A Light to the Nations

A Light to the Nations Isaiah 49:1-7 Let’s start today by singing a children’s song. You all know This Little Light of Mine. So here we go: This little light of mine, I’m going to let it shine. This little light of mine, I’m going to let it shine. Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine. Hide it under a bushel, No, I’m going to let it shine… Shine all over North Orwell… Shine all over Rome, PA… So, how is your light doing? How bright is it shining? How many people’s lives have been enlightened with the light of Christ? Do you consider yourself a sort of lighthouse to others? A lighthouse shines its light out into in the darkness, and we can help the light of Christ reach the ends of the Earth, or at least the ends of our road. Ronny Hinson wrote and sings a song entitled The Lighthouse that was recorded by the Oak Ridge Boys, the Gaithers, and others that goes in part: And I thank God for the Lighthouse, I owe my life to Him. Jesus is the Lighthouse and from the rocks of sin, He has shown the light around me, so that I might clearly see. If it wasn’t for the Lighthouse, where would this ship be? There’s something romantic about a lighthouse. When Carol and I visit our friends in Maine, we always go to the Marshall Point Lighthouse nearby which happens to be the one Tom Hanks ran to in his movie Forrest Gump. Lighthouses are picturesque, standing tall against the elements, offering a beacon of hope in the darkest night to a lone ship seeking safe harbor. A lighthouse is a symbol of hope against all odds. Even in the hour of one’s most desperate need, a light on a distant shore signals safety and salvation. Did you know that perhaps the most famous beacon of hope and promise of new life — The Statue of Liberty — is not remembered as a lighthouse at all. For the first few years of its existence, the Statue was officially a lighthouse operating under the authority of the Lighthouse Board. According to one source, “The lighted torch in Lady Liberty’s right hand had, and still has, great symbolic significance, but at its beginning, it was also used as a navigational aid for ships entering New York Harbor. … Liberty’s torch, 305 feet above sea level, contained nine electric arc lamps that could be seen twenty-four miles out to sea,” and it was the tallest 2 lighthouse in the United States when it was built. We are lighthouses to others who need help and direction and comfort and guidance and salvation. We can be beacons of hope and promise of new life as well along life’s pathways. We also need each other are from time to time as our light might dim and need a recharge. Did you ever notice that you won’t find many lighthouses 100 miles away from water, or on soft and comfortable terrain surrounded by deep, calm water where a lighthouse clearly is not needed? Rather, lighthouses are usually located in high-risk danger zones like rocky headlands or unstable beaches where every wave threatens to undermine the foundation. For that reason, a lighthouse is always a message to a ship’s captain that the vessel is entering treacherous water. The sole purpose of a lighthouse is to be an aid to navigation. Sailors need to “see the light” to avoid danger. If one is able to safety navigate past or through the dangers revealed by the lighthouse, it can mean the preservation of life and property. We can apply this metaphor in three ways: 1. From our Scripture - that Israel is to be as a light to the nations. 2. To Jesus, who described Himself as the Light of the World. 3. To us, who follow Jesus and are charged with the responsibility to keep our lamps lit, and to shine for Christ’s sake. In our verses today, we see Israel identified as the “servant.” But Israel is described here in “before” and “after” shots. There’s the former downtrodden and disobedient Israel, and there is a renewed, rejuvenated Israel who will be “a light to the nations.” Isaiah is excited, saying on behave of the Lord, “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the survivors of Israel; I will give you as a light to the nations, that My salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” In other words, not only will a renewed Israel lead the lame and limping people of God to a place of restoration, but Israel will also be a light to all nations, thereby securing their salvation! It’s an enormous boast, but the prophet totally believes it. The exaltation of downtrodden Israel is for the purpose of drawing all the nations of the world, not just Israel, to the Lord. However, the prophet writes, Israel’s elevation from “one deeply despised, abhorred by the nations, the slave of rulers” to its new place as “light to the nations” as the work of “the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.” 3 This salvation that comes to the entire world is fulfilled by another servant, whom Isaiah will describe as the Suffering Servant, whom we know as Jesus. The Child whose birth we have just celebrated said of Himself, ‘I am the Light of the World. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life’ (John 8:12). Yet, to say that Jesus is the Light of the World is a mere cliché unless Jesus is our light and salvation first. Unless we have seen the light, it doesn’t really matter whether the saving power of Jesus extends to us or not. We can’t benefit from something we don’t care to know. We say Jesus is the Light of the World. We know that lighthouses keep watch 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. It’s a reminder that Jesus, as our lighthouse, is not just the Light of the World, but is casting His watchful and guiding light over us as we journey through life. We, too, are the Light, capital L. Christians need to be His light. Jesus made this absolutely clear in His Sermon on the Mount: “You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hidden. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lamp stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:14-16). That’s why we began today with singing This Little Light of Mine. So, how can we be beacons of hope for those seeking a safe place in the storms of life? Many things come to mind. Oh, we can help them with material goods and services. The Hippocratic Oath says, “First, do no harm.” In other words, be helpful, not hurtful. The better answer for Christians is: Imitate Christ in all interactions with others. Be positive and add light, not confusion, to situations. Be truthful. Be kind and patient. Point others to the Light. Walk alongside the injured and hurting. Bear burdens when necessary. Just be Jesus to others; that really covers it. Some lighthouses have been retired and no longer serve as an official “aid to navigation.” Yet they still stand as a solitary reminder that we may be the only light that someone might see, the only book that someone might read, the only artwork someone might admire. It’s a sad thing when our light goes out, while we are still here. So let’s keep the light of Christ shining, in our church, in our community, in ourselves and in the lives of others with whom we live and move and have our being.