Let There Be Light

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Genesis 1:1–5 (NIV)

Creation began in the dark.

But piercing the black void of nothingness,

God’s voice rings out,

Let there be light

Let there be day and night

Let there be earth and sky

Land and sea

Mountain and valley

And river and forest

Let there be life to fill it all

And then, the crown of creation,

Let there be humanity

Let them be in our image

Let them be the glory of God walking the earth

Let us be at one, in harmony, together.

And we answer,

Let there be pride

Let there be betrayal and rebellion

Let there be separation

Let there be sin and death and fall.

Now, I know what you’re thinking. That’s a pretty depressing way to start the Christmas season. But, in truth, it’s the only way to start. This is how Advent orients us into the larger story. Refusing to let us run ahead, charging us to pause long enough to remember. We must begin by remembering our sin, our need for rescue, our desperate longing for a Savior.

Pastor and writer Fleming Rutledge reminds us, “Advent begins in the dark.”¹

At the outset of this season of light we sink down into the darkness of exile, sense the looming shadow of death, long for the light like Israel of old. Like captives waiting for deliverance. Like runaways and rebels hoping for a return.

Wait and hope are the twin anthems of Advent. It’s interesting that in both Hebrew and Latin, the root word for “wait” can also be translated as “hope.” A reminder that we do not despair as we wait in the darkness. But we light a lone candle, the first flame of hope, pushing back the shadow one spark at a time.

Advent begins in the dark. But around the edges of the deep horizon, we see a faded gray creeping in. We hear a forgotten, yet familiar voice.

The people living in darkness

Have seen a great light.

Let there be light

Again.

THE PRAYER 

Light of the world, make me a new creation in you.

THE QUESTION

What has darkness looked like for you? How did the light break through?

For the Awakening, 
Matt LeRoy

NOTES

1. This is an often-repeated theme in Fleming Rutledge’s collection of Advent sermons entitled Advent: The Once and Future Coming of Jesus (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2018).

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