When I was little, one of my favorite Christmas songs to
sing was “Do You Hear What I Hear?”
Granted, I missed a few words in my exuberance, and it is a running joke
in the family that when you hear this song, you have to sing it the way I once
did: “..Hear wha I hear….Hear wha I hear!” (And this must be done as loudly as possible J).
I still love that song – even if Tim Hawkins did point out
that the mighty king might have wanted to bring something other than silver and
gold to a shivering child (like a blanket? :)).
But how about these words:
A child, a child,
sleeping in the night
He will bring us
goodness and light
He will bring us
goodness and light
Let’s take a step farther.
Jesus didn’t just bring goodness and light.
He claimed to be the Light.
Isaiah 9:2 was a prophecy concerning the coming of the
Messiah:
“The people walking in
darkness have seen a great light;
on those living in the shadow of death a light
has dawned.
In Matthew 4:12-17, we are told that Jesus fulfilled this
passage. He was the light that came into
the world. In John 8:12, he said, “I am the light of the world.
Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light
of life.”
So, when Jesus compared Himself to Light…how does that show
us more about Him?
“Light” in Greek, Hebrew, & English:
φῶς Phōs
(noun): light; source of light; radiance
אוֹר Owr (noun): light; illumination
or (concrete) luminary (in every sense, including lighting, happiness, etc.)
Light (noun)
- Something that makes things visible or affords illumination
- Electromagnetic radiation to which the organs of sight react, ranging in wavelength from about 400 to 700 nm and propagated at a speed of 186,282 mi./sec, considered variously as a wave, corpuscular, or quantum phenomenon
- An illuminating agent or source, as the sun, a lamp, or a beacon
- Radiance or illumination from a particular source
- Daybreak or dawn
- A device for or means of igniting, as a spark, flame, or match
- Spiritual illumination or awareness; enlightenment
I really like the English definition #2 (maybe because I
teach science :)). But light is somewhat
inexplicable. It is considered a wave, a
particle of matter, and a quantity of radiant energy all at once. Hmmm.
A God too great for us to understand comparing Himself to an
object to complex for us to fully grasp?
Coincidence? I think
not. :)
When I think of the word “light”, what comes to mind are
these adjectives:
pure (there are no
blemishes in light), revealing
(light makes things visible), comforting
(light chases away darkness – where things that are hidden can make us fear), powerful & consistent (it’s hard to stop light once it shines), hopeful (it gives vision), and beautiful (in the darkness…especially
around Christmas – what’s more beautiful than light?).
I think all of those describe Jesus, too. :)
Now, just to bring in context…when Jesus stated that He was
light in John 8, it was a pretty big claim.
Not only is light pure, beautiful, comforting, revealing, powerful,
hopeful, and consistent…it is clear throughout the Bible that God is light.
- Psalm 27:1 “The Lord is my light and my salvation…”
- Psalm 76:4 “You are resplendent with light…”
- Psalm 104:2 “He wraps Himself in light like a garment…”
- I John 1:5 “…God is light, in him there is no darkness at all…”
When we look to Jesus, we see that He can turn our darkness
into light (2 Samuel 22:29, 2 Corinthians 4:6).
He has called us out of darkness into His wonderful light (I Peter 2:9).
And someday, the promise is that there will be NO MORE
NIGHT. (Revelation 22:5)
So, in summary – the connection between Jesus and Light is
great one.
Like light, Jesus is pure, with no faults.
Like light, Jesus makes thing visible.
Like light, Jesus brings comfort, hope and joy.
Like light, Jesus illuminates who God is.
Like light, Jesus is can’t be fully understood, yet He reveals
more than we knew before about God.
A child, a child, sleeping in the night
He WILL bring us goodness and Light.
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