about in the event of power leaving is getting some kind of light source. Once when power left us for almost 5 days we turned to the garden for help. We remembered having solar lights in the yard, the kind of that you could just stick in the ground. We gathered them all up at dusk and brought them into the house and used them as makeshift lanterns inside.
Of course, before people used electric lights in their homes the thing to do was simply go to sleep when the sun went down and wake up when it rose. That practice plus candles had to suffice. Whether we realize it or not, we plan our lives around light. It gives us the power to function the way we want to. It also keeps us safe. That is why stores keep lights on at night even when they are closed. Imagine what would happen if businesses didn’t have light at night. We have street lights in our neighborhoods for similar reasons. Light often means safety.
But that’s not the only thing light can mean. If you search for the term in the bible you will notice several uses of the word, and many times the reference is not a literal one. Light can mean “truth,” or “good.” And it must be pretty important. According to the bible light was the first thing God ever created.
The New Testament is full of light references. As an example read the well-known story below and see for yourself what it has to do with light:
Matthew 2:1-12
2 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”
3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:
6
“‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for out of you will come a ruler
who will shepherd my people Israel.’”
7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”
9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.
Bible dictionaries will tell you that these “magi” were most likely from the Persia region and were very much like the Jews. They saw light as the best symbol of God. The symbolism here is rich. Light was how they found Jesus. They literally “came to the light.”
Jesus calls his followers to do the same thing. You see this a lot in John’s gospel.
John 1:37-39
37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?”
They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”
39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.”
This isn’t the only time in the gospel that the reader sees that phrase: “come and see.” And if you add to that Jesus telling us that he is the very light of the world you can’t help but understand the message. Jesus is the light, and if you follow him, you will truly be able to see.
John 8:12
12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
The wise men came to Jesus by following his light. The implication is that we should do the same. Living in the light is a metaphor for following Jesus. The bible also often draws comparisons to sin and darkness. So the act of living in the light is an act that follows Jesus, and in so doing allows people to turn away from the darkness of sin.
The magi came and saw Jesus. Let us do the same this Christmas season.
God Bless