J . R IC H A R D C H A S E
Recently on television a young woman in a long robe was interviewed. After a few years of searching and experimentation, she had joined a mystic religion. When asked if she had found the peace and happiness she was searching for, she replied, “ I hope so.” She was obviously uncertain. This young person is typical of so many who live apart from Christ. Uncertainty, doubt, and despair are more their way of life than confi dence, faith, and hope. Christ came to change lives. He was, as Simeon states in Luke 2:32, “A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the Glory of thy people Israel.” Often at this time of the year we look at the names of Christ as found in Isaiah 9:6 “ . . . wonderful, counsellor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the prince of peace;” or Matthew 1:21 and 23, “ Jesus,” and “ Immanuel.” Simeon’s description of the Christ-child is also rich in meaning and heritage. It provides an explanation for the young woman’s behavior on television. Christ as light illumines, reveals, and makes possible real life — eternal life — to those in darkness. The word translated “ lighten” in Luke 2:32 can be studied with profit, but the intent of the full text is fixed in Scripture; the phrase is a picture of salvation in Christ. Isaiah 42:6 closes with this same phrase, and then verse seven expands the concept: “To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house.” Those who do not walk with Christ, the Light (John 1:4-9), are blind and bound in the darkness of a dungeon. Page 4
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