Sermon
Text: Matthew 4:12–25
Title: The Great
Light
I. We have been kept in darkness through
our sinning.
II. However – a Great Light has overcome the
darkness.
THE LIGHT OF JESUS
SHINES FORTH – SHINING THE LIGHT OF SALVATION INTO THE WORLD.
In
the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Grace,
mercy, and peace from God our Father, and from our LORD and Savior Jesus
Christ. Amen.
The
sermon text for this Sunday, is taken from the Gospel lesson…
Now when he heard
that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee. 13 And leaving Nazareth
he went and lived in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 so that what was
spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:
15 “The land of
Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, the way
of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— 16 the people dwelling
in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and
shadow of death, on them a light has dawned.”
17 From that time
Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
Dear
Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
I.
The
dark…what is it about darkness that frightens us? There are many reasons. We can’t see what is out there in the
darkness with us. We feel out of control. We feel alone. We feel afraid.
I
remember when I was young being afraid of the dark. My younger brother and I shared a room
upstairs at my Mom and Dad’s. Our room
was the only room on the second floor, that and the attic which had a door into
our room. Every other room was
downstairs to include the other people of the house, meaning Mom and Dad. Every night I can remember turning on the
hall light and going up the stairs to go to bed. We would run past the window in the landing
for fear of what might be looking in at us from the dark. And we’d jump into our beds leaving the hall
light on - our security in the darkness.
But
it isn’t limited to being a kid is it? I
remember going camping a few years ago.
We were tenting it and I had to go to the bathroom in the middle of the
night. I unzipped the tent, turned on my
flashlight and began walking toward the bathroom. Just as I set foot on the road a terrible
screech cut through the still night air, followed by another. The screams were flying down the length of
the road right toward me. The sounds
were unnerving. And I remember walking a
little faster toward the bathroom thinking the light from my flashlight seemed
very small and very insignificant.
I
am sure many of you have similar stories to tell of darkness in your
lives. And we all can tell stories of
the spiritual darkness in our lives as well can’t we? For we have all sinned and fall short of the
glory of the Father. And it is in this
perpetual blackness, this inky darkness that we find ourselves without
Christ.
But
before the Holy Spirit has entered our hearts, whether through the Word or
through Holy Baptism, before we know the Light of Christ, it’s hard to believe
– but we love the dark. What Adam and
Eve would have given to have the darkness of a cave around them to hide from
the LORD in the Garden of Eden.
We
too seek a darkness of hiding, a place where we can hide from the LORD. It is also a place where we feel at home in
our sin there in the dark. And as we
move about in this darkness we are ever seeking to go deeper and deeper into
the darkness of our sins. The shadow of
original sin is on our faces and the actual sins we commit each and everyday
drives us further and deeper into that darkness.
We
love it in the dark! We can do what we
want, when we want, how ever we want. We
can speak anyway we want to whomever we want.
We can trash our neighbors. We
can sleep with whomever we want, whenever we want. We can sleep in on Sundays. We can chose to not volunteer for projects or
offices at church. We can take a
vacation from church in the summer. We
can place money, possessions, things, and people before our LORD. We can break all of the commandments. We can do whatever we want. And in doing so we plunge ourselves ever
further into the darkness of our sin - truly into the darkness of the devil and
hell itself. Yes, we LOVE the dark…
II.
And
yet, even as we find ourselves in the darkness of eternal death, someone comes
to us in our despair. Jesus, the Great
Light of the world comes to us, and rescues us.
St.
Matthew writes…
The people dwelling
in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and
shadow of death, on them a light has dawned.
Repent, for the
kingdom of heaven is at hand.
And
through the power of the Holy Spirit we are able to – for the first time ever –
call Jesus LORD [1 Corinthians 12:3] and repent of our wicked ways and seek the
Light. We turn to the LORD, away from a
life of sinning and being a slave to sin, and we are bathed in the Light of the
LORD.
Through
the Light of Christ we are exposed and in this Great Light we see two
things. One – our wretchedness and utter
despair found in our sins. Two – the way
out of this wretchedness and despair and sin – the Cross of Christ. There crucified for us is our Savior - the Lamb of GOD – the Sacrifice to end all
sacrifices. Christ nailed to a Cross to
forgive us our sins.
So
in this Great Light we see our sin and our need for a Savior and how that
saving is accomplished for the entire world!
So how do we go about getting that forgiveness?
Right
here in this church is the answer to that question – and that question is asked
every week and answered every week. This forgiveness is distributed through the
Word and through Holy Baptism and through the very Body and Blood of our LORD
Jesus Christ – all for the forgiveness of our sins.
Through
these we are forgiven and now that Light of Jesus begins to shine through us so
that we may through our lives lived to Christ begin to point others to this
marvelous Light. We become the reflective Light of Christ. For Christ is the true Light. It’s like the Sun and the Moon. The Moon gives off now light of its own but
reflects the light of the Sun. We –
through our Baptized and reclaimed lives in Christ begin to reflect His Light
into the world.
Christ’s
Cross is very much like a lighthouse which shines its light out into the gloom
of storm and sea to guide ships safely home.
Jesus’ Cross is just that – a beacon of true Heavenly Light shining out
into the darkness of the world to guide us to our Heavenly home. We have been
called out of the darkness of the devil and brought into the Light of the
Triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit where we will remain forever and ever.
It
is good to be in the Light of the LORD where we see things like never before -
that is we see our Savior Jesus Christ the salvation He brings through His
healing death on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins. Amen.
The
Peace of the LORD – which surpasses all understanding – will guard your hearts
and minds in Christ Jesus the Light of the world. Amen.
+ Soli Deo Gloria +
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