“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.” (Isaiah 9:2)
As we contemplate the violence and chaos that mark our world, we can tell that billions of people dwell in spiritual darkness. People hate each other. People hate themselves. They deny their own identity for they are uncomfortable being who they are. Many are choosing to change themselves in a radical way to alter who they are, to deny the very nature that God gave them at conception.
The Church has been formed and created to go into this darkness to bring the light of the truth. We speak the words of Isaiah to bring comfort to these billions dwelling in darkness, words of comfort which the prophet spoke thousands of years ago to the Jews facing years of exile in Babylon. He spoke of the hope that the Lord would bring them out of exile in His time. That light of hope is a sure and certain thing because God always fulfills His promises. Thus the people of God could look joyfully toward that day, even though the fulfillment would be years later. In the meantime, God’s people would endure many tribulations.
The full culmination of the glory of God will be at the coming of the ideal King who will rule with justice, mercy, and eternal peace. Thus He will be unlike any earthly King for Isaiah prophesied of the Lord God Himself, the Messiah, God Incarnate, Immanuel. Jesus is the perfect King who heals the suffering and pain of all, who grants eternal life. He dispels the darkness of evil that dominates our world. The light of salvation, the light of God’s glory has dawned on us now, but one day soon, it will blaze in magnificent glory over all mankind.
As we look forward with hope to the second coming of the King, we faithfully persevere through tribulations and persecution. We continue to trust God in the midst of violence and chaos even though what we see and experience tempts many to doubt Him and others to forsake Him. We hold steadfast the sure and certain promise of God’s reign even though we are in the midst of oppressive and violent darkness.