THIS IS YOUR TIME: THEREFORE ARISE AND SHINE!

Isaiah 60: 1

Arise, shine;

            For your light has come!

            And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you.

To arise is to:

·         Get up

·         Stand up

·         Wake up

·         Move forward

·         Return to your first love

·         Carry out an exercise in self-examination

·         Become a Christian if you are not one already

·         Revisit the vision and things which God has called you to do

You need to arise because, you may have been:

·         Battered and bruised

·         Boxed into a corner

·         Enslaved by any form of addiction

·         Kicked around by life

·         Frustrated by the challenges of life

You may also need to arise because

·         You are not where you should be in your journey of life

·         There are areas in your life where you need to

o   Make improvements

o   Help others

·         You need to take up a new challenge

·         God is calling you to something better and bigger

The Amplified Bible puts it this way:

ARISE [from the depression and prostration in which circumstances have kept you--rise to a new life]! Shine (be radiant with the glory of the Lord), for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you!

This life is full of challenges. And every one of us faces them, from Her Majesty the Queen, to Prince Charles, to President Obama, to Simon Cowell, to you and me, and to the new baby just born today.

·         Her Majesty the Queen is probably agonizing about why she now has to be paying taxes

·         Prince Charles is probably thinking ‘I am getting older and older every day. Please can my mother just abdicate the throne so that I can become King?’

·         President Obama has developed such much grey hair and would do anything to get the American economy back on track, not to mention his reelection as President

·         Simon Cowell can’t sleep at night and so he takes sleeping pills every night

·         The new baby who has just born today is probably thinking, ‘What can of world is this? What on earth am I doing here? I definitely prefer it in my mother’s womb.’

In 2 Corinthians 4: 8–10, Paul tells us:

We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed— always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.

Paul is saying here that even in our troubles, we should still look on the brighter side, and that no matter how bad things are or may have become, they could have been much worse.

The Amplified Bible translates 2 Corinthians 4: 8–10 as follows:

We are hedged in (pressed) on every side [troubled and oppressed in every way], but not cramped or crushed; we suffer embarrassments and are perplexed and unable to find a way out, but not driven to despair; We are pursued (persecuted and hard driven), but not deserted [to stand alone]; we are struck down to the ground, but never struck out and destroyed; Always carrying about in the body the liability and exposure to the same putting to death that the Lord Jesus suffered, so that the [resurrection] life of Jesus also may be shown forth by and in our bodies.

Why is the Lord asking you to Arise and Shine? It is because he knows that you can do it! How can he be so sure? Well, it is because:

·         Your light has come

·         Your breakthrough has come

·         Your promotion has come

·         This is your turning point

·         Your advancement has come

·         Your increase is here

·         This is your moment

·         This is your time

What does it mean to Shine?

To Shine, you must first be a Child of God, because outside of Christ all our good deeds are filthy.

Isaiah 64:6 (Amplified Bible)

For we have all become like one who is unclean [ceremonially, like a leper], and all our righteousness (our best deeds of rightness and justice) is like filthy rags or a polluted garment; we all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away [far from God's favour, hurrying us toward destruction].

So, how do you Shine?

Matthew 5:16 –

Weymouth New Testament

Just so let your light shine before all men, in order that they may see your holy lives and may give glory to your Father who is in Heaven.

New Living Translation (©2007)

In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father

GOD'S WORD® Translation (©1995)

In the same way let your light shine in front of people. Then they will see the good that you do and praise your Father in heaven.

John Wesley said:

Always be enthusiastic. You can’t light fire with a wet match. Catch fire with enthusiasm and people will come from miles to watch you burn.

You Shine by:

·         Living a holy life

·         By doing good

·         By being enthusiastic and having a positive outlook

·         By being the best that you can be in everything

o   You are faithful in whatever is committed into your hands

o   You put in your best

o   You don’t procrastinate

o   You don’t take life for granted

§  Because yesterday is gone

§  Today is a present

§  Tomorrow is a promise which may never come

·          By failing forward

Lou A. Vickery said:

Four short words sum up what lifted most successful individuals above the crowd. They did all that is expected and A LITTLE BIT MORE.