In the beginning, at the start of everything, the earth was formless and dark. There was nothing but deep, deep blackness. Nothing could be seen, and there were no eyes to see it. Then, God said, ‘Let there be light!’ And there was light, and it was good. And so the universe sparked forth, and the world was changed forever, as that first light of creation burst forth in dazzling splendour.
Time passed. Darkness and light danced together, as the world turned and spun. People were born, and as they grew they knew within themselves both the darkness and light, in their corruption, and their love.
Empires rose and empires fell. Nations learned new things, and then were forgotten into dust. Kindness and hatred intermingled in human souls, and often we kept our hearts hidden away, prefering to look after ourselves rather than others. We forgot what God wanted, that he had asked us just to love.
So God said to Godself, ‘they need some more light’. And God found a young girl who was bold in faith and courage, and she consented to be the bearer of God on earth. Her spirit aflame with love for her God, she rejoiced and magnified the Creator, the bringer of justice and peace, counting herself blessed among all people. So into the world God sent his own Son, the holder of light itself. The glory of heaven spilled over into our sky, as angels sang and the Christmas star shone. And then, in the ordinary humdrum of another baby born, the people who walked in darkness saw a great light dawn. And that light was a light of revelation and change. It was so bright and so wide that the darkness could not overcome it.
Now this baby grew up, with God’s light in his heart. His cousin, John the Baptist, knew this light for himself, and prepared the way for the coming of God here on earth. John was like the glow of sunrise telling us that the full sun of a new day is on the horizon. So he testified to the arrival of this baby, now grown to a man, with God’s light burning bright in his heart. John told us, ‘watch out, change your ways, leave the darkness behind. Let your souls be a place where God’s light can reside’.
For when we let go of ourselves, and love others instead, we allow God’s light to fill us. This is what John taught his followers.
And some of us listened. Hearts and minds cracked open, and the light grew slightly greater.
Then Jesus came, doing incredible things: blind eyes were opened, deaf ears heard first sounds, the crippled ran, and the dead rose; his light was unstoppable, a blaze which drew people towards God. Jesus showed us what it is like to put yourself last, and perhaps for the first time, through his brightness we saw that to Love God, and Love your Neighbour, encompasses all that there is. And Jesus proclaimed into the dust of our tucked-away souls: ‘I am the light of the world. Through me you see God.’
And some of us saw. Sparks began to flash, as we encountered the light of God among us.
Jesus taught us so that the light would grow - ‘Let your light shine before others’. Because having seen his light, we now each have the choice to shine bright, to draw people towards God with our own actions and words.
For there will always be people around us who are struggling, whose lives are in darkness and pain. But it is in our power to be a light in that darkness. It is our gift to be windows, of all colours and sizes, all glowing with the glory of the divine one we point towards.
So we shine! Brought forth into the light of God, we join our selves to that glory, like innumerable small candles illuminating hope in the darkness of a world so often turned away from the divine call to love.
‘How?’ you might ask. ‘How do I shine when I am simply just me?’ But there are so many ways to find the light within us. We can give, be there for each other, offer our gifts, build up and encourage, uphold and honour, seek out and delight in the holy sparks of each other’s souls. We can be brave enough to not put ourselves first. We can ask someone the question, ‘Did you know you are loved?’
In all these ways, we cause the shadows to fade, a triumphant echo of the glory brought by the birth of a baby at Christmas. A baby who contained in each wondrous fist the power of the creator of the stars and galaxies and the earth and us.
God’s beloved, we are joined with the three who are one: the creator, the son, and the wind of God’s voice, joining hands to raise the universe into existence speaking words so simple yet profound: let there be light.
Let there be light - let us be light. We are people of light, if we choose it.
For light loves to shine. It longs to break out, to illuminate every soul, to banish shadows of cruelty, to warm the faces of the broken and touch the grieving with love.
Light is infectious - bouncing from one to the other, joining us in purpose as we take this gift to all those dwelling in darkness of all kinds. If we set our faces towards God, then love-light is what they see, beams of God glinting through our hands and voices.
Let there be light. Let us be light. We are bearers of the word of God which is light itself among us.
So our challenge is the question: do you let your light shine? If someone looked at your life, would they see anything of God? Does the glimmer radiate out, a glow haloing our journey through the world?
For to Love God, and Love our Neighbour - this is all that there is in the world to be done, and if it was done by everyone, earth would be transformed into heaven, and would shine with God’s marvellous light blazing out through each of us.
Now it is not Christmas yet. We still wait in the dark. We are still on the Advent journey, holding our breath in anticipation, looking ahead for the light we know is coming. The light that will change everything. The brightness of God’s love poured out, from Father, to Son, and through the Spirit to us. We pause again with joyful hearts on the brink of revelation, knowing that soon, so soon, in the ordinariness of another baby born, the pure love of God in all its brilliance dawned.
So beloved, as we travel through Advent together, take your light, take your small starry spark of the divine. And go forth to blaze it out, to carry God into the world, to tell the news, to sing the song, to proclaim the words of life! It is our calling, our joy, our gift, to shine with this brightness even in the darkest place. For light always wins, and we carry the flame of Christ’s light in our hearts. So let your light shine!
Amen.
(Advent 3: Matthew 11.2-11)
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