Remember the Rainbow

by Jean Ricot Dormeus

I was heading home while it was raining intermittently. I noticed a wonderful rainbow that caught my attention. I believe all of us are used to seeing rainbow, but its beauty and artful disposition in the sky has never ceased to amazing us. Well, I delighted at that sight, but for some reason it sticks to my mind. The rainbow reminds me of Noah’s experience. It symbolizes God’s grace and love. The Lord made a commitment not destroy the Earth by flood again despite the spread of sin.  

I came across Ezekiel 1:28 that tells me that the glory of the Lord is like the rainbow. It reads: “As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spake”.   Now I have always thought that the glory of the Lord would be like blinding light, a very bright halo surrounding him. I take this idea from John 8:12, “Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life”. And I tried to connect the light with the rainbow.

I understand that rainbow is an optical and meteorological phenomenon that is caused by refraction of light in water droplets in the atmosphere, resulting in a spectrum of light, a multicolored arc appearing in the sky.   This morning, the title of my sermon is: Remember the rainbow. Did you know that the rainbow has seven colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet? Likewise, we would have seven compelling reasons to have Jesus as our light and to walk in his light, as it is written: “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path” Ps 119:105.  

The first color of the rainbow is red. You know, red is the color of blood and fire. It symbolizes life and energy, because the light imparts life. The first compelling reason why we must walk in the Jesus light is: Jesus gives life, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” John 10:10.  In some areas with long winter darkness periods, people develop a disease called “Seasonal Affective Disorder” or SAD, showing depression and overcome by gloomy thoughts. The cure available to these people is exposure to the light that restores their health.  

We know quite well that plants use to convert light energy, normally from the sun, into oxygen. This process called photosynthesis maintains atmospheric oxygen levels and supplies all of the organic compounds and most of the energy necessary for all life on Earth. Also you have heard about the phenomenon call heliotropism. Have you ever seen a bent or crooked tree? Well, these trees simply try to point in the direction of the sun. In the same way, you will see flowers turning to the sun. On a tree, fruits exposed to the sun tend to be more abundant and sweeter.  You see, we have life in Jesus, because he is the light of the world. When we walk with him, we walk in the light; when we turn to him exerting tropism to him, our life becomes more vibrant, more successful, and more joyful. There is plenty life and health in Christ.  

The second color of the rainbow is orange. Orange is the color of harvest. It is a combination of red and yellow, and symbolizes enthusiasm and encouragement. Because, orange is the color of harvest that is facilitated by the heat, it reminds us of the law of sowing and reaping, as Apostle Paul say in Galatians 6:8, “he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting”, and in Hebrews 12: 11, “No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way”.  

When we dwell in the light of Jesus and the Holy Scriptures, we sow to the Spirit what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable, we think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. As a result we have a peaceful harvest of right living and life everlasting. Whatever we do, we need to assess the consequences. Only Jesus guarantees authentic success in this life and everlasting happiness when he comes again.  

The third color of the rainbow is yellow. Yellow is the color of sunshine and symbolizes joy, honor and loyalty. The sunshine drives away darkness and ignorance, as it reveals the truth. There is one truth, and a multiplicity of errors. God said: “let there be light; light came and darkness had to flee. Likewise, when we stick to God’s truth and the Bible teachings, we tend to ban evil, lie and error from our lives.   

Jesus said: “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” Mat 5:16. He also said “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth” John 17:17. When Jesus is our light, we walk in the truth and we remain loyal to God.  

The fourth color of the rainbow is green. Green is my favorite color. It is the color of nature and symbolizes growth, harmony, freshness. It is the most restful color for human eyes. A friend of mine was doing some professional activities going up and down a large area in Antigua. She told that she felt a warm sense peace. As lush green nature promotes peace, Jesus light drives away worries, stress and anxiety. Usually we are stressed out when we are in the dark, because we don’t know what’s going on.  

When I was a boy, I used to live in a city where there was no power. In the night a group of us would in sit on my Mom’s gallery; we would tie a thread into a piece of cord place on the other side of the street. When a passerby was approaching in the dark, we would pull the cord letting them think it was a snake and they would be startled or run. In the dark, anything startles us, we take a pebble for a rock and we tend to become negative and alarmist, therefore losing our peace. In the light, we are not afraid because we see clearly.  

Jesus said: “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid” John 14:27. When we walk in the light of Jesus, we grow harmoniously, as we become positive, hopeful and abounding in peace.   The fifth color of the rainbow is blue. Blue is the color of the sky and the ocean. It symbolizes trust, faith, confidence, stability and constancy. It points us to the constancy of the light. You know that the light always travels a distance of 300 000 km per second. Our God, as the source of light, is constant; “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” Hebrews 13:8. As Christians, we need to be consistent; we cannot love today and hate tomorrow or be kind today and rude tomorrow.  

It is also written, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning”. Because we walk in Jesus light, our faith grows and we remain confident as we progress in life. And God gives the consistency that leads to victory.  

The sixth color of the rainbow is indigo. Indigo is the color of a plant used for dyeing cloth. It symbolizes spirituality that guides us. We I was a boy, they used to utilize indigo for white clothes laundry. It disguises hints of yellow and makes the garments whiter. Not only Jesus is the perfect indigo that makes us as white as snow, he guides us through the Bible because he is our light. When we land by night, usually two columns of light on the runway guide the pilot to the arrival area and someone with a phosphorescent stick guides him until the gate.  

As indigo whitens a white garment or changes it colors, and as the sun transfers light to the moon for it to shine, so Jesus, the perfect light transforms us. It is to accomplish what is written: “For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light” Eph 5:8.  

The seventh and last color of the rainbow is violet. It combines the stability of blue and the energy of red. It symbolizes power, nobility, luxury, wisdom. This is to remind us that God is Lord of Lord and King of Kings. Every light originates in him. He is the source of power and wisdom. He has given us the Holy Scriptures to inject wisdom in us, drop by drop, day by day until the day of our perfection in Christ.  

Brothers and sisters, if we walk in the light, we will become powerful and wise. We will develop a noble character and enjoy the luxury of righteous living. As Jesus said in John 8:12, if we will follow him, we won’t walk in darkness, but will have the light of genuine life.  

Let’s remember that God is light and the rainbow reflects his glory.  

Let’s also remember the seven colors of the rainbow to enhance our spiritual life: Red: color of blood that symbolizes life. Jesus has come for us to have everlasting life. Orange: color of harvest that symbolizes enthusiasm and encouragement. We need to sow to the Spirit to reap everlasting life. Yellow: color of sunshine that symbolizes joy and loyalty. Let’s stick to the truth and remain loyal to God. Green: color of nature that symbolizes peace and harmony. Let’s abound in the peace that only Jesus gives. Blue: color of the sky and the sea that symbolizes faith and constancy. We must endure and remain consistent until the end, just as God is the same yesterday, today and forever. Indigo: color of the dyeing plant that symbolizes spirituality that transforms. Only Jesus can transform us for eternal life. Violet: color that combines red and blue and symbolizes power and wisdom. The Holy Scriptures will make us wise for salvation.     

Brethren, lets walk in the light as we remember the rainbow.     

God bless you all!