A light has dawned

It’s early Christmas morning, and with the prettily decorated tree shining softly beside me, I’ve been reading the words of the prophet Isaiah.

There is a lot of darkness in these early chapters, much as there is in our world today.

At the end of chapter 8, he says the people were distressed and hungry and they just got madder and madder about it. Enraged is the word in the translation I read today.

So, in their misery and anger they began to look up—and to curse their leader (the king) and to curse their God.

Next, the people turned their eyes and looked around them here on earth. What they saw was bleak. They “see only distress and darkness, and fearful gloom.” The chapter ends by saying they will be thrust into utter darkness.

When we focus on this world, we can become overwhelmed by the darkness and the despair. Oh, but there is hope if we turn the page and look up with expectant hearts!

Isaiah 9:2 says, “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of darkness, a light has dawned.”

This is the promise of Christmas! Hope was born. Light has dawned. The Almighty God humbled himself to come as a tiny baby whose birth we celebrate today. And He came to drive back the darkness, not just for a moment, but for eternity, as He won the victory over sin and death.

And He invites us to share in His victory! Freely. Completely without any merit on our side. When we trust in Jesus with willing hearts, He takes our brokenness and our messy lives and gives us the greatest gifts: love, peace, joy, salvation, victory, and eternal life with Him!

Hallelujah! What a Savior!

This Christmas and every day, allow Him to be the light in the darkness of your world. And praise God for that light!

Merriest of Christmases to you, friends, and the rich blessings of Jesus Christ, the Light of the World.