Isaiah 60:1-3 Jesus is the Light to the World

Ephesians 5:14

Therefore He says:

“Awake, you who sleep,

Arise from the dead,

And Christ will give you light.”

In Christ, in His body which was given up for us, in His righteousness and not our own, we live. In Him we are in right standing with the Father. In Him we have Holy Spirit to teach us and get us safely home. All glory and honor belongs to God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. In Him we never walk alone! Carla

Isaiah 60:1-3

Arise, shine;

For your light has come!

And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.

2 For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth,

And deep darkness the people;

But the Lord will arise over you,

And His glory will be seen upon you.

3 The Gentiles shall come to your light,

And kings to the brightness of your rising (NKJV)

Arise is addressed to Zion (verse 14).  Zion is both the recipient of God’s light and the reflector of it. Isaiah’s prophecies often emphasize the contrast between light and darkness to symbolize the contrast between eternal life and death, salvation and judgment.

As was the case during the Exodus from Egypt, darkness is on the wicked while God’s light is on His people (Exodus 10:23). Deep darkness elsewhere describes a cloud enfolding the glory of God (Exodus 20:21), and serves as a warning of His impending judgment (Jeremiah 13:16).

Gentiles is translated “nations” in 2:2–4. In the earlier passage, they come to heavenly Zion to be taught of God; here they come to bring tribute (verses 5, 11, 13). Isaiah foresaw a day when not only would the righteous remnant in Israel be devoted to God, but so would the redeemed from all peoples. Christ is the light to kings (42:6; 49:6). The NKJV Study Bible

Light is a metaphor for the salvation and spiritual awakening brought by the Messiah.

The second-person pronouns in this passage are feminine and singular. They refer to Zion/Jerusalem, which is personified as female (49:21–22; 51:18–20; 52:1–2). Nations shall come to your light. In 42:6, Israel was sent as a light to the nations. That role was transferred to the Servant-Messiah in 49:6. Nations are described streaming to Zion in 2:2–5 and 11:10. Faithlife Study Bible

Jeremiah 13:16

Give glory to the LORD your God

Before He causes darkness,

And before your feet stumble

On the dark mountains,

And while you are looking for light,

He turns it into the shadow of death

And makes it dense darkness.

Isaiah 49:23

Kings shall be your foster fathers,

And their queens your nursing mothers;

They shall bow down to you with their faces to the earth,

And lick up the dust of your feet.

Then you will know that I am the LORD,

For they shall not be ashamed who wait for Me.”

Isaiah 58:8

Then your light shall break forth like the morning,

Your healing shall spring forth speedily,

And your righteousness shall go before you;

The glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.

Revelations 21:24

And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it.

“This shepherd had one hundred sheep. And one of them was lost. And the shepherd leaves the ninety-nine sheep to go out and find the lost one. He brings him home.”

In the story, the shepherd doesn’t blame the lost one. Or give advice. Or admonish. Because to the shepherd, that sheep is not just a number, but a face, a name, and a story.

The shepherd knew that some stories are too heavy to carry alone. That every one of us at some time in our life will need the loving arms of justice, mercy, and unmerited grace.

And yes, the power of acceptance.

You see, here’s the deal: some days we are the one lost.

And some days, we are the hands and feet of the shepherd. Taking to heart, “You’ll never walk alone,” there may be times, when even though we feel isolated—yes, lost, emotionally or spiritually—we find the courage (it doesn’t take much) to know that others around us feel the same.

And we look for the lost sheep.

And consider our potential to be the hands of a shepherd.

“I hope that all of us, or none of us are judged by the actions of our weakest moments but rather by the strength we show when, or if, we are given a second chance.” Sabbath Moments

Luke 16:10-15 “And who is my neighbor?”

 Luke 10:29 But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

It is hard for those who base their lives on the accumulation of wealth to enter into the peace of God. The love of money, power and control are at the root of all evil. The peace of the Lord comes with loving Him above all, loving our families, caring for others  and being caretakers to the world that He created.  We are blessed so that we can be a blessing. Jesus is our example for how we are to live in the New Covenant. Carla

Luke 16:10-15

He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much. 11 Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful in what is another man’s, who will give you what is your own?

13 “No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”

14 Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, also heard all these things, and they derided Him. 15 And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God. (NKJV)

mammon (Gk. mammōnas) (16:9, 11; Matthew 6:24) Strong’s #3126: The Greek word is a transliteration of a common Aramaic word mamona, which means “wealth,” “money,” or “property.” It is impossible to serve this god called “mammon” and the true God at the same time. In chapter 16, this word is used for “riches,” considered an idol, master, or god of the human heart that is in conflict with the true God.

faithful … unjust … least … much: Small examples of selfishness now result in greater selfishness later. Likewise, small examples of generosity now result in greater generosity later.

Jesus indicates a basic division in God’s plan here. The time of promise extended from the Law and Prophets until John the Baptist. Now the promise of God’s kingdom is preached. The new era approaches. Everyone is pressing into it can also be translated “all are urged insistently to come in,” emphasizing the urgency of the message. Jesus’ point is not that all the commandments of the law remain in effect forever, but that the goal of God’s law, the promise of God’s rule, is realized. The NKJV Study Bible

True riches refers to God’s truth (compare verse 9). Jesus is calling His disciples to be faithful in everything God gives to them. Jesus’ point is that people have a choice to act as followers of Jesus—utilizing what they have been entrusted with for God’s purposes. Jesus also seems to be emphasizing another point of His parable: His followers should be faithful when given any resources to steward.

The Pharisees scoff at Jesus’ teaching, and He rebukes their emphasis on human values and traditions (Luke 16:14–15). He also comments on the purpose and durability of the Scriptures. This discussion leads into another parable that contrasts the fates of the unrepentant rich and faithful poor in the afterlife (verses 19–31). This story corresponds with Jesus’ teachings about the reversal of roles in God’s kingdom (9:48; 13:30; 14:11; 18:14). The parable’s conclusion, however, shifts to a deeper meaning about people not listening to God’s Word, not even when it comes from Jesus (verses 29–31).

What is considered exalted among men probably is  a reference to coveting or desiring wealth.

The law and the prophets were until John. The Greek phrase used here has no verb, making it difficult to translate. Jesus could mean that the Law and Prophets were proclaimed until John the Baptist’s ministry. He also could be indicating that the Law and Prophets were the only guides for the people of Israel until John came. Given what Jesus says in the next verse, he does not mean that the Law and Prophets are no longer relevant.

“The Law and the Prophets” seems to have been a common way of referring to two collections of the Jewish Scriptures. The Hebrew Bible (corresponding with the Old Testament, but in a different order) is divided into three parts: the Law, the Prophets, and the Writings. The Law (or Pentateuch) includes the first five books of the Bible; the Prophets includes the books of Joshua, Judges, 1–2 Samuel, 1–2 Kings, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the Book of the Twelve (the Minor Prophets: Hosea to Malachi). The Writings includes Ruth, 1–2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs (Song of Solomon), Lamentations, and Daniel.

Jesus affirms the enduring validity of the Scriptures. Faithlife Study Bible

Matthew 6:24

“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.

Matthew 25:21–23

His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ He also who had received two talents came and said, ‘Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.’…

Luke 23:35

And the people stood looking on. But even the rulers with them sneered, saying, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ, the chosen of God.”

The healing—and life-giving—power of music is to remind us we are not alone. And not at the mercy of. 

I often replay the story of a village in France. In 1942, the Nazis were actively and forcefully rounding up Jews in France. In the picturesque farming village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon (in southern France), Reformed Church minister Andre Trocme inspired an entire village to change lives. And, as it turns out, the world in which we live.
Each of the citizens of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon voluntarily risked their lives to hide Jews--in homes, on farms, and in public buildings; Jews who were being rounded up by the Nazi SS for shipment to the death camps. (It is said that there was not a single home in the village that did not shelter a Jewish family.) Le Chambon-sur-Lignon became known as the “City of Refuge.”
Whenever Nazi patrols searched the village, the Jews were sent, surreptitiously, out into the woodland countryside. One of the villagers recalled, “As soon as the soldiers left, we would go into the forest and sing a song. When they heard that song, the Jews knew it was safe to come home.”
Can you imagine the feeling when you heard the song?

This I do know: we feel it in our bodies before we have the right words for it.
It is estimated that as many as five thousand lives were saved—many given passage to Switzerland. One reason for this display of compassion? These French villagers were descendants from the persecuted Protestant Huguenots. Their own history of persecution connected them to the plight of the Jewish people hiding in their homes.
Perhaps that is true, I do not know. I only know that for whatever reason, the villagers chose to speak (yes, to “sing”) out. They chose compassion.
And the rest, well, the rest is history.
Three things about this story struck me.
One, the extraordinary power of compassion (and the courage to practice compassion in a world that places a premium on power and control).
Two, compassion is born in the soil of vulnerability, humility and the awareness that we are all—every single one of us—connected.
Three, the power of love and music to bring each and every one of us, home. Home: the place where we are given value, and love, and dignity, and from that place, value, love and dignity spill to the world around us.  Sabbath Moments

James 3:13-18 The wisdom of God is peaceable and does not compromise truth.

 Romans 12:9 Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. 

God has plans for all of us. His plans are good and He enriches the lives of all of His creation. All nations, all people, are meant to be able to enjoy the world that He created for us to live in. Evil seeks to destroy it and us we must turn from evil and seek the good of all.  We were created in love and saved by the blood of the Lamb. Carla

James 3:13-18

13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. 14 But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. 15 This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. 16 For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. 17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. 18 Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace. (NKJV)

Evil produces confusion. On the other hand, God brings harmony and wisdom (1 Corinthians 14:33). Anyone who is involved in envy and strife is confused. This confusion corrupts human relationships. It is likely that the Jewish Christians to whom James was writing were going through turmoil because of sinful acts like the ones mentioned here. James wanted his readers to set aside their petty attitudes and seek reconciliation.

The main characteristic of godly wisdom is that it is pure, meaning “free from defilement.” Bitterness, envy, and selfish behavior thoroughly corrupt a person (verses 14, 16). Godly wisdom is also peaceable, describing a spirit of tranquility and calmness. It does not suggest compromising truth just for the sake of peace, which would promote falsehood. In addition, godly wisdom is undivided, without favoritism, unwavering, and consistent. without hypocrisy: True wisdom is sincere and unpretentious. The NKJV Study Bible

The Septuagint, an ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament, often employs this combination of words wise and understanding to describe a person who lives in accordance with the insight given by God (Deuteronomy 1:13, 15; 4:6). People demonstrate wisdom if their deeds reflect God’s commands. Works, with the humility of wisdom, are those who are wise and demonstrate their wisdom in how they live, by deeds done with humility.

James likely is admonishing his audience to refrain from sinning against the truth by boasting of their wisdom. Truth may refer to the gospel (James 1:18; 5:19) or, more generally, to that which is not false. Faithlife Study Bible

Hebrews 12:11

Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

James 1:17–18

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.

1 Corinthians 2:6–7

However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, 

2 Corinthians 12:20

For I fear lest, when I come, I shall not find you such as I wish, and that I shall be found by you such as you do not wish; lest there be contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, backbitings, whisperings, conceits, tumults;

“Ahab was king over Israel for twenty-two years. Ahab son of Omri did even more open evil before God than anyone yet—a new champion in evil!” (1 Kings 16:29-30 MSG).

There’s a reason parents don’t name their kids Ahab or Jezebel. Ahab not only neglected the faith of his fathers, but he also embraced the false gods of his enemies. Yet this evil king did more—he married Jezebel.  She was vile, she endorsed a religion that promoted temple prostitution and child sacrifice, she and her husband systematically killed the Lord’s prophets. The Ten Commandments were treated as ten suggestions, and the temple of worship was a relic of history.

God, however, will not sit idly while his covenants are trashed. He will not stay silent while his will is mocked. But he will act. Max Lucado

Psalm 34:21-22 God cares for us He protects us from evil.

 Amen and amen!

Psalm 37:40

And the LORD shall help them and deliver them;

He shall deliver them from the wicked,

And save them,

Because they trust in Him.

We withstand evil by the power of Holy Spirit. In the righteousness of Jesus Christ alone we are protected and overcome evil with good. Trust God to guide us on our walk and do what man cannot. Carla

Psalm 34:21-22

21 Evil shall slay the wicked,

And those who hate the righteous shall be condemned.

22 The Lord redeems the soul of His servants,

And none of those who trust in Him shall be condemned. (NKJV)

This verse is outside the acrostic pattern; it summarizes the psalm, giving appropriate praise to the Lord who saves those who put their faith in Him (1 Timothy 4:10). The NKJV Study Bible

Evil will slay the wicked. While Yahweh will deliver the righteous from their afflictions (Psalm 34:19), the wicked are ultimately destroyed by theirs. The psalmist asks Yahweh to fight for him against his enemies. Faithlife Study Bible

Psalm 94:23

He has brought on them their own iniquity,

And shall cut them off in their own wickedness;

The LORD our God shall cut them off.

Proverbs 24:16

For a righteous man may fall seven times

And rise again,

But the wicked shall fall by calamity.

Psalm 140:11

Let not a slanderer be established in the earth;

Let evil hunt the violent man to overthrow him.”

1 King 1:29

And the king took an oath and said, “As the LORD lives, who has redeemed my life from every distress, 

“When you walk through a storm
Keep your chin up high
And don’t be afraid of the dark.
At the end of the storm
Is a golden sky
And the sweet, silver song of a lark.
Walk on through the wind,
Walk on through the rain,
Though your dreams be tossed and blown.
Walk on, walk on, with hope in your heart,
And you’ll never walk alone!
You’ll never walk alone.”
“You'll Never Walk Alone” was originally composed by Rodgers and Hammerstein in 1945. And the version I’m listening to is from Gerry and the Pacemakers (1963).
And yes, it’s a sing along version. My Oh My.

Music is one of those gifts that nudges and replenishes your heart. Often when you least expect it, washing over you with grace and healing. Especially life-giving when life feels hard.
This was a hard week for me. There were personal hurdles. And the news, yes. And many conversations (phone and email) about our world (and our place in it), and how it is easy to feel, or to be, quite literally, lost. And lost is not just a GPS malfunction. Too many know what it means to be disconnected, diminished, demeaned. That’s it isn’t it? When we feel not just lost, but alone.

Did you see the “Canticle for Peace” celebration—a prayer meeting and concert for peace on Wednesday (July 29), where Pope Leo listened to an interfaith choir of 164 children at the lush gardens of the Vatican’s echo-village in the town of Castel Gandolfo?
In the words of Pope Leo, “Like a stream leading to its source, music leads us to God.”
“‘Music can lead us beyond the threshold of mystery. Just as someone following a stream eventually reaches its source, the beauty of song can guide us towards God, satisfying the thirst for meaning and happiness that the world itself cannot quench.’
Recalling the ‘choirs of angels and saints’ described in Scripture, the Pope observed that they do not ‘literally sing all the time.’ Rather, their perfect harmony springs from their shared contemplation of God—a harmony that earthly music, too, can help us approach.
Organized by the Laudato si' Higher Education Center in partnership with the Andrea Bocelli Foundation, represented by the renowned tenor himself, the event forms part of the celebrations marking the 800th anniversary of the death of St Francis of Assisi.
The Pope described the gathering as an occasion of ‘joy,’ accompanied by Andrea Bocelli and the ABF Voices choir, made up of 164 children and young people, from the Holy Land, Uganda and Italy. United by their love of music, many of them also share lives marked by war, poverty and suffering.
Pope Leo noted that their ‘beautiful singing,’ together with the multilingual prayer offered at the end of the gathering, showed how music can unite different voices into a single harmony, where each person makes a unique contribution to the whole.
In this way, the choir becomes a symbol of harmony and cooperation.
Reflecting on the heavenly ‘choirs’ described in Scripture, the Pope said that their unity comes from finding in God ‘the fullness of happiness.’
He continued, ‘As you sang, did you notice how music drew all of us into a new experience—something greater than anything any one of us could have created alone? That is the experience of beauty. It opens up a new horizon and awakens within us the desire to move towards it.’”
(With gratitude to Edoardo Giribaldi, and the Vatican News)

And in an interview after the event, with NBC, a young woman from Israel—a 14-year-old member of the choir said this about the make-up of the choir from different countries, “We can’t find peace in our country. There’s war. Children are scared and they are dying… Teamwork is so important. If we worked on this project individually, we wouldn’t have been here today.”
Thank you. That’ll preach.
And I can hear Mr. Rogers’ voice, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, 'Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping. To this day, especially in times of disaster, I remember my mother’s words, and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers — so many caring people in this world.”  

Two invitations this week.

One, the reminder that we never walk alone.

“When you walk through a storm

Keep your chin up high

And don’t be afraid of the dark…

You’ll never walk alone.”

And two, the invitation to be a helper. 

The Talmud reminds us, “Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world's grief. Do justly now, love mercy now, walk humbly now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.” Sabbath Moments