The Light Is Dawned

Christ is Risen! Alleluia!

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Break forth, O beauteous heav'nly light,

And usher in the morning.

Ye shepherds, shrink not with afright,

The day of grace is dawning.

This Child, though weak in infancy,

Our confidence and joy shall be,

The pow'r of Satan breaking,

Our peace with God now making (LSB 378.1).

Rejoice, O you faithful people! Shout for joy to the Lord! The light has broken forth. The long, dark night of sin and death and sadness has ended. The beauteous heavenly light has broken out, and the glorious dawn of eternity has risen.

The Light of the World is risen upon you, and the day has banished the night forever. The lone star which led the way through the night and gave light to but a few has now become the Morning Star which shines on us and illuminates the whole universe. Night is turned to day. Death is turned to life. Mourning is turned to dancing. Weakness is turned to triumph.

Christ Jesus our Lord, once born a child from the flesh of Mary is now the Light and Life of the World. That one so weak and humble is now risen with healing and life for the whole human race. He who was broken upon the cross for you is now risen high and exalted. He has done it – He has broken the power of Satan! He has made peace with God for you by the blood of His cross. Death no longer has dominion over Him, and neither over you.

This child, so weak in infancy, in whom you placed your confidence, has not betrayed you. He has fulfilled His Father's will for you, that you might be sundered from the number of the dead and joined to the great multitude of the living. You are among those whose tombs have been broken open, who have been called out into the light of the never-ending day of the Lord.

Today, you confess a great mystery. By His death on the cross, by His shedding of blood, by His three-day rest in the tomb, and by His glorious resurrection from the dead and breaking forth from the heart of the earth, our Lord Jesus Christ has shattered death and broken down the gates of hell.

He has died, that you might live. He has descended into hell, that you might ascend into heaven. He has shed His blood, that you might take up the cup of salvation. He has fulfilled mortality, that you might receive immortality. In the twinkling of an eye, at the sound of the trumpet, death has died and life has triumphed. With the heralds of heaven attending, the Lord of Hosts has stepped forth from His three-day tomb and is arrayed in all His glory and majesty. He has appeared to proclaim life from death, freedom from prison, purification from transgression, heaven from hell, light from darkness.

You have been clothed in a perishable body. You live in the midst of death. You are faced daily with reminders of your mortality and corruptibility. All around you, even as new life is breaking forth, death is clamoring at the gates. Your flesh drags you down and keeps you from the good you would do, and instead leads you to the evil you would not do.

If Christ had remained in the tomb, then you would have been lost. The suffering, agony, and death of Jesus would have been for nothing. You would remain in your wretched state, and would be most of all to be pitied. There would be nothing to look forward to, no hope of the light that breaks the darkness.

But our Lord Christ has shattered the darkness and risen as the bright Morning Star who shines forth the light of the world for all to see. He has brought life and immortality to light. He has brought creation to new birth. Death clamors no longer at the gates, because death is dead. Satan roars, but the lion's teeth have been broken out.

Where is the victory of death? Where is the sting of death? Where is the threat of the grave? They are broken, gone, dead. Death is swallowed up in victory. Life and immortality reign forever in glorious splendor.

The great turnabout has happened, and it is glorious in our eyes. Death swallowed up the Lamb of God, and He was buried into the heart of the earth. He descended into the belly of Sheol, to the very depths of hell. But the earth, the grave, hell itself could not hold Him. For the Lord of Life must have His victory over sin, death, and hell. He went down into the depths not to suffer further, not to be imprisoned, but to storm the gates, to break down the prison, to free the captives of every age and people.

Death swallowed the lifeless body of the Lord, but was destroyed in its great greed. For the Lord of Hosts split open the mouth of the grave and walked forth free. He shattered the bonds of the grave and rose triumphant. Death is destroyed. Death is swallowed up in life. Death no longer has dominion over Him. And death no longer has dominion over those who are in Christ.

“The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the Law.” But the Law is no longer binding on those who have died. The Law is fulfilled in death. Sin no longer has any power over you, because Jesus Christ has died to fulfill the Law. Therefore, death has no sting because sin is taken away. And where sin is taken away, death no longer reigns. Now, only grace and truth and everlasting light remain. Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory!

In the Name of Jesus. Amen. Christ is Risen! Alleluia!