When you are driving east as the sun rises, it can be really difficult to see what is in front of you. Many drivers wear sunglasses to help deflect the brilliant sunlight. Sometimes sunglasses don’t even help much.

What comes to mind when you think about the sun? When we look straight into the sun, its brilliance can be blinding, but the beautiful, clear light radiating from the sun also helps us see the things around us. Sunlight also radiates heat, warming the earth each day as it gives light for plants and for growing food. We cannot separate the radiating light and heat from the sun; these properties always go together with sunlight for our life here on earth.

Similarly, we cannot separate Jesus, the Son of God, from God himself. Hebrews says, “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory. . . .” Think about what this means: in Jesus, the glory of God came to dwell among us, taking on our flesh and becoming one of us. The glory of God in Christ was humbled on the cross when he died to pay the price of our sin for us. Then the glory of God shone in its brilliance when Jesus rose again from the dead.

“The radiance of God’s glory” came for all to see. As the gospel of John explains, Jesus came to give light to everyone in the world (John 1:9). Jesus came to draw us to himself, the light of the world, so that we could come out of darkness.