Seventh Sunday after Epiphany
February 19, 2006
Scripture Readings: Isaiah 11:1-9; 1 Corinthians 1:4-18
Hymns: 462; 464; 134; 24

Grace to you and Peace, from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
The word of God taken for our meditation this morning comes from Luke 11:29-36:

And while the crowds were thickly gathered together, He began to say, "This is an evil generation. It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet. For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation. The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here. The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here. No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light. The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness. Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness. If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light."

Theme: Jesus is the Light of the World
- Rejected by the Blindness of Unbelief
- Displayed by the Brightness of Faith

In the Name of our Savior, Jesus Christ, who said “I am the light of the world.” Dear Fellow Redeemed,

Stars are an amazing creation of God. They are huge balls of many burning gasses, which produce a great amount of heat and light. The star that we are most familiar with is of course the sun. The sun is a star which gives us the light that we need to function here on earth. The sun is the main light source for us here on earth. But light is something that we often take for granted. Today we can have light at the flip of a switch or the push of a button. In fact, we even have motion sensors which, when they sense movement turn on automatically, so that we don’t even have to go through the dark to get to the switch. We live in a time where there are lights on the street corners, and in parking lots, lights inside and outside our homes and cars. Because of all this, the concept of darkness is probably not as real to us as it was to the people of Jesus’ day. Even in Jesus’ own time He felt it was necessary to repeat this contrast of light and darkness over and over again. It is the unbelief of some that caused Jesus to bring it up again on this occasion. Jesus says that He is the Light of the World, and that this Light is Rejected by the Blindness of Unbelief but is Displayed by the Brightness of Faith. Lord Sanctify us by Your Truth, Your Word is Truth!

The events which lead up to these words are not recorded in our text but are helpful in understanding why Jesus says what follows. In the verses leading up to our text we find that Jesus had cast a demon out of a man (v.14). But some of the people said that Jesus received this power to cast out demons from the ruler of the demons, and not from God (v.15). After Jesus refutes this argument as being completely ridiculous, others came forward and demanded that Jesus show them a sign to prove that He was from God. Jesus had proven who He was. Time and time again the evidence was presented to the people who gathered to hear His words and see His miracles. They had just seen it once again in the healing of a man who had a demon. But they rejected Jesus as the Light of the world through their unbelief. They wanted more. They didn’t just ask if Jesus would give them a sign, they demanded that Jesus prove that He was from God with a sign from heaven. How does Jesus respond to this demand? He points to their unbelief and says, “This is an evil generation. It seeks a sign.” Jesus would not give in to their demand for a sign. He even says that they are evil for wanting a sign, and that they don’t need a sign. They have all the evidence that they need, right there before them. Jesus says, “For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation.” Jesus Himself was a sign for the people of His day. Jesus was the Light of the World, He was all they needed to see and hear to believe.

But the Pharisees wanted to see something that would force them to believe in Jesus. Jesus tells them, “no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.” What is the sign of Jonah that Jesus speaks of? Matthew tells us more specifically, “For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” The sign that Jesus referred to was that of His resurrection from the dead on the third day. His resurrection would be the ultimate sign to the people - it was the most striking proof that could be made. The resurrection of Jesus was the sign to the world that the work of redemption for all people had been carried out successfully. The Scribes and Pharisees got their sign, but when they heard the message from the guards stationed in front of the tomb, they invented lies to try and cover it up!

So now we know why Jesus didn’t give them a sign right then and there. Because faith in Jesus is not something that is produced by what we see. In the Book of Hebrews the Holy Spirit defines faith quite differently, “faith is... the evidence of things not seen.” Instead, we are able to see because of our faith! If Jesus would have called down fire from heaven like Elijah did, they still would not have believed that He was from God, or that He was God. No matter what kind of power Jesus would have demonstrated, they would simply attribute it to the Devil, as they had done in the past. A sign would change nothing because they had hardened their hearts, and had rejected the light of the world through their unbelief. Jesus had done many signs and wonders during His ministry, and they even had the ultimate proof of His sinless life, and they only rebelled more.

Do you remember what Jesus said in the story of the Rich man and poor Lazarus? When they had both died, and the rich man realized the horrible torments of hell, he asked Abraham to “‘send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ But he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’” Today some people are still out asking for signs. They say, “If God will prove to me that He is real and that His record found in the Bible is true by some sign, then I will believe.” Critics of Christianity say things like, “If archeologists ever find the ark that Noah survived the flood in, then I will believe.” But any such sign or even a reasonable argument from history will not convince anyone - only the working of the Holy Spirit through the Word of God can convince a person that Jesus is who He said He was.

The majority of the Jews of Jesus’ day had rejected Jesus as the Light of the World, and they would be judged for their unbelief. He presented two examples: “The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here. The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.”

These two sentences should have been a slap in the face to the Pharisees and other unbelieving Jews listening that day. They boasted about being the descendants of Abraham, yet Jesus says that they are far from being what these Gentiles were. The Queen of Sheba traveled a great distance to hear the wisdom of a mere man, and right here before them they had the wisdom of God almighty, and they would not believe. The people of the wicked city of Nineveh believed and repented at the preaching of Jonah, but the Jews of Jesus’ day would not believe or repent, even though someone greater than Jonah was before them.

This should also serve as a warning to us today. Over time we too can become complacent. We have God's Word at our fingertips, and so we can become less eager to hear and read the Word. This isn’t the way it should be. We need to continue in our study of the Word, continue to have a deep desire to learn more and to grow in faith.

But Jesus doesn't stop with his condemnation of the unbelief of the Pharisees and others. He reminds them once again that He is the Light of the world, and this message would not be hidden. “No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light.” We don’t go into the basement, turn on the light and then leave the light on when we leave. It's a waste to have a light on when no one is using it. Jesus is there shedding His light on all who would believe. He is the Light that was sent into the world to lead us out of our spiritual darkness.

But sometimes we obscure the light of our Savior by the way that we live our lives. What we do as Christians reflects on our Savior. Instead of obscuring that light, we should be acting as a light ourselves, because not only did Jesus say that He was the light of the world, but He also told those who believed in Him, “You are the light of the world,” and “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:14,16). The function of a Christian is to be a light in this dark world, even as Jesus was a light. Jesus’ light continues to be displayed by those who believe in Him through the brightness of their faith. Some would not see the light Jesus was constantly displaying through His words and actions, but others would not only see, but also reflect that same light in their own lives.

This is what Jesus points to in the parable of the lighted lamp. He says the problem is not that the lamp is not burning bright enough, but that their eyes of faith are bad. “The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.” The eye is the light of the body. If we can’t see, we are in total darkness. If we can’t see very well, then there is something wrong with our eyes. Those who don’t see Jesus as the Light of the World remain in darkness, just like the scribes and Pharisees. For those who believe in Jesus, they will display in their lives the same light that Jesus displayed.

So Jesus warns, “Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness. If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light.” Again Jesus warns against unbelief - the same unbelief that had blinded many of the Jews of His day. He says that if your eye of faith is good, then you will see the Light Jesus produces. For us today we see that light through the Word of God. But not only will we see that light, but we will also give off that same light.

When I began I mentioned how the sun produces light for us on earth. That is what Jesus is for us. He is our light. If the sun were to stop producing heat and light, we would die a cold death in darkness. If Jesus had not come into the world as our light we would have died eternally in the confines of hell. As Christians, we are like the moon. When there is a full moon, you can walk at night without the aid of streetlights or a flashlight. But the moon doesn’t produce its own light, it reflects light from the sun to us here on earth. Jesus is the one and only source of light for all people. Without Him we are in spiritual darkness and will die eternally, but with Him we will have a glorious light and will live eternally in heaven. Jesus came into the world to be our light. He lived, died and rose again to become our life. He is our light, He is our life and He is our salvation. Amen.

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amen.

Pastor Nathanael Mayhew