Day 25 "The Beautiful Son-Rise"

One of the fondest memories that I have with my mom is waking up before sunrise and heading up to the beach along the ocean at Jupiter, FL. Equipped with everything we needed to make breakfast, we would make our way to one of the picnic tables that had an outside grill and a front row seat to the ocean. Food never tastes as good as when it is cooked outside- especially breakfast! Something about a piece of bread, buttered on both sides, lightly grilled so as to give it a texture of slight crunchiness, and then culminating with a layer of Welches Grape Jelly. The smell of eggs and bacon cooking. The taste of freshly squeezed orange juice. We would eat to contentment. And then wait for the show to begin.

There is something magical and majestic about watching the darkness beginning to scale back its influence and grip upon the land as light begins to edge its way into existence at a point along the horizon. As each moment passed, light continued to spread itself outward and upward across the sky forcing the darkness to draw back in retreat. Slowly at first, the colors begin to herald the imminent coming of the sun. Like a painter's tapestry, no two sunrises ever the same, colorful pastel colors begin to be paint the morning sky, slowly spreading and expanding outward along the horizon, and then upwards to embrace the clouds above. "The sun is coming!" nature cries out. The birds seemed more animated. The waves more noticeable. The sounds of waves breaking upon the beach growing in its cadence. "The sun is almost here!" I asserted. And then, there it was! Nothing but a speck at first- like the light of a lighthouse emanating from a distant seashore sending forth its guiding beacon of light. As each moment passed, the intensity of the light grew. Slowly, a ball of fire begins to emerge and rise out of the water unscathed from its journey beneath the ocean. Finally, one last moment where it seems like the sun like hot wax is melting downward into the water below, the water struggling to hang on, unwilling to voluntarily relinquish its hold on its glorious treasure. Then suddenly, it's over. The tether connecting the two has been severed and the sun begins its accent heaven bound. The new day has started. Oh, what a glorious first act to the new day!

As I think back to that memory of the sun and the beauty of that sunrise, my mind begins to think of another Son, the one and only Son of God, Jesus Christ. There are many similarities between the two. There is much we can glean from the caparison of the two.

The sun came forth out of darkness. So did the Son. The bible describes man's condition as bleak, in a dark place spiritually- separated from the heavenly Father due to our sinful nature.

"Who then can be saved?" Jesus looked at them (his disciples) and said, "With man this

is impossible, but with God all things are possible." Matthew 19:25-26

"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our

Lord." Romans 6:23

"the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.” Matthew 4:16

"But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the

light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" Matthew 6:23

"for you (John the Baptist) will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, to

give his people knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of sins, because of his

tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven to

shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into

the path of peace." Luke 1:76-79

"This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead

of light because their deeds were evil." John 3:19

The sun brought light. The Son was the light.

"When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “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

"In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind." John 1:4

"The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." John 1:5

"The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. John 1:9

"Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that

their deeds will be exposed. John 3:20

"But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly

that what they have done has been done in the sight of God." John 3:21

"While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” John 9:5

"Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk

while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. Whoever walks in the dark

does not know where they are going." John 12:35

"Believe in the light while you have the light, so that you may become children of

light.” When he had finished speaking, Jesus left and hid himself from them."

John 12:36

"I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay

in darkness." John 12:46

"The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of

darkness and put on the armor of light." Romans 13:12

"Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart." 1 Corinthians 4:5

"The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the

light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God."

2 Corinthians 4:4

"For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our

hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ." 2 Corinthians 4:6

The sun brought light into the darkness and made it day. The Son was the light to guide our lives out of the darkness. Can you imagine the darkness, then, that the disciples must have experienced when Jesus died on the cross? Think of their mindset. They had come to believe that Jesus was the prophecised Messiah who had come to set up a new kingdom on Earth, to free them from the oppression at the hand of the Romans. And, in their mindset, the disciple visualized that they would be a part of the inner circle in this new kingdom. Imagine the thoughts now going through their head now that Jesus was dead? Not only was Jesus dead, the plan gone awry, but now the Romans were coming after them, too, to take their very lives! Peter who that he would never deny Jesus found himself denying Jesus three time- the last time, it is argued, that Peter was so adamant in his declaration that he didn't know Jesus that a few expletives (%$@#!) were probably used for emphasis and believability. Their light was gone, fear engulfed their peace and joy. Lost in darkness, they had no light to show the way--thankfully, lasting only for a few days.

Can you imagine the joy and hope that must have flooded the disciples hearts when receiving news that Jesus was no longer in the grave. ( John 20, Luke 24, Mark 16, Matthew 28) And Peter, what about Peter? Peter, who denied his master, the one the master declared that the church would be built upon, suddenly running to the tomb to see for himself (Luke 24:12) Can you perceive his sense of hope beginning to soar?

"But they ( Jesus' disciples) did not believe the woman, because their words seemed to

them like nonsense. Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over, he

saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away, wondering to himself

what had happened." Luke 24:11-12

And then Jesus, himself, appeared before the disciples:

"While they were still talking about this, Jesus stood among them and said to them,

"Peace be with you!"" Luke 24:36

Like the sun piercing through the darkness of the night, Jesus death upon the cross brought light to darkened lives. Jesus came to do for us what we could not do for ourselves: pay the penalty for our sins and reconcile and restore our relationships with God. When Jesus stood before Peter, the one who fulfilled Jesus' prophecy of denial, he asked him, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?" Three times Jesus asked Peter this question. Interesting enough that it was the same number of times that Peter (Simon) denied Jesus. Jesus didn't condemn Peter. He didn't chastise him. And he didn't instruct him to go back and study the rules and laws so that he would do better the next time and be more holy and righteous. No, he asked him if he loved him. What I believe Jesus was doing was establishing the fact that if Peter really loved Jesus, then he would do what Jesus wanted him to- not begrudgingly, but willingly and wholeheartedly.

There is a strong argument laid down by Paul. You will find it in 1 Corinthians 15. It argues the point that if Jesus didn't really rise from the dead, then we are all still in our sins and that this life is all that we have. And if that be true, then any of us who put our faith and trust in Jesus should be considered fools! But Paul, who had a living encounter with Jesus, himself, assures us:

"But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead." 1 Corinthians 15:20

"The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He

gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Corinthians 15:56-57

Jesus said:

“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

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What a beautiful picture to liken Jesus, the one and only Son of God, to the rising sun which dispels darkness. Jesus came to bring us light to our own darken world and soul.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whosoever

believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son

into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him."

John 3:16-17

Live life as revealed by His light. See you tomorrow...