The Light Shines For All
Commentary
Everyone wants to be in on the secret, and once we know a secret, we want to be the only ones who know. However, the light of Christ, revealed in the infant Jesus, is proclaimed for all. We saw at Christmas that shepherds, on the margin of society, are the first to whom the good news of Jesus Christ is proclaimed. We learn that Augustus Kaiser might have been emperor, but it is Jesus who reigns.
Now in these three texts the universal nature of this gift is reemphasized. The logos hymn in the first chapter of John assures us that this Word was there in the beginning, and though that Jesus is revealed for all the world not all are ready to recognize him yet, but Jesus is how we see God.
Jeremiah assures a nation on the brink of captivity that they will return, and the return will include those on the margins of society, the throwaways who might be neglected because of their vulnerability — the blind, the lame, the pregnant, those giving birth.
And the apostle tells the Ephesians that this is bigger than we imagine. God’s plan of adoption and inclusion in the inheritance of Jesus Christ is for all. We are all going to be a part of this. This is mind-blowingly wonderful! The light of the world shines for all!
Jeremiah 31:7-14
This passage is part of the Haftarah for Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year). A Haftarah is the equivalent of a lectionary passage that goes with that week’s Torah readings for the Jewish New Year. Never mind for now that Rosh Hashanah takes place in the fall and our new year comes in the winter. What matters is the sense of renewal and fresh start that comes with the new year. Though the prophet Jeremiah has been warning of a national calamity that is on the way, in this passage there is the promise that God’s love for us will ensure that regardless of our sins which have led to loss and alienation, all will be well. The nation will return and our losses will be restored because God is compassionate. This is a message of hope and redemption.
This restoration is not just for the strong, the survivors, the favored few. Among those the prophet describes among those the Lord will restore from the northland are included the blind, lame, pregnant women and those in actual labor. Now these are the ones who might have been excluded because their inclusion will slow the return. Valuable resources would have to be used for these individuals who cannot care for themselves. We are not the people of God without everyone.
What is our guarantee that this will work and will be worth it? There’s a phrase that’s repeated throughout this chapter and heads this particular section — “Thus said the Lord!” We’re all a part of God’s plan. And if we’re part of God’s plan for restoration, we’re all a part of God’s church right now.
Ephesians 1:3-14
In this letter to the Ephesians, the apostle is at pains to emphasize that we’re not talking about a little god who offers a limited grace to a small group of people. This is the cosmic Christ. Jesus, who died a shameful death on the cross, reserved for slaves and the dregs of society, is the means by which the one universal God intends to gather up all — including real life slaves, the abandoned, the hopeless, the helpless. All of the boundaries we impose on what constitutes humanity, the church, or “our” people are inadequate to God’s vision for gathering up all things in Christ. God is the one who defines us. God is the one who chose us and found us. Rather than get mired in questions of election or predestination, we should recognize just how breathtakingly vast God’s plan is for the adoption of everyone into the inheritance of Jesus Christ. This. Is. Big.
Rather than use this language to decide some are in and some are out before the game is even played, these predestined blessings are meant to inspire us to a greater sense of gratitude, a more profound praise. Everyone else was drawing tighter boundaries but now in Christ this secret in plain sight is revealed.
John 1:(1-9) 10-18
Genesis provides us with a picture of an orderly creation for the universe. Ours is not a cosmos teetering on the edge of chaotic dissolution at any moment. Though it is far from a safe universe (cf. black holes, meteor airbursts, and yet another boy band), it is a secure universe.
This first chapter of John is based on this idea. From the get-go, Jesus is a part of this orderly creative process. He is essential to the nature of the cosmos. “Let there be light!” God says in Genesis. Moreover, Jesus is the light that shines for all people. This light, John tells us, shines in the darkness and the darkness is incapable of extinguishing it. Some won’t recognize the light, but those who do get it are children of God. Typically, we think of light as blinding, but this divine light becomes human and dwelt among us, and now we see God clearly. It is a light to which we all have access, and if we don’t get it, it’s our own fault for not seeing.
Now in these three texts the universal nature of this gift is reemphasized. The logos hymn in the first chapter of John assures us that this Word was there in the beginning, and though that Jesus is revealed for all the world not all are ready to recognize him yet, but Jesus is how we see God.
Jeremiah assures a nation on the brink of captivity that they will return, and the return will include those on the margins of society, the throwaways who might be neglected because of their vulnerability — the blind, the lame, the pregnant, those giving birth.
And the apostle tells the Ephesians that this is bigger than we imagine. God’s plan of adoption and inclusion in the inheritance of Jesus Christ is for all. We are all going to be a part of this. This is mind-blowingly wonderful! The light of the world shines for all!
Jeremiah 31:7-14
This passage is part of the Haftarah for Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year). A Haftarah is the equivalent of a lectionary passage that goes with that week’s Torah readings for the Jewish New Year. Never mind for now that Rosh Hashanah takes place in the fall and our new year comes in the winter. What matters is the sense of renewal and fresh start that comes with the new year. Though the prophet Jeremiah has been warning of a national calamity that is on the way, in this passage there is the promise that God’s love for us will ensure that regardless of our sins which have led to loss and alienation, all will be well. The nation will return and our losses will be restored because God is compassionate. This is a message of hope and redemption.
This restoration is not just for the strong, the survivors, the favored few. Among those the prophet describes among those the Lord will restore from the northland are included the blind, lame, pregnant women and those in actual labor. Now these are the ones who might have been excluded because their inclusion will slow the return. Valuable resources would have to be used for these individuals who cannot care for themselves. We are not the people of God without everyone.
What is our guarantee that this will work and will be worth it? There’s a phrase that’s repeated throughout this chapter and heads this particular section — “Thus said the Lord!” We’re all a part of God’s plan. And if we’re part of God’s plan for restoration, we’re all a part of God’s church right now.
Ephesians 1:3-14
In this letter to the Ephesians, the apostle is at pains to emphasize that we’re not talking about a little god who offers a limited grace to a small group of people. This is the cosmic Christ. Jesus, who died a shameful death on the cross, reserved for slaves and the dregs of society, is the means by which the one universal God intends to gather up all — including real life slaves, the abandoned, the hopeless, the helpless. All of the boundaries we impose on what constitutes humanity, the church, or “our” people are inadequate to God’s vision for gathering up all things in Christ. God is the one who defines us. God is the one who chose us and found us. Rather than get mired in questions of election or predestination, we should recognize just how breathtakingly vast God’s plan is for the adoption of everyone into the inheritance of Jesus Christ. This. Is. Big.
Rather than use this language to decide some are in and some are out before the game is even played, these predestined blessings are meant to inspire us to a greater sense of gratitude, a more profound praise. Everyone else was drawing tighter boundaries but now in Christ this secret in plain sight is revealed.
John 1:(1-9) 10-18
Genesis provides us with a picture of an orderly creation for the universe. Ours is not a cosmos teetering on the edge of chaotic dissolution at any moment. Though it is far from a safe universe (cf. black holes, meteor airbursts, and yet another boy band), it is a secure universe.
This first chapter of John is based on this idea. From the get-go, Jesus is a part of this orderly creative process. He is essential to the nature of the cosmos. “Let there be light!” God says in Genesis. Moreover, Jesus is the light that shines for all people. This light, John tells us, shines in the darkness and the darkness is incapable of extinguishing it. Some won’t recognize the light, but those who do get it are children of God. Typically, we think of light as blinding, but this divine light becomes human and dwelt among us, and now we see God clearly. It is a light to which we all have access, and if we don’t get it, it’s our own fault for not seeing.
