When The Sun of God Appears

The Sun is almost here...

This past month, our church has been meeting, among other times, at 6:18 am on Wednesday and Sunday mornings to study Scripture together and pray. My favorite part of this study is hearing the Holy Spirit speak through others at the study. My second favorite part is driving home on Highway 85, seeing the mountains on the right and watching the sun come up on the left.

I can’t remember when was the last time I saw the sun come up before we started doing this. I guess in Alabama, it is so hilly, etc that you can’t really see the sun come up unless you’re on top of one of the hills at that time. A bigger obstacle, however, has been that I never get up in time to see it rise. 🙂

Come to think of it, when I had video jobs in Atlanta, I’d see the sun come up as I drove east on I-20, but once again, it wasn’t nearly as visible as here. In Ault/Nunn the ground is so flat, there are very little trees or buildings.

On the way to the Bible study, everything is pitch black. On the way home, however, the sky is already lit–although the sun isn’t here yet. It usually arrives by the time I get home.

Watching the sunrise got me thinking. This marvelous thing happens every single day, and very few of us enjoy the grandeur of it. If you want to see the “bigness” of God, get to a place where you can see the sunrise.

One day, while waiting for the sun to rise, I imagined that the sun was the “Son.” Jesus said He was coming back one day, but He hasn’t returned yet.

Even though the sun hadn’t arrived yet, the sky was bright. In fact, when I stepped out of the church and into my car that morning, I thought I’d missed the sunrise. As I started driving, however, I realized it wasn’t here yet. Isn’t that a great analogy for Christ? He hasn’t returned yet, but His light is shining everywhere through the rays of the Holy Spirit. We cannot doubt that He is right around the corner, about to appear. Although He isn’t here yet, through the Gospel and the Holy Spirit, His presence is here.

It’s kind of like what I’ve heard explained to me about the kingdom of God–it’s both here and not yet. Those moments before the sun actually rises, there’s no doubt that it’s appearing is imminent. And for all practical purposes, it’s already here. It is no longer night. The clouds are shimmering with unbelievable light.

Of course, the coolest part of the sunrise is when you first see the sun over the horizon. It’s just one little line at first, but it is extremely bright and awe-inspiring. One morning, I drove home as quick as I could, so that I could pick up Naomi and Rachel and let them see the sun come up.

Five minutes had passed, and Naomi and Rachel kept asking, “When is it coming up? Is it up yet??” I told them that when the sun appears, they will know it for sure. “How?” they asked. “You’ll see…” I replied.As the sky continued to brighten, this conversation was repeated several times.

Sure enough when the first sliver of the sun appeared, Naomi and Rachel were mesmerized. They, too, couldn’t believe how bright the sun was, and how cool it was for all of a sudden the sun to be there. When it becomes a reality, something inside just happens that’s unexplainable. I mean, you knew it was coming, and it has come every other day, so it shouldn’t be a surprise, but in some ways it still is.

I imagine what it will be like when Jesus finally appears. When it becomes a reality, what will go through our hearts? To actually see the Son. Of course, we know He’s coming, and that He’s already come before. And they sky has been lit up with His light for so long. We are no longer in the night, but morning has already come for us. But to actually witness Him. What will that be like? As the over-played song says, “I can only imagine…”