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The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light.
(Matthew 4:16a)
What
do you think it means to “sit in darkness?” Darkness is used metaphorically for
all kinds of social or emotional stuff. There’s the darkness of oppression and
marginalization. There’s the darkness of ignorance (that’s a big one!). There’s
also clinical depression, addiction, abuse, or just the plain loss of hope.
When
Isaiah referred to the land of Zebulan and Naphtali as a place of darkness[i], he wasn’t kidding.
Zebulan and Naphtali (named after two sons of Jacob, by the way) were regions
in the northeast of Israel that were the first to be conquered by the Assyrians
back around 700 BCE. The Assyrians weren’t known for their kindness and sunny
dispositions. They were actually pretty brutal to the folks whose butts they
kicked and land they’d taken over. They did unpleasant things like cutting the
arms off their captives, displaying the severed heads of opposing soldiers, and
impaling people on stakes[ii]. Nevertheless, Isaiah
prophesied the people who were the first to lose their land and their freedom, who
had their culture desecrated and lived under terror, would be the first to know
God’s liberating love.
Fast
forward to Jesus’ day when there were no more Assyrians, but the Roman Empire
was calling the shots in the real estate formerly known as Zebulan and
Naphtali. Rome controlled the territory under a puppet governor, King Herod
Antipas. Herod, it seems was a rather touchy fellow who, like so many despotic
autocrats, really got his boxers in a wedgie whenever anyone expressed any
criticism of him. John the Baptist called him out for blatant immorality, so
Herod—doing what all good despots like to do—silenced John by having him
arrested.
In
our gospel lesson for Epiphany 3, Year A (Matthew 4:12-23) Jesus has a pretty
drastic (if you ask me) reaction to the news of John’s arrest. He “withdrew” to
Galilee. Normally, if you withdraw, you’re moving backwards. It’s a
retreat. Withdrawing is running away from something or pulling back from
something you said or wanted to do which you came to realize isn’t a good thing
at all. But when Jesus withdraws in this story, he’s going back to his old
stomping grounds. He’s going back to Galilee, which is the area
controlled by the dude who has just arrested John.[iii] He’s not running from
the darkness. He’s going to light the place up. It’s as if he’s saying, “You
may have silenced my boy John, but now you’ll hear from me.”
The
first word from God in the Bible is “Let there be light.” When things get
really dark, God is always there to strike some kind of match. I’m seeing an
awful lot of light shining out of Minneapolis these days. When our government
sends an army of mostly ill-trained nincompoops to a large city for the purpose
of indiscriminately rounding up the immigrant population, some people are just
not willing to sit and let the darkness descend. Some folks may be intimidated
by an act of injustice, but some will push back against it.
I’ve
also seen an amazing light shining from some members of my congregation when
they’ve stared into the face of a terminal illness. I’ve seen them face the
coming enemy with courage, humor, and the joy in the Lord which has been a
comfort to those who have attended them in their last days. It seemed as if
their light was glowing brighter.
The
light of God is inspiration and hope. Maybe that’s what Peter and Andrew, James
and John saw in Jesus. Maybe they were tired of just existing in the status
quo. They experienced a man who had faith and hope and love for others, who
wasn’t running away from the darkness but was running toward it to chase it
away. He was going right to the place the prophet said he’d go. Maybe they
wanted to be part of this light, so they dropped their nets and went fishing
for people—people who would believe.
This
is what we are all called to be—bearers of the light. Perhaps you’re not up to protesting
unfair policies or facing a mortal illness. You may not be battling potential
bankruptcy or the imminent death or illness of a loved one. But there may be
someone in your life who looks to you and needs to know how you’ve navigated
the dark streets of your life. They need the light you have to offer.
In
our baptismal liturgy we light a candle and repeat the exhortation Jesus gives
to all who are washed into the family: “Let your light shine before others, so
that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.”[iv] Let’s let faith be our
light.
Keep shining. Thanks for coming.
[i] Our
First lesson for Epiphany 3, Year A Isaiah 9:1-4
[ii]
If you’re into grisly Assyrian atrocities, you can check out Erika Belibtreu’s
article her: https://faculty.uml.edu/ethan_spanier/Teaching/documents/CP6.0AssyrianTorture.pdf
[iii]
The word translated as “withdrew” in Greek is echoresen. It means to
leave or go away.
[iv]
Matthew 5:16b.
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