Facing the Darkness

We continue our Advent theme of looking at how prominently justice figures in the prophecies about the coming Messiah. As we unpack the big Isaiah 9 prophecy (you know, the one about the Messiah being called “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace”), we can easily sidestep the more uncomfortable aspects of economic and ethnic oppression that created the setting in which longing for the Messiah was the one thing that gave the people hope.

As Abbey Nishimoto pointed out in the message yesterday, it’s hard to truly appreciate the Light of the World until we appreciate the depth of darkness that we’re in. That’s why this epic prophecy of the Messiah starts with these words:

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

As you ponder those words, take time to let these words that Abbey read to us today guide your thoughts and prayers today. What’s God speaking to you about when it comes to truly facing the darkness of our current times?

We do the Light a disservice when we underestimate the darkness. Jesus entered a world plagued not only by the darkness of individual pain and sin, but also by the darkness of systemic oppression. Jesus’ people, the Hebrews, were a subjugated people living as exiles in their own land; among other things, they were silenced, targets of police brutality, and exploitatively taxed. They were a people so beaten down by society that only a remnant – most notably Anna and Simeon– continued to believe that the Messianic prophecies would one day come to pass. For many, the darkness of long-standing oppression had extinguished any hope for liberation. - Christina Cleveland