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Central Lutheran Church - Elk River
Central Lutheran Church - Elk River
To Tend the Light with Pastor Ryan Braley
What if the light that guides us is more than just a metaphor? Join us for a transformative exploration of the sacred essence of light throughout spiritual history and its profound role in human consciousness. We promise you'll walk away with a deeper understanding of how ancient rituals, like those of the Israelites, used light as a bridge to the divine. We unravel the intricate relationship between our earthly existence and heavenly aspirations through the construction of the tabernacle and the significance of the menorah, shedding light on the priest's role in maintaining this sacred flame.
Explore with us as we illuminate the teachings of Jesus from the Gospel of Matthew, urging us to embody the light within and transform the world through our actions. Gain insights into how ancient scriptures and traditions viewed light and darkness, with enlightening ties to science through the Greek term "phos" and its link to photons. Our discussion shines a light on the power of awareness and consciousness, drawing connections from Genesis to modern interpretations of light as a divine revelation.
Lastly, we confront the shadows we often hide behind, inspired by Ephesians 5 and Elizabeth Gilbert's empowering ideas on embracing our imperfections. Discover how stepping into the light can bring healing and courage, allowing us to overcome fear and shame. As chosen children of light, we are called upon to illuminate the darkness with acts of grace and love, drawing on the Apostle Paul's stirring invitation to let the Messiah's light shine upon us. This episode isn’t just about reflection—it’s a call to action to light up the world.
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God, we give you thanks for your presence here and thank you for the presence of our neighbor, the one next to us, whether we know them or not. God, we just give you thanks for their presence here this morning. And we do ask, god, that you would come and by your Holy Spirit, would you, yeah, illuminate us and bring your light. God, we ask that this morning you would transform our hearts and our minds and that we could live as children of the light. And so we take a minute just to acknowledge your grace and your mercy, which is new every morning here to us. This morning. May we receive it and may we remind ourselves of it and remind each other of it. You bless us this morning in Jesus' name. Amen, amen, you can be seated. In the early parts of the Bible, god gives the people of Israel instructions for how to build this tabernacle. Now, a tabernacle was this mobile tent in which the people would go and they would worship God. It was this sacred space, and God gave them very specific instructions for how to build it, what things would go in it and how the people were to operate within this tabernacle, which later becomes a temple of brick and mortar. But early on, God comes to Moses in the early part of the scriptures in the book of Numbers, and God says this to Moses. He says speak to Aaron. Aaron, by the way, was Moses' brother. Aaron becomes the beginning of the priesthood, he's the first priest in the Israelite religion and ritual system. He says, hey, speak to Aaron and say when you cause the lights on the menorah to ascend Now here's the deal the priest would light these candles inside the tabernacle. The tabernacle, as well as the temple, always had lights in them, lights that were up front and the priest's job was to light them. So now, this is not uncommon.
Speaker 1:In all of the ancient world, in the religious rituals and myths, there was always light in these sacred spaces. So now, this is not uncommon. In all of the ancient world and their religious rituals and myths, there was always light in these sacred spaces. So, the places where the people would meet with God, the priest would light a candle, something very common in all these ancient rituals and myths. In fact, today, what makes a Jewish synagogue a Jewish synagogue is three things. Number one is a chest or a closet in which would house the Holy Scriptures, the Torah, the Word of God. Number two was a window that would allow the light in. So there's that light again. And number three was this everlasting light that was lit and kept lit forever. It was called the Nertamid, and the Nertamid was this everlasting light that symbolizes the presence of the divine.
Speaker 1:Now, the priest's job in the ancient world, and even in some ways today as well, was to tend the light, to maintain this connection between the heavens and the earth. In the tabernacle was this incredible, like this opening between the heavenly realms and the earthly realms. And so in the tabernacle, in this actual, tangible, literal space, was a place where heaven and earth overlapped, and in the Jewish story it was like the only place that this happened, where, like, the veil was sort of opened up just a little bit. And in this tabernacle, this sacred, holy place where folks would meet with the divine and meet with God, and this place where these lights were kept lit, the everlasting light was always lit and tended by the priests. The priest's job was to maintain this connection between the heavens and the earth, between the divine, the transcendent, the ethereal and the material world. That was their job to maintain this connection, this light, which was a symbol of the divine presence of God himself. This is the source of all awareness in the Jewish story, and their job, the priest's job, was to maintain and to tend this light, to keep this bridge between the heavenly and the earthly. So in Exodus he says this God tells him you shall command the Israelites to bring you clear oil of crushed olives to be used for the light, so that you may keep the lamps burning always. This connection between heaven and earth, between the divine and the material, was always to be maintained, and it was the priest's job to do so. They of course didn't have electricity, so they had to use these oil lamps and they would light these lamps and they would have the Israelites bring clear oil crushed from these olives and other places and they would use these to maintain the fuel for these lamps.
Speaker 1:Now, the Jews were a very grounded people. The Israelites, they sort of, are grounded in this time and place. So all their rituals, their stories, are very much, they very much incorporate real things in real life, like dirt and oil and salt and light and dark and the moon and the sun and rain and rivers. They always talk about these very earthly kinds of things, and so it's no wonder they use things like light and flame to symbolize the presence of God. Of course we know the Egyptians, the Babylonians also did this, but the Israelites all they did was very much grounded in this time and place, here on this earth, not somewhere else, but right here in the midst of all this soil and grass and trees, and rivers and lakes and these kinds of things. And so the job of the priest was to maintain the light, the symbolic presence of God, this connection between heaven and earth.
Speaker 1:Now, many, many, many, many years later, jesus shows up and one of his apostles his name is Peter. Perhaps you've heard of Peter. Peter writes this about the role of the priest. Peter says this you yourselves. Now he's talking to a group of Christians, people who are following in the ways of Jesus. He says this you yourselves are like living stones Again, very grounded. Can you hear this earthiness kind of language in Peter's writing? This is what Jews would always sound like. They were talking about this world and they would use all kinds of things from the real world.
Speaker 1:You're like living stones and you're being built up as a spiritual house, to be a royal priesthood. That means this if you are a follower of Jesus here in this room today, that you somehow, in some ways, both mystical and actual you are a royal priesthood. That means you are a priest. That probably means that your job also, in some way, is to maintain and tend the light. Your job as the people of God, as followers of Jesus, is to maintain, to tend the light, to maintain this connection between heaven and earth, the visible expression, the symbol of the divine presence of God, the awareness itself of God, and this overlap between the divine and the material. That's your job now.
Speaker 1:Jesus says it this way. He takes it even a step further. Jesus says this in the Gospel of Matthew hey, you are the light of the world. Whoa, did you catch the transition there? Now, no longer are you to tend the light Perhaps it's also that as well, but not just to tend the light over there, but somehow you are the light you are. He says. Let your light so shine before others they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. So you are a royal priesthood, you are the light of the world. He also goes on to say hey, don't put your light under a bowl. Why would you do that? No one can see it. Instead, elevate your light onto a, like on a hill and become like a city whose lights can be seen from miles away and light up the world. You're the light of the world. Let your light so shine before others and may see your good works and glorify your father in heaven.
Speaker 1:The technical term here is whoa. Now what is light? What is light? Well, light is substance, which means light has something to it, some substance, some thingness to light. Light can be measured, so it's got some thisness. Some thingness to light. Light can be measured, so it's got some thisness, some thingness to it. It's got some substance, some chutzpah, as you might say. This light does. It also has energy, by the way.
Speaker 1:Light is made of these tiny little particles called photons. The Greek word for light is in fact this word phos. Everyone say phos, now phos is. Everyone say phos, now phos is this word. We get photons, or photograph, these kinds of words, and a photon. By the way, I just want to warn you, photons are terrible friends, because they're so two-faced. I mean, you go to a party and they're like one way. You go to work, they're a different way. One at the party they're like oh, I'm a wave, and at home or at work, oh no, I'm a particle. Thank you, thank you, that's a slow burn, that joke. These photons are so disingenuous. But yeah, they've got energy to them. Light, these photons. They've got substance.
Speaker 1:Light comes from a source. It comes from a thing. It is a thing. It also has colors in it. Light has colors to it. It also conveys information. Light is telling you stuff. When light bounces off of objects, it's what makes you see it. It lets your brain have information about the world. This is what light is. It's got some substance to it. Darkness is not that way.
Speaker 1:Did you know this about darkness? The word for darkness in the Greek is the word skotos. Everyone say skotos. Beautifully done.
Speaker 1:Now skotos has no substance.
Speaker 1:It's got no energy. It's got nothing to it. It's got no source. We have flashlights. We don't have dark lights. Did you know this? We don't have dark lights. It's got no color to it. It's got no. It conveys no information. In fact, it's only just empty nothingness. We think, oh, darkness is the opposite of light. It's not true. Darkness is simply the absence of light. In fact, jesus says don't put your light under a bowl. Why? Because that would make it dark. Why I'm not shining a dark light on there, I'm just covering the light. Let your light so shine before others that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. Darkness is simply emptiness, nothingness, an absence of substance and energy and photons and colors and information. It's just empty nothingness.
Speaker 1:Now, peter and Paul both of these writers were Jewish men and they were raised in the Jewish tradition. They would have known the scriptures, what we call the Torah, the teachings, the instructions of God, the holy scriptures. Now, one of the things we do in modern days to interpret ancient scriptures is we go back to like a theme or a word or an idea or even a person, say, hey, when was this thing first mentioned? And it helps us understand how to interpret it now. So when Paul writes about light and darkness, I have no doubt in my mind he's probably pointing back in the Jewish scriptures to the first time it's ever mentioned.
Speaker 1:Are you ready for a quiz? Where is the first time in the Bible that light and darkness are ever first mentioned? There you go, genesis 1. Look at you guys. Give yourselves a round of applause. Nice job. It was kind of a meek and mild round of applause. I'm proud of you guys, okay.
Speaker 1:So in Genesis 1, it says this is how the Bible opens Now. The earth was formless and empty. The Hebrew word here is tohu vavohu, which gives me chills just to say that word. I love that Tohu vavohu. It's wild and waste. Emptiness, formlessness. It's wild and waste. Emptiness, formlessness. It's void. It's nothing. No colors, no information, no substance. It's just nothing. Darkness was over the source of the deep. There's this waters and darkness. It's all there is. It's perpetual night. This is how the story begins, the story of God. Our story begins in darkness, emptiness, nothingness, wild and waste.
Speaker 1:Imagine, if you would, if things stayed that way Perpetual night, darkness. There was no light ever to speak of. What would our lives be like now? Well, just so you know, I googled this because I'm not a scientist. Okay, what happens if there's no light? I'm going to show you my Google search. You want to see it? Thank you. Here's what I found. Okay, here we go. I Googled what would life be like with no light? By the way, if you can see the Google, you can tell it was on election day that I did.
Speaker 1:Possible Life without light. In the bottom left-hand corner says would be impossible. Oh so, just so you know, without light there can be no life. So somehow life and light are hand and glove, the same kind of things one against the other as we know it, as most life on earth, ai tells me, relies on the sun's energy for photosynthesis. Of course photosynthesis, we know, is when plants do photosynthesis, and so meaning plants couldn't grow, of course not photosynthesis. And without plants, animals would have no food source. Essentially, the planet would be lifeless. In the bottom right you have a bit of a glimpse of no sun, no life on earth.
Speaker 1:So in the Genesis narrative there's this darkness, perpetual night over the whole thing. Whatever there is, it's darkness, it's chaos, it's uncreation. There's no life, life cannot flourish here. There's no way for life to even exist within this darkness. It's perpetual night. By the way, the ancients knew this. This is how the Egyptian, the Babylonian and the Israelite myth all begin in utter, complete darkness. There's no life. It's non-creation, uncreation, if you will. And then God says let there be light. And there was light. One more, and there was light. What is God doing? He's making a way for life. He's creating light, energy, substance, information, photons, the capacity for photosynthesis and life itself. He's organizing order, he's taking the tohu vavohu, he separates the waters and makes a way for life. This is our story.
Speaker 1:Now, I had to figure it out. How does light, or how does light, rather, how does light give life? I'm like I have to know the scientific reason behind this to give the parishioners, you know, the idea that I know what I'm talking about and that I'm smart and also I didn't know. So here's my Google search for hey, how does light bring life? Okay, so, as you can see, my search says how many Chipotle burritos? Wait a minute, that's the wrong one, sarah. Go on, sarah, thank you. Thank you, turns out you can get a lot of Chipotle burritos in one day. It's totally fine. I've tried it and it is great. Okay, somehow that search got in there, by the way. Okay, how does light give life? Photosynthesis, vision, temperature, there's all kinds of ways that light gives life.
Speaker 1:So when God creates light and says let there be light, he's making a way for life. By the way, what kind of light is this? We know that the Genesis story, the sun, which is our source of light, and of course then life doesn't get created until day four. What's this then? On day one, god says let there be light. What is he talking about? What light is this? Well, the ancient rabbis had a field day with this. They loved talking about what was this light that existed before the sun, and they thought it was this. They thought that on this day God creates awakeness, awareness, consciousness itself, that somehow God allows for this whole thing to have a conscious mind, to be aware and awake and alive and alert in a different way than sort of non-life. So it's this divine revelation. Of course, the light in the tabernacle symbolizes the presence of God, the source of all awareness, and here, on day one, we see the source pouring forth into the cosmos, this potential for human consciousness and otherwise, and God says let there be light and awakens the cosmos in this unique and wonderful way. It's no wonder too, by the way, that for centuries, for as long as I can remember, I guess, whenever there is a person in a story or a cartoon or a movie and they have an idea, how do we symbolize it? Yeah, oh, why? Yeah, it's this awakeness, this awareness, this consciousness. The psalmist writes it like this.
Speaker 1:I love this verse in Psalm 27. David writes the Lord is my light and my salvation. By the way, you were given a small card with light on one side and dark on the other side. That's for you. Take notes on there.
Speaker 1:Anything that jumps out at you about light or darkness, write it down. It could be the spirit talking to you or any conclusions you make on your own. Write that stuff down, take it home and it's for you to reflect on this whole week or talk about in your journey groups, your house churches. If you aren't in a journey group or a house church, come and see me or my friend Peter. We'll get you into one. You should be in one. They're awesome. But chew on this all week long. But write down whatever comes to you or anything that sounds quasi-interesting.
Speaker 1:Photosynthesis is spelled P-H-O. Just kidding. The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? David goes on to say the Lord is the stronghold of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid? How about this one?
Speaker 1:I love this verse. Here Jesus says I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness. How could they? We'll have the light of life. Jesus says how about this one?
Speaker 1:From psalm 36, I believe, for with you is the fountain of life. Here's the psalmist connecting light and life. Again, how, how profound were these ancient writers to make this connection? For he says in your light we see light. You're the source of light and life and all these things. In your light we see light. How about this one from 2 Corinthians?
Speaker 1:David Paul writes this to the church in Corinth what fellowship can light have with darkness? How can these things ever coexist? They can't. Darkness is not a thing, it's an absence of a thing, it's the absence of light. The minute you shine light into the darkness, guess what? The darkness, it goes away. They can't coexist. So how can fellowship, or how can there be fellowship between darkness and light? It's impossible, they can't do it.
Speaker 1:It's stunning how light and darkness are real things we talk about. Here's light, for example, and look around the room, there's pockets of darkness in the back, over here and underneath the piano and elsewhere. They're real, actual things we can talk about, like photons and energy and waves and particles, and yet at the same time, they're profound symbols for something deeper in terms of our own lives and the life of the cosmos and awareness and consciousness itself. And there's this darkness and then there's darkness, there's light, and then there's also this idea of light, profound, that these ancient writers sort of stumbled upon this. It's no wonder they use language like this. Even today, we still use this language as symbols. I mean, just ask my good friend you know he was Obi-Wan's apprentice. He says you have no idea the power of the dark side. No Star Wars fans in here. Okay, I'll keep moving on. It's all over pop culture, this idea of light and darkness, being in the light and being in the darkness, and it's in our lives as well.
Speaker 1:When I was younger, me and my friends we used to always go to these dance clubs in downtown Denver and we'd be there late at night. And you'd go into this one dance club. It was called Rock Island and it was always like really dark in there. And we loved that for all the obvious reasons, because then around one o'clock in the morning or whatever time I forget, they would turn all the lights on and, boy, I'll tell you what. You would look around whoa, okay, okay. And you would see things you couldn't see in the darkness, or people's faces, and you'd see like a pile of vomit over there. Like I did not see that, I think I was dancing over there a moment ago. Over here you'd see like a spilled you know whole tray of drinks is on the ground. You were walking through that there's some bodily fluids over here. I don't know what that even is. And no one cleans in these dark nightclubs. Why would they need to? It's dark. So when those lights come on all of a sudden you're like, oh my gosh, this place is filthy. You know what I'm talking about.
Speaker 1:I had a buddy who would do ministry in Mardi Gras during Mardi Gras down, and then the next morning was unbelievable, because you can imagine the night before, like you know, on Fat Tuesday, the people out there just partying, reveling, having a great time it seems so, and it's pretty dark down there. And then the next morning, when the sun comes up, and oh my goodness, imagine all the things you could see that next morning People passed out all over the place, more vomit, stains and piles, all kinds of garbage everywhere. It's wild the things you can see when the lights come on right. How about when kids are younger?
Speaker 1:They're always so afraid of the dark? Why? Because in the darkness you can't see much, there's no information. So you can begin to imagine and make up and construct all kinds of things that aren't really there. So they see something and it's a monster, and they see a shadow and they know it's a monster, some kind of evil being, and then you turn the lights on and what is it? Oh, it's a coat, or it's a coat, or it's a sweater, oh gosh. But in the darkness they're terrified because you can't see. In the darkness, are you with me? And the mind can play tricks on you? In the darkness, you can't see what's going on.
Speaker 1:It's easy to hide stuff. Speaking of hiding stuff, many of us have sin or we wrestle sin or we have this bizarre relationship with sin that we often keep in the darkness. Most of us don't sort of promote our sins in front of the light, in front of all of our friends. We don't do that usually. Sometimes people do that. We call those actors Just kidding, I'm just kidding, but we don't do that.
Speaker 1:We hide our sin. We hide our sins. We try to shove it away and keep it in the darkness. We don't want me to see our sins, and I think part of those things. Oh if, if somehow I were to bring this thing out into the light, I would like explode or something like if folks knew my deep, dark sin, the one I kept in the darkness, if they knew it and I brought it to the light, I would like drop over dead. Or God himself would show up and strike me with a lightning bolt you know what I mean or the devil would appear out of nowhere and squash me like a bug or something like that. We're so afraid of it because it's easy to be afraid in the darkness and the monsters lurk in the darkness, even the ones that aren't really there, and so we keep that sin just shoved away. I wonder what would happen if we took that sin and maybe with, like a close, close friend or a loved one or a pastor or some kind of a priest or a random stranger. Maybe we just said hey, hey, hey. I wonder what really happened. My guess is you wouldn't drop dead. My guess is that God wouldn't show up with a lightning bolt and you wouldn't explode. Maybe somehow, like Paul says in Ephesians, the darkness would become light. See, also there's this Many of us love the darkness because it hides stuff.
Speaker 1:If your house is dirty, one way to fix it's to turn all the lights down really low. You know I'm saying great, it's ignorance is bliss. If I don't talk about it or think about it, it's fine if the house is dirty. That's why at nightclubs they turn all the lights down. Nobody goes to a bar with the lights all up on full blast. It's easier to hide things in the darkness, including your dirty house. But here's the problem with that. You might like it dark, because then it hides the mess, but you can't see the mess, so you can't ever clean it up. You ever try to clean a house at night with the lights off. You can't do it. I'm just telling you yeah, in order to clean the house, you have to have the lights come up and come on.
Speaker 1:Paul says the way that folks behave in the darkness is not all the same as they might behave in the light. It's different and some people like the darkness. So here's what he says Ephesians 5,. He says this hey, for you were once darkness, but now you're light in the Lord. You were darkness. We've said this a number of times here in Ephesians. You were darkness.
Speaker 1:He also says you were dead. You were non-creation. You were chaos. You were full of shame and riddled with guilt. You hid. There was no light in you at all. It was darkness. You were full of shame. You were afraid because of the darkness. You were non-creation. You somehow were tohu vavohu. You were unenlightened. There's no light there.
Speaker 1:Paul uses these three adjectives. He says you were immoral, you were impure and you were greedy. Yeah, that's behavior in the darkness, that's what you were. You were all of these things. But then he says this Put it back up there for me, sarah. Hey, you're all of these things. But then he says let's go, put it back up there for me, sarah.
Speaker 1:Hey, but now you're light. You're no longer darkness, you're light. He says earlier you were dead, but you've been made alive in christ. So you were dead, you were dark. Now you're alive, so you're light, you're children of the light. He says so you? So you're awake, you're enlightened, you're alive. You're a new creation. You're brought out of hiding. Your shame, your guilt has all been taken away and done away with. If you were to hold all your sins in the light here, it just might heal you, because you're light, and where there's light, there can be no darkness in there. So you're brought out of hiding. You're a new creation. No darkness in there. So you're brought out of hiding. You're a new creation. You've been ordered. This tohu vavohu in you and in your life has been organized into this place for a life that's flourishing with life and light, awakeness, consciousness at a whole new level.
Speaker 1:And so Paul says, hey, live as children of the light. By the way, he's not just giving you a whole bunch more morals. Hey guys, stop being idiots, come on now, act, you know, get your act together, pull your, you know, get yourself, put a nice suit and tie on, be better. He's not doing that. He's reminding you, as we've already told you, what you already are Ephesians 5, and you can look up later. Trust me, though, 5.1 opens you are dearly loved, children of God. So he reminds you of your true identity you are children of God, dearly loved. It says oh my gosh, you guys, if you grasp how much God loves you today, even like one iota or like 1% of how much God loves you, not because of what you've done, or how impressive you are, or your bank account, or your skills or your accomplishments, not because of any of that, but because you're his child, unconditionally, man, that would change your life. It would change how you interact with each other, with yourself and with God himself. It would change everything. And so God says, hey. Paul says you are children of light. Live in your true identity. Yeah, this is who you truly are.
Speaker 1:See are two kinds of ways to live and exist in the world. You can live in darkness and hide and in shame and afraid and terrified. Or you can live in the light and shine that light in all the dark places of your life and live under there and watch what happens. You can live as children of the light and beloved ones of God, not because of your behavior that you're now good enough and now you get the award. No, no, no, no. We start with your identity, your beloved children. Now you can live like that, live as you belong, come in and eat, sit down, enjoy the company, stay for a while. You can live as light or as dark. You can live as children of God or as orphans. And here's the truth.
Speaker 1:The problem is not on God's side. It isn't like God's up there changing his mind back and forth. The problem's on our side. Here's what John says. Actually, jesus says this. Oh, john says it. Rather, john opens in him. This is Jesus was life, and that life was the light of all humankind. Life was the light of all humankind. Which humankind? All of them. The problem's not on God's side. The problem's always on our side.
Speaker 1:Many of us prefer the darkness for all kinds of strange reasons, but in him was light. There's a light of all mankind and the light shines in the darkness. The light of all mankind and the light shines in the darkness. And guess what? The darkness cannot overcome it. How could it? Darkness is nothing, it's nothingness. You shine some light on there, boom, it becomes light. This is how light and darkness works.
Speaker 1:And this story, the story of God, begins in Genesis 1 with light and darkness, and guess what? It ends in Revelation 22, with light and darkness. Here's what the Revelation of John says. Now, this is a revelation. It's an apocalypse, it's a peeking behind the curtain of how things really are. So Revelation's like how are things really functioning and operating? What's the truth about reality itself?
Speaker 1:And in the end of time, when God establishes his kingdom on earth once and for all, here's what it will be like. It says no longer will there be any curse. The curse is done away with. It's been conquered, destroyed. The throne of God and the lamb will be in the city. So it's a new city, a new creation, a new world, a new heavens, a new earth, a new temple, a brand new thing. And his servants will serve him. They will see his face and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night, no more fear, no more darkness, no more night. They will not need any light of a lamp. You won't need it anymore. You won't need the light of the sun at all, because the Lord God will give them light and they will reign with him forever and ever and ever and ever and ever and ever. Amen.
Speaker 1:In what ways are you living in darkness today? What things are you hiding? What shame lurks deep beneath the surface that nobody knows about, that you're trying to keep even hidden from God? What's down there? In what ways are you behaving as though you're an orphan and not beloved by the creator of the whole cosmos? In what ways have your lights been turned off and not beloved by the creator of the whole cosmos? In what ways have your lights been turned off and you're living as though this is true about you Dysfunctional, off the path, behaving like a knucklehead? In what ways are you living in the darkness?
Speaker 1:Paul would say to you live as children of the light, as beloved children. The great Brandon Manning says this. I love this line. He says I'm convinced that on judgment day, the Lord Jesus is going to ask a question, one question of us each, and only one question. Here's the question Did you believe that I loved you? Did you believe it that I loved you? Did you believe it that I desired you, that I waited for you day after day after day? God would say to you I long to hear the sound of your voice, not because you behaved properly, because many times you didn't, because I'm your father, I love you. And Brandon says that many people will say to him yes, lord, I did. I believed it and I tried to shape my life around it and live as though it were true. As many others will say, no, I don't think I believe that God. I mean, I heard a lot of good sermons about it. I even gave a few of them myself, but I didn't really believe it.
Speaker 1:It's an invitation to live as children of the light. And here's how I'll close. Because you need it, because life can't flourish in the darkness. It's impossible. There's nothing in the darkness. You can't flourish out there. But also the world needs it. You guys, the world needs light. And listen to me, this is great. There's a whole altar area full of light. Great, good. But who cares if it never makes its way out here. I'm not saying you guys are the worldly darkness Great, I'm glad it's up there. Good, and look at us. We all gather here every Sunday morning. Good for us. And we receive light and we talk about light, and good for us. We sing about it and awesome, great.
Speaker 1:Your job is to be the light where there's darkness, which means you have to be in the darkness and go shed light in the darkness, because wherever there's light, it becomes light. The great writer elizabeth gilbert says it this way no matter who you are, where you are or how mundane or tough your situation may be or seem, you can illuminate your world. If you're living as a child of the light, go, and you can't help but shine the light. Maybe Maybe you know folks like this. In fact, this is the only way the world will ever be illuminated One bright act of grace at a time. So go and shine your light.
Speaker 1:Central Lutheran Church. May you know that you are dearly loved children of God, not because of what you've done, but because God has chosen you. The scriptures say God chose you, you didn't choose him. God chose you. You didn't choose him. God chose you Not. Great. Good, the shepherd came to find you and drag you back. Good, may you hear this call of Paul to live in the light and shine light in the darkness, and may you hear this final benediction from Paul. He ended the scripture this way, in section 5. Rise, o sleeper. Arise from the dead, you ones, and the Messiah will shine his light on you. Amen.
