Hallelujah! The waiting is over, and the Messiah bursts through the darkness and into the light. “Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you” (Is. 60:1 NKJV). Love makes its presence known. We look back over the land of darkness and stand amazed at our growth. The One who brought us into the land flowing with milk and honey stood by our side during the darkest days of searching and hoping. Now the new day dawned, and our faith experiences renewal.
The prophet Isaiah instructs us to arise and shine, thus implying action. We are not to remain still and say, “Jesus came, cool!” The coming of the light moves us to stand and become part of the glory given to us. We must proclaim the good news of our God and not remain idle and let others do our work. Discipleship demands something from us. Our job is to act as the hands and feet of Christ. Our call to faithful living must begin with our willingness to answer God and respond to the needs of those who hurt in our community. How else can people climb out of the darkness without giving our brothers and sisters our hands? Our limbs are not our own, but an extension of Divine grace, freely given to our world.
On this Christmas Eve, let us respond to God’s deliverance by celebrating what our Creator did, and still does, for us. As people of the light, our call to action sets a captive world free. We reach into the darkness, holding out glimmers of light to a world that needs the hope found through our God. We come to the end of waiting and into the joy of our salvation. Merry Christmas, everyone!
