"The Path of Peace"

 

  Reading the last section of Zechariah's Song (vv.78, 79) from "The Message":

"Through the heartfelt mercies of our God, God's sunrise will break in upon us, shining on those in darkness, those sitting in the shadow of death, then showing us the way, one foot at a time, down the path of peace."

 

            I am taken by Zechariah's use of the image of the sunrise to describe the coming of Christ. Some translations say "Morning star" or "Dayspring." The NIV says "the rising sun will come to us from heavenÉ" I think a bit about the sunrise, how the light comes quietly. You get up this time of year and it is dark, and who wants to begin the day in the darkness? It takes some effort, some discipline, some focus to begin the tasks of the day in the darkness. And then you are hardly aware of it, but you can see outside, it is gradually getting lighter. Finally the light takes over. There is no conflict, no places that are left devoid of light, it simply is light out. It is a consistent light. Most people welcome the morning light; it gives energy for the day. But there are some who resist it, some who would rather prolong the darkness.

            John the Baptist did not come quietly. He was more like a road grader leveling mountains and filling in valleys. He is noisy and disruptive, calling for confession of sin and repentance, challenging the people and the religious leaders on how they were living. He was not the sunrise.

            But Jesus came quietly. He was born one night in a stable in Bethlehem, and hardly anyone knew it except a few shepherds. If our hearts are ready to receive him, his light comes into us and comes around us quietly, and its purpose is to guide us, one foot at a time, down the path of peace.

            I remember years ago when our friend Bev Peterson, the wife of our neighboring pastor, Carleton Peterson, died, and left a very young family. The funeral began quietly, as a soloist sang without accompaniment "O come thou Dayspring, come and cheer our spirits by thine advent here; disperse the gloomy clouds of night, and death's dark shadows put to flight. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!" And the presence of Christ quietly, imperceptibly came into that place and began to work from that moment and into the years ahead for that family. I think that is the way it often is: "the rising sun will come to us from heaven."

            The image of sunrise comes from Malachi chapter 4, which speaks of the Day of the Lord. "But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from a stall."

            We must begin by admitting the reality of the darkness. Zechariah does as he sings, "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." He says "us" and "our," not "you" and "your." This is a righteous man who understands that he is one who lives in darkness. We begin by admitting that we are the ones who grieve, we are the ones who struggle to find our way to the path of peace, and we are the ones who try to hide the reality of sin in our lives. The artificial lights that the world hangs in our darkness do not seem to help very much, they guide us down different paths, not the path of peace.

             The song of Zechariah calls us to confess the darkness, to admit our fears, to admit our struggles. In fact we do not know the way. We need a light that will guide our feet into the path of peace.

            David Tiede reminds us that the people who first read the Gospel of Luke probably lived about the time of the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem in 70 AD, and in the time when the Romans were becoming increasingly suspicious of Christians. They were not rejoicing in salvation from their enemies and from the hand of all who hated them. They might well have been wondering if God's Kingdom would ever become a reality. They were aware of the darkness. They read the Gospel that spoke of sunrise. They believed in Jesus.

            What is the salvation that Zechariah is singing about? It seems to be deeply rooted in scripture and yet part of prophecy as yet unfulfilled. It seems to be very political in nature; the real enemies will be defeated. The oppressors and violent people who bring fear into their heats will be dealt with by God, and the redemption he speaks of will be a rescue from the hand of their enemies. But there is much more than a victory in this world. This is a vision of God's ultimate victory that far exceeds our human experience. The song alerts us that God's determination to bring salvation is unswerving. God's salvation deals with the shadow of death and the reality of heaven, with justice and with grace, with the defeat of evil itself and with the experience of peace with God. It is about feeding the hungry and it is about bringing living water to those without faith in Christ.

            The song is clear in verse 77 that knowledge of salvation comes through the forgiveness of sins. The door to the Savior is when we confess the sins of our lives and in repentance receiving new birth through faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. That is a personal commitment, a surrender, a conscious acceptance of Christ as Savior and Lord of your life. The path of peace is the new life that comes through the cross. If you have not committed your life to Christ, coming to him and asking for the forgiveness of your sin and receiving him as Lord of your life, I invite you to do that today. Make that commitment as you come to the Lord's Table. It is the path of peace.

            The path of peace is not a way of life that is easy or unconcerned about others or empty of devoted service. It is not an internal feeling of calm that pays no attention to the reality of suffering in the world. The heart of the song is found in verse 74, "to enable us to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him all our days." Zechariah was committed to doing God's will. He faced the fear that the enemies of God can bring to his people. He longed for the sun rise, the light that would take away the fear. But the life he desires in the sunlight was one of service. Sometimes our fears diminish our motivation to serve God. We fear failure or perhaps rejection or we fear that we will lose something we value if we serve God. We hold back.

            Paul writes in Philippians 4, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

            As we pray about what we need, God takes away our fear and anxiety, and we are freed to serve him.

            Are you ready to take steps towards the path of peace that the light of Christ shows you? You can release your fears and participate in ministry. You can present your anxieties to God and say "yes" to that invitation to serve in leadership. You can let go of what the world offers, and commit yourself to serving God in worship, in mission and in witness. As you receive communion today, could you ask God to take away your fear, so that you might experience His peace?

            Amen.