Light for Dark Days
John 8:12
Message by Kurt Jones
October 30, 2005
This summer up in a cave in the hills of Tennessee. At on point the guide turned off all the lights. It was pitch dark – you couldn’t see your hand in front of your face. Then he said," if you want me to turn the lights back on, raise your hand…"
Those who wake up early… stumbling around in the dark, trying not to wake the other person. Putting on clothing trying to make sure you get the right colors together… blue or black socks? Or one of each?
Then Jesus again spoke
to them, saying, " I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will
not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life."
John 8:12-13
Intro
What is light?
Light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength that is visible to the eye (visible light) or, in a technical or scientific setting, electromagnetic radiation of any wavelength. Due to wave-particle duality, light simultaneously exhibits properties of both waves and particles. It is a central concept of quantum mechanics. From Wik-Pedia
EX: Teaching the kids about the rotation of the earth, orbits, and phases of the moon.
Gen 1:1-5
In the beginning God created
the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was formless and void, and darkness
was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the
surface of the waters. 3 Then God said, "Let there be light"; and
there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light
from the darkness. 5 God called the light day, and the darkness He called night.
And there was evening and there was morning, one day.
or
John 11:9-10
Jesus answered, " Are
there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not
stumble, because he sees the light of this world. 10 "But if anyone walks
in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him."
But we can hardly imagine these words coming out of Jesus’ mouth without knowing that He had a deeper meaning than the obvious.
So we clearly see there are two realms – that of light and of the dark.
From the Christian Research Institute Website
"Halloween" is a contracted form of "Holy Evening" and refers to the evening before All Saints Day (November 1), when Christians traditionally remember believers of other times who are especially good role models of faith. The Christian Church long kept the Jewish custom of marking a holiday (contracted form of "holy day") for the twenty-four hours beginning with sundown and ending with sundown the following day.
The celebration of Halloween, is rooted in the ancient pagan calendar which divided the year into Summer and Winter by two fire festivals. Before the birth of Christ, the day we know as Halloween was part of the Celtic Feast of Samhain (sah–ween). This feast was a celebration of Druid priests from Britain and France and commemorated the beginning of Winter. The festivals were marked by animal sacrifices, offerings to the dead, and bonfires in recognition of departed souls. It was believed that on this night demons, witches, hobgoblins, and elves were released en masse to harass and to oppress the living. For self-preservation many Druids would dress up as witches, devils, and ghouls, and would even involve themselves in demonic activities and thus make themselves immune from attack.
In direct response to this pagan tradition, the early Christian church moved a festive celebration called All Saints’ Day from May to November 1 and renamed it All Hallows’ Eve, from which we get the word Halloween. This was an overt attempt on the part of believers to infiltrate pagan tradition with the truth of the gospel.
What is the Christians response to Halloween?
Use Halloween as an opportunity to communicate to your children, your family members, and your friends that although death and the grave are very real, we are more than conquerors over the powers of darkness through Jesus Christ.Second, this is an appropriate time to consider the saints who have gone on before us.
A good general principle should be to refrain from any participation that would either compromise one’s faith or bring dishonor to the Lord Jesus Christ. Another good principle is to look for ways to become a positive, Christ honoring voice in the midst of secularism and paganism. Each Christian must be persuaded in his own conscience about how he approaches Halloween.
EX: Out walking with my kids in our neighborhood looking at all the Halloween decorations. One said, "Oh we know that stuff isn’t real…"
Eph 6:12 - For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.
Col 1:13 – We’ve been rescued from the "domain of darkness…"
2 Cor 4:4-6… the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus' sake. 6 For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
To "shed some light" on the subject….
1. Jesus gives us ILLUMINATION
I am the light of the world... cf. John 9:5
1 John 1:5 - This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light , and in Him there is no darkness at all.
In the OT, The Shekinah glory of God combined both the visible light of blazing illumination with the weight of moral perfection.
Matt 17:2 - And He was transfigured before them; and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light.
Heb 1:3 - And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power.
Intellectually light represents truth, whereas morally it represents holiness. Without Christ there is neither TRUTH nor HOLINESS…
Isaiah 9:2 quoted in Matt 4:16 "THE PEOPLE WHO WERE SITTING IN DARKNESS SAW A GREAT LIGHT, AND THOSE WHO WERE SITTING IN THE LAND AND SHADOW OF DEATH, UPON THEM A LIGHT DAWNED."
Luke 2:32 calls it a "LIGHT OF REVELATION TO THE GENTILES."
John 1:4-9 the world "light" appears 6 times
John 12:36 - "While you have the Light, believe in the Light, so that you may become sons of Light .
Most of us are familiar with the verses…
John 3:16-21 - NIV
16
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever
believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send
his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands
condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only
Son.
Look how Jesus ties this truth to Light and darkness
19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."
So what happens in someone’s life who comes into the light?
2. Jesus gives us TRANSFORMATION
he who follows me will
not walk in the darkness
Acts 26:15-18
15 "And I said, 'Who are You, Lord?' And the Lord said, 'I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. 16'But get up and stand on your feet; for this purpose I have appeared to you, to appoint you a minister and a witness not only to the things which you have seen, but also to the things in which I will appear to you; 17 rescuing you from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you, 18 to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.'
Turning away from the dominion of Satan!
Men loved the darkness more than they love the light…
Col 1:12-13 "…giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. 13For He delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,
1 Peter 2:9 - But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light
So what difference does this make in the thoughts and actions of a believer?
Eph 5:6-11
6 Let no one deceive
you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon
the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not be partakers with them; 8 for
you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children
of Light 9(for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness
and truth), 10 trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Do not participate
in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them;
By reason of our new identity, we are to live lives that are different.
We were darkness (not just IN darkness) now we ARE light
Walk = live
Clarify it! OK - Goodness, righteousness, truth!!
A life of darkness, dominated by sin is
1 John 1:5-7 - This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; 7 but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.
EX: Over in Santa Cruz looking at the Monarch Butterflies and marveling again at the transformation of a egg to a caterpillar to a pupae to a butterfly.
3. Jesus gives us MOTIVATION
but will have the light of life
Matt 5:14-16- 14 "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; 15 nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
Transition to Communion
Bread - Remember the darkness you were in and thank God for taking you out and bringing you into the light. Protection against pride….
Cup – Thank God for putting His light in you and making you a bearer of the Good News. Not only transforming your heart and life, but giving you the joy of passing it along to others…
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