Rise and Shine

The Epiphany of Our Lord (January 6, 2008)

Rev. Steven D. Spencer – Pastor of Messiah Lutheran Church

Today is the 12th day of Christmas, the day set aside by the Church to celebrate the Epiphany of our Lord, a season emphasizing the Light of the world being revealed to the Gentiles as the Wise Men from the East bring their gifts to the Christ Child.

The text for today is the Old Testament Reading for today Isaiah 60:1-6. Please listen to God's Word once again remembering the theme: ... Rise and Shine!

Arise, shine; for your Light has come, and the Glory of the LORD has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the LORD will arise upon you, and His Glory will be seen upon you. And nations shall come to your Light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. Lift up your eyes round about, and see; they all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from far, and your daughters shall be carried in the arms. Then you shall see and be radiant, your heart shall thrill and rejoice; because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you, the wealth of the nations shall come to you. A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall proclaim the praise of the LORD.

So far the text!

The words rise and shine can bring different emotions dependent upon the situation. For those that have served in the military, you might recall hearing those words, at O’dark thirty in the morning, from some burly drill sergeant.  “Rise and shine you yard birds, inspection in 10, PT in 20.  Those aren’t exactly the words that inspire great joy at O’dark thirty in the morning. On the other hand, a different setting and occasion might bring great joy. If a mom or dad sneaks into a child's room at O’dark thirty on Christmas morning and says, Rise and shine; it's time for opening presents! Now that is received with much joy.  

God through the prophet Isaiah, God extends an invitation to the faithful to rise and shine. And the people of God want to hear these words, just like a waken child on Christmas morn. The words may appear to be a command, but they are not Law, but Gospel. The words are like the command of Jesus when He took the cup when He had supped and said, Take and eat, it’s pure grace without any of our doing. With the command to Arise and Shine comes the power of God to do so. The Church is directed to wake up from within a world of darkness due to sin and to receive the Light of the world and to bask in the Glory of God, with both the Light and the Glory being Incarnate Word of God - the Word made flesh and dwelling among us.

The words of our text are part of the prophecy directed to the Church - the Body of believers whose Head is Jesus. Since there are those believers, we are able to read this section of the Holy Scriptures and make some applications to our lives both as individual and a congregation.

In chapter 59 - the one just before our text - Isaiah describes the situation of mankind. Man's unholiness, his iniquity has separated him from God. There’s a wide, impassable chasm between God and man because of sin. Jesus shares the picture in the account of the rich man and Lazarus, when the rich man is in hell and tormented, he lifts his eyes and sees Abraham far off. He asks for a moment of relief and Abraham declares, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed. Now, that's a glimpse of where everyone is headed without the Lord's deliverance. Without the true God, people sit in darkness and have no idea of peace nor how to turn on the light, let alone rising and shining. Only those who have heard the Word of God's and believe in the Glory of the Lord will be delivered.

Near the end of chapter 59, Isaiah states that very same thing - that the Lord Himself will come to Zion as the Redeemer. While God is coming with His judgment against depraved, the faithful to His Promise will be a blessing for all, Gentile and Jew alike, everyone brought to and remaining faithful to the Lord God Almighty.

Chapter 60 gives a broader description of the gathering of God's people as the Glory of the Lord descends upon and in the midst of the Church. As a result of the Redeemer having come into the world - being born in the world as the Son of man to a virgin - the command given to the Church is to Arise, shine; for your Light has come.

Jesus is the true Light that enlightens every man, the One who was coming into the world. Isaiah declares, rise and shine; for your Light has come. Christians, rise and shine, for the Light of the world has come into the world. The truth here is to wake you up from the sleepiness of Bethlehem's darkness and this sinful world even the darkness surrounding the stable where the Light has come and the darkness has not been able to overcome it.

Events are taking place; events of a great importance. Isaiah continues: the Glory of the Lord is risen upon you. The Glory of the Lord is nothing less than the Christ who has risen upon you. As a result, you are given the power and privilege of rising and shining.

The 2nd verse in our texts tells the particular reason for us to be awake - for behold, darkness covers the earth, and dark clouds the nations. The darkness that covers the earth and the clouds which are over the nations represent the truth that many people do not have the Light of the world, Jesus, in their hearts. Those people who rely upon other gods are pictured as sitting in the darkness of this world. The description is of the nations and people who lack the Gospel and therefore sit in the darkness and shadow of sin, in the very shadow of the valley of eternal death.

To contrast to such darkness, Isaiah continues, but over you the Lord has arisen, and His Glory shines over you. The Light shining upon the Church is now reflected and shines into the very darkness of this world. Those who don’t sit in the Light of God only know of the condemnation of the Law. The natural knowledge of the Law, which the world only sees, doesn’t know anything of God's grace through the redemption worked of Jesus.

But not all those in darkness who are under the dark clouds are doomed need to remain in eternal darkness. The prophet writes that nations shall come to your Light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. The Church has received the long-waited promise. Reflecting the Light which is the Glory of the Lord, the Church shines like a lighthouse in the darkness of the world. The beams of Light are Christ Himself and the children of God reflect the Light of the world, Jesus Christ. Beams of hope in a world filled with hopelessness. 

Just as the Wise Men came from the east following the star promised in the Word of God, each man, woman, youth, child, and infant brought to faith by the gracious Word of God – each believer reflects the Light of the Church. Each Christian becomes a God’s light in a dark place. We are directed to look into the world and behold all the crowds being brought into the Church because of the proclamation of the Gospel to all nations. Lift up your eyes round about, and see; they all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from far, and your daughters shall be carried in the arms

The truth continues as the Church looks out into the world to see those who are being gathered. The Gospel of Christ, being proclaimed in the world, will bring many people into the Lord's Church. Consider what John wrote in the chapter 11 verses 49-52:

But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year said to them, "You know nothing at all; you do not understand that it is expedient for you that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation should not perish." He did not say this of his own accord, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus should die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad.

As the Church fulfills her mission of making disciples of all nations, there is a great joy within her ranks. Isaiah describes it as follows: Then you shall see and be radiant, your heart shall thrill and rejoice; because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you, the wealth of the nations shall come to you. There is great joy in heaven and in the congregation at the conversion of one person, at the baptism of each baby. For most of us, that conversion occurred at the time of baptism. Others, like the Wise Men and the thief on the cross heard the Promise of the written Word and God gave them an epiphany, and they became one of God's children.

The final verse in our text reads, A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall proclaim the praise of the LORD. We are immediately reminded of the Wise Men - who upon reading the Word, believed in the Lord, and responded in faith. The fruit of faith was so great that they traveled for many months putting up with the hardships of the journey to come and worship the Christ- the Child of Bethlehem. They responded with fruits of faith when they bowed before the Lord God Almighty and presented Jesus with their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

We certainly want to use the Wise Men as an example of the response that people have when the Lord calls them into His Church by His Word, such that they share with glad tidings and great joy their earthly wealth. We worship the Lord God and Him alone, receiving from Him the gifts of His forgiveness, His eternal life, and His salvation. Out of gratitude, all that we are and have belongs to Him, and we willingly return a portion to Him for use in His Church.

You the Body of Christ, reflect the Light that is shining on you. Each one of you is a reflection of the Light, your Savior. You are to be shining brightly in this world of darkness and gloom. Don't hide your Light under a bushel where no one is able to see it. Let your Light so shine!

That is the message of the Lord this epiphany. It is a message of not only how you are to live, but how you should die. Jesus announces to you this day, I AM the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in darkness, but will have the Light of Life (John 9:5). Jesus proclaims this to you at the beginning of this year, not knowing whether any one of us will be here to see next. For this is the will of My Father, that every one who sees the Son and believes in Him should have eternal Life, and I will raise him up at the last day (John 6:40).

Jesus said, No one can come to Me unless the Father Who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day (John 6:44). On that great and wonder-filled Day, the Lord will call us forth with the Words of His mouth; and they very well may be...... Rise and Shine!  In Jesus name, Amen and amen!

Now may the peace of God which surpasses all comprehension, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, Amen!