In Luke 1:78, part of Zechariah’s prophetic song (the Benedictus) captures the essence of divine visitation: after centuries of spiritual darkness—sin, oppression, and the shadow of death—the promised Savior arrives like the first light of dawn breaking over the horizon. Not a harsh glare, but a gentle, warming, life-giving radiance from heaven itself that illuminates those sitting in gloom, scatters the night, and guides feet into the path of peace (v. 79).
The “Sunrise from on high” is Jesus, the Light of the world (John 1:4–9), descending in mercy to visit and redeem. Zechariah’s words blend Old Testament hopes (like Malachi 4:2’s “Sun of Righteousness”) with the wonder of incarnation: God Himself draws near, dawn personified, to end the long night and usher in eternal day.
1 Bless the Lord, my soul, And all that is within me, bless His holy name. 2 Bless the Lord, my soul, And do not forget any of His benefits; 3 Who pardons all your guilt [iniquities], Who heals all your diseases; 4 Who redeems your life from the pit, Who crowns you with favour [steadfast love] and compassion [mercy]; 5 Who satisfies your [desires] years with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle.
He pardons
He heals
He redeems
He crowns
He loves
He satisfies
He renews
He satisfies and renews us as we recount every single benefit; big and small.
God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him – John Piper
Matthew 6:1-2 (NASB 2020) 1 “Take care not to practice your righteousness in the sight of people, to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven. 2 “So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, so that they will be praised by people. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.
Every morning, we clothe ourselves before stepping outside. We may be comfortable being naked when we are alone, but before people we cover ourselves—to hide shame and preserve dignity. Clothing was never about display first; it was about covering. Yet what we do with our bodies, we now do with our character. We dress it up. We present a version of ourselves fit for public consumption. The way we speak to loved ones at home is rarely the tone we use in public. The patience we display in church is often absent in private.
And this hypocrisy does not stop at the church door, it often finds its loudest expression there. In the very place meant to be centred on God, many of us perform for one another. The church becomes a stage, not an altar. It is not uncommon to see believers speaking loudly in tongues, weeping openly, displaying so-called manifestations of the Spirit, and offering long, dramatic, emotionally charged prayers. But the question must be asked, and it must be asked honestly: Is this the cry of the Spirit, or the costume of religion? Is this worship, or is it performance?
God is not impressed by volume, length, or theatrics. Heaven does not applaud what is done to be seen by men. What moves people does not move God. Fashion, as we know it, came much later in human history. In the beginning, clothing existed for one reason: to cover shame. Even today, at its best, clothing serves modesty and necessity. But in church, many have reversed this purpose. What should have covered the flesh has become a catwalk for the ego.
We walk into church and turn it into a catwalk, displaying our spirituality, advertising our maturity, and seeking honour from fellow believers. We measure anointing by attention and depth by visibility. We crave to be noticed, recognised, and affirmed. And the most dangerous part? We deceive ourselves. We cloak self-promotion in spiritual language. We tell ourselves we are “edifying the church” or “encouraging others,” when in truth we are projecting ourselves. What we call ministry is often performance. What we call zeal is often pride. What we call the Spirit may simply be the flesh dressed in religious clothing. God is not looking for better performances. He is looking for truth in the inner man.
Prayer
Lord, search my heart and expose every place where I seek the approval of people instead of Your pleasure. Deliver me from performing righteousness and teach me to live it in secret before You. Strip away every costume of religion and clothe me with humility, truth, and sincerity. May my worship be real, my obedience quiet, and my life hidden with Christ in God. I choose the altar over the stage, the cross over the catwalk. Amen.
Quote: The catwalk displays the flesh; the cross puts it to death.
How awesome is His creation! Even the inanimate express their joy. How is that possible ? By simply existing according to divine design, with everything from the sun and stars to animals and plants reflecting God’s glory, creativity, and power.
Psalms 19:1 The heavens tell of the glory of God; And their expanse declares the work of His hands. Psalms 96:11-12. May the heavens be joyful, and may the earth rejoice; May the sea roar, and all it contains; May the field be jubilant, and all that is in it. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy
Romans 1:20. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, being understood by what has been made, so that they are without excuse.
Today is the day to acknowledge Him and His provision for salvation. Do not ignore it. He loves us and sent His Son, Jesus to save us and not to condemn us.
In Scripture, clearer passages often illuminate the more obscure, a foundational principle for understanding. Here, two texts converge to reveal this dynamic at work: one outlines the call to discipleship, while the other embodies it in the life of Moses—an archetype of Christ—answering the pressing question: What does this look like in practice?
The first passage, Luke 9:23–27, lays out Jesus’ unmistakable imperative for His followers:
And He said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? For whoever is ashamed of Me and of My words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in His glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”
This is no singular event but a daily rhythm of surrender, renewed each morning like God’s mercies (Lamentations 3:22–23). It’s a lifelong commitment to self-denial, not for asceticism’s sake, but for the sake of following Christ into true life.
To grasp its shape or form, we turn to Moses’ story in Hebrews 11:23–28, a vivid parallel:
By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden for three months by his parents, because they saw that the child was beautiful, and they were not afraid of the king's edict. By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward. By faith he left Egypt, not being afraid of the anger of the king, for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible. By faith he kept the Passover and sprinkled the blood, so that the Destroyer of the firstborn might not touch them.
Raised as Pharaoh’s adopted grandson, Moses enjoyed unparalleled privilege—wealth, power, and the splendour of Egypt (Exodus 2:11–15). Yet he renounced it all, identifying instead with his enslaved Hebrew kin. This meant exile, hardship, and rejection: fleeing after killing an Egyptian oppressor, wandering as a fugitive, and embracing the shame of solidarity with the afflicted. In choosing Israel’s suffering over Egypt’s fleeting pleasures, Moses valued the “reproach of Christ” as surpassing treasure, eyes fixed on an unseen reward.
This choice foreshadows Christ’s own descent: leaving heavenly glory to share in humanity’s reproach—betrayal, scorn, and the cross (Isaiah 53:3; Hebrews 12:2). Just as Moses traded visible riches for invisible hope, disciples are summoned daily to “take up the cross,” forsaking self-preservation for alignment with Christ’s redemptive mission. Both stories recast loss as eternal gain: apparent defeat yielding resurrection life.
The parallels between Jesus’ words in Luke and Moses’ life in Hebrews reveal a timeless pattern of faith: costly obedience that prioritizes eternal reward over temporal security. Here’s how they align:
Aspect
Luke 9:23-27 (Jesus’ Call)
Hebrews 11:23-28 (Moses’ Faith)
Shared Theme
Self-Denial
“Deny himself” and lose life to save it (v. 23-24).
Refused Pharaoh’s privileges for mistreatment with God’s people (v. 25).
Both reject worldly status/comfort for God’s path.
Embracing Suffering
“Take up his cross daily” (v. 23).
Endured as “seeing him who is invisible” (v. 27).
Faith sustains through visible trials by focusing on the unseen God.
Reproach/Shame
Not be “ashamed” of Jesus (v. 26).
Considered “the reproach of Christ” greater than Egypt’s treasures (v. 26).
Willingness to bear scorn for alignment with Christ/God’s people.
Eternal Perspective
Gain soul over world; see kingdom of God (v. 25, 27).
Looked to “the reward” beyond fleeting pleasures (v. 26).
Short-term loss yields long-term gain in God’s kingdom.
Active Obedience
“Follow me” daily (v. 23).
Left Egypt; kept Passover (v. 27-28).
Faith manifests in bold, communal actions of loyalty.
Life application:
For believers today, this convergence of cross and reproach calls us to live counter-culturally amid a world that often ridicules faith. The cross is no mere historical emblem of atonement but an active summons to share Christ’s sufferings (Colossians 1:24; 1 Peter 4:13). It manifests in two intertwined realities:
→Personal Sacrifice: Echoing Moses’ rejection of Pharaoh’s luxuries and Jesus’ call to self-denial, we might relinquish career ambitions, social status, or material ease to pursue justice, generosity, or witness. In our consumerist era, this could involve downsizing for the sake of the marginalised—opting for “mistreatment with the people of God” over sin’s passing allure.
→Enduring Opposition: The reproach of public shame ties directly to the cross’s cost (Luke 9:26). Contemporary echoes include workplace bias for ethical choices, digital backlash for gospel truths, or familial rifts over conviction. Yet, like Moses, we count this “reproach of Christ” (Hebrews 11:26) as immeasurable wealth—vindicated at His return and fostering intimacy with God in the present.
What binds these threads for us is a transformative hope: the cross and reproach are not futile wounds but gateways to renewed life. They forge character through suffering (Romans 5:3–5), knit us into the global church amid persecution, and point to the kingdom where every knee bows (Philippians 2:10). In daily practice, this unfolds through prayerful yielding, bold proclamation, and mutual encouragement—mirroring Moses’ steadfast gaze and Jesus’ obedient path. As He promises, those who lose their lives for His sake will truly find it.
Jesus declares one of His “I am” statements in John 8: 12. “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
Whoever obeys Jesus will walk in the light and will have the light of life, life eternal.
Another key reference is John 1:4-5: “In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
Then He declares in Matthew 5:16, (we who obey) you are the light of the world (because you have the light in you). “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.
Finally He commands us in the same passage further on in verse 16, “Your light must shine before people in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven” .
Let this light shine before people NOT to draw attention to us, but to the Father, that the Father may be glorified. When our light shines in this way, in particular drawing attention to the Father, then He will be glorified. People can only glorify God if they have come to know Him. In other words God’s kingdom is being established by the light that shines through our speech and actions (good works). People need to see the light in us.
So don’t hide the light!
A final word from Daniel 12:3(ESV). And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.
Let your good works be seen, but for the sole purpose of drawing attention to the Father.
