Christmas Eve/Christmas Day
Devotional
Water From the Well
Lectionary Devotional For Cycle A
Object:
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness -- on them light has shined.
-- Isaiah 9:2
The theme of God's light that splits the darkness is a constant in the Bible. Genesis tells us that "darkness covered the face of the deep," then God spoke a word and there was light (Genesis 1:2-3). The psalmist uses the same word as Isaiah in Psalm 23:3, "Even though I walk through the darkest valley." The gospel of John makes use of the same image when he speaks of the coming of the Word, "What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it" (John 1:3b-5). From the chaos of the beginning, to the chaos of national disaster in Isaiah, to the chaos of oppression by the Romans, right up to the present-day chaos in many people's lives, the hope has always been that God would and will speak a word that will split the darkness. For the Israelites this had national implications in their current plight. As a nation, their very existence was at risk. As was common in their faith, the memory of how God had saved them previously gave them courage to face their future. This time, Isaiah recalls the time when the Midianites threatened their existence, and Gideon became their liberator (Judges 6-8). The connection Isaiah made between international peace and the birth of a child (Isaiah 9:5-6) reminds us as we celebrate Christmas that the birth of Christ has far larger implications for our world than just heartwarming stories about a birth in a stable. If we are to associate the birth the prophet speaks of with the birth of Christ, then we need to also explore the implications of that birth of which the prophet speaks, "His authority shall grow continually, and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time onward and forevermore." In what way has the birth of Jesus and our recognition of him as the Christ caused us to work for peace in the world?
-- Isaiah 9:2
The theme of God's light that splits the darkness is a constant in the Bible. Genesis tells us that "darkness covered the face of the deep," then God spoke a word and there was light (Genesis 1:2-3). The psalmist uses the same word as Isaiah in Psalm 23:3, "Even though I walk through the darkest valley." The gospel of John makes use of the same image when he speaks of the coming of the Word, "What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it" (John 1:3b-5). From the chaos of the beginning, to the chaos of national disaster in Isaiah, to the chaos of oppression by the Romans, right up to the present-day chaos in many people's lives, the hope has always been that God would and will speak a word that will split the darkness. For the Israelites this had national implications in their current plight. As a nation, their very existence was at risk. As was common in their faith, the memory of how God had saved them previously gave them courage to face their future. This time, Isaiah recalls the time when the Midianites threatened their existence, and Gideon became their liberator (Judges 6-8). The connection Isaiah made between international peace and the birth of a child (Isaiah 9:5-6) reminds us as we celebrate Christmas that the birth of Christ has far larger implications for our world than just heartwarming stories about a birth in a stable. If we are to associate the birth the prophet speaks of with the birth of Christ, then we need to also explore the implications of that birth of which the prophet speaks, "His authority shall grow continually, and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time onward and forevermore." In what way has the birth of Jesus and our recognition of him as the Christ caused us to work for peace in the world?
