Breaking Forth Like the Dawn

5th Sunday after the Epiphany – A                                                   LSB #’s 394, 849, 355:1-2, 5-7
Text – Isaiah 58:8
 
Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, & your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
 
BREAKING FORTH LIKE THE DAWN
 
 
Saint Francis of Assisi once invited a young monk to accompany him to town to preach.  The novice was honored,  & the two set out.  In the city they walked up & down main street & several side streets.  They chatted pleasantly with peddlers & cheerfully greeted citizens.  As they returned home the young monk was puzzled, so he asked:
“Father,  have you forgotten that we went to the town to preach?”  Francis replied, “My son, we have preached.  Many people watched our behavior today & closely measured our attitudes.  Our words were heard & overheard.  That is how we preached our morning sermon.”  
“Actions speak louder than words”  is a saying many are familiar with.  “Talk is cheap” is another common attitude.  Those sayings apply to the human race  because our words have comparatively little  power  to accomplish anything.   In Yahweh’s context,  He can literally create a universe out of nothing  simply by speaking. 
In our human context,  Yahweh did not just give us the Word of God in Holy Scripture.  As John 1:14 tells us, “…the Word became flesh & dwelt among us, & we have seen His glory, …full of grace & truth.”  (ESV)    God the Son took on human flesh  that His life,  death  & resurrection  might impact  our  eternal future. 
Yet, in spite of the magnificent sacrifice,  not all has been sunshine & roses in the realm of salvation.  John 1 also says, “He came to His own,  & His own people did not receive Him.”  (1:11 ESV)   As the prophet Isaiah wrote, what is the OT lesson for today,  he was addressing the tension that arises from God’s word of yes & no.  The first 39 chapters of Isaiah could be said to contain God’s no.  His instruction on sin & the harm it does  confronts us with His expectation that we not live in sin.  Then, chapters 40-55 highlight our Lord’s comfort for His people.  There, He says yes to repentant sinners & welcomes them with open arms.  Chapters 56-66 resolve the tension we’re left with  from being 100% saint & 100% sinner – all at the same time. 
Whereas the first 55 chapters are written directly to the ancient people of Israel,  the final 11 chapters are written to all  who claim to be the people of God.  The major tension within these chapters is an internal conflict in the church.  The struggle  is between those who trust the mercy & love of Yahweh  & those who rebel against it. 
The 11 chapters  close with these words: “And they shall go out & look on the dead bodies of the men who have rebelled against me.  For their worm shall not die,  their fire shall not be quenched,  & they shall be an abhorrence  to all flesh.”  (66:24 ESV)    Those stark & horrifying words describe the eternal future of any  who reject the mercy & love of Yahweh. 
There is no greater travesty  than to reject that infinite love & mercy of the Creator.  There is only one place in all of creation where that infinite love & mercy  do not exist.  Jesus Himself mentions where that is: “Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire  prepared for the devil & his angels.”  (Matthew 25:41 ESV) 
A person can reject the love of a human being, & be poorer for it,  but the consequences are not eternal.  The love of any human being is corrupted by sin.  The love of no human being  is pure,  holy  & life giving.  The effect that Yahweh’s love has  is described in the sermon text:
“Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, & your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you;  the glory of the Lord  shall be your rear guard.”  (Isaiah 58:8 ESV)   Currently, all creation is under the oppressive domination of darkness.  That is the source of all the struggles of our lives.  Yahweh is working to bless & restore His people.   Their task & privilege is to let that blessing & restoration be seen by any who have not yet  put their trust in the love & mercy of Messiah.  The goal is to draw them to Jesus  to share in Yahweh’s salvation.  The Lutheran common table prayer  can be seen as an illustration of that Godly design for His blessings: “Come, Lord Jesus, be our guest  & let Thy gifts to us  be blessed.” 
Consider those last two words, “be blessed.”   It’s common for you & me to think of that ‘arrow of blessing’  as being pointed toward ourselves,  & we never think beyond that.  After all, we are praying before we  eat.   However, we can also think of that arrow of blessing as pointing away from ourselves & toward our neighbor.  
In that case,  we  are asking that God’s gifts to us be blessed  as they pass through us  & on to our neighbor.  That manner of considering the common table prayer  is a practical way of illustrating the sermon text from Isaiah, as he writes of the effect of God’s blessings:
 “Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, & your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you;  the glory of the Lord  shall be your rear guard.”  (Isaiah 58:8 ESV)   As our light breaks forth like the dawn,  the Holy Spirit is sending His light through us  & on to others.  That light,  which is nothing less than the Gospel,  can change a sinner’s heart. 
The faithful shine  because God’s light has dawned upon them.  In the sermon text, Isaiah is giving a picturesque view of what Jesus said in John 15: “I am the vine;  you are the branches.  Whoever abides in me & I in him,  he it is that bears much fruit,  for apart from me  you can do nothing.”  (15:5 ESV)   When your light breaks forth like the dawn  you are bearing fruit. 
The OT reading opens with people questioning God: “Why have we fasted, & you see it not?  Why have we humbled ourselves, & you take no knowledge of it?”   The people are basically saying, “Why is our worship of Yahweh bearing no fruit?  Fasting should be pleasing to the Lord, so why am I not getting my way?”  If you remember, the major tension within these chapters is an internal conflict in the church.  The people complaining in V. 3, are those who have rebelled against the mercy & love of Yahweh.  They’re simply going through the motions of fasting without having a heart  for it.  Their worship is calculated & manipulative.  Their light is not breaking forth like the dawn  because they’ve cut themselves off  from the Vine. 
 God answers in V. 6, “…this is the kind of fasting I want: Free those who are wrongly imprisoned; lighten the burden of those who work for you.  Let the oppressed go free, & remove the chains that bind people.”  (Isaiah 58:6 NLT)  In essence, it’s what Hosea wrote of God, “For I desire steadfast love & not sacrifice…”  (6:6 ESV)   God wants us to talk the talk & walk the walk. 
And if we look at the challenge of that honestly,  we realize that it’s impossible for us.  Verse 9 of the OT reading gives us a Gospel message when it says, “Then you shall call, & the Lord will answer; you shall cry, & He will say, ‘Here I am.’”  (58:9 ESV)  
You & I have been called to follow in Jesus’ footsteps in a subordinate role.  Like Him, we face rejection & suffering, exclusion & ridicule.  Yet, the Creator has made us a light for those who do not know Christ as Lord & Savior.  He is bringing salvation to the ends of the earth through people like you & me.  The Christian Church is the new Israel to be a blessing to others. 
In one of the prayers after communion, the pastor speaks these words, “…in faith toward You & in fervent love toward one another…”  That’s a good summary of God’s desire as recorded in Isaiah 58.  “Then shall your light break forth like the dawn…”  (Isaiah 58:8 ESV)  Amen. 
 
 
Praise the One  who breaks the darkness  with a liberating light;  praise the One who frees the prisoners,  turning blindness into sight.   Praise the One who preached the Gospel,  healing every dread disease,  calming storms & feeding thousands  with the very Bread of peace.     Let us praise the Word Incarnate,   Christ, who suffered in our place.  Jesus died & rose victorious that we may know God by grace.  Let us sing for joy & gladness,  seeing what our God has done;  let us praise the true Redeemer,  praise the One  who makes us one.  Amen.  LSB 849:1, 3.