YouTube Link
Genesis 1:1-5 In the beginning when God created1 the heavens and the earth, 2 the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the dar.,kness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.
John 8:12-20 12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.” 13 Then the Pharisees said to him, “You are testifying on your own behalf; your testimony is not valid.” 14 Jesus answered, “Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid because I know where I have come from and where I am going, but you do not know where I come from or where I am going. 15 You judge by human standards; I judge no one. 16 Yet even if I do judge, my judgment is valid; for it is not I alone who judge, but I and the Father1 who sent me. 17 In your law it is written that the testimony of two witnesses is valid. 18 I testify on my own behalf, and the Father who sent me testifies on my behalf.” 19 Then they said to him, “Where is your Father?” Jesus answered, “You know neither me nor my Father. If you knew me, you would know my Father also.” 20 He spoke these words while he was teaching in the treasury of the temple, but no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come.
I Am the Light of the World
When you were a child were you afraid of the dark? Or, as a parent, did you have a child who was afraid of the dark? I was one of those who was afraid of the dark. I just knew something was going to get me in the darkness. Confession time: I slept with a nightlight until I left home after I finished high school. The dark can be a scary thing. There is nothing rational about this fear. You can turn on the lights and show a child that nothing is there but as soon as the light goes out they are afraid again.
Now think about this. Have you ever known anyone who was afraid of the light? No, of course not. In the light we can see. Our eyes were made to function in light. God designed us this way. The presence of light allows us to see, to find our way and it takes away our fear of the dark.
Genesis tells us that all was dark in the beginning. Then God said, “Let there be light” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. This is a theme throughout the Bible. The light is good and the dark is bad. In the light everything can be plainly seen but in the dark, evil things can hide. Darkness is often a symbol for sin, evil, death and everything that is not of God. Light is a symbol for redemption, spiritual awakening, goodness, peace and all that is of God.
Last week we started our sermon series on the “I am” statements of Jesus in the gospel of John. These are metaphors that Jesus used to describe Himself so He could teach us something of who He is. We will again look for three things. First, who is Jesus saying He is? Second, what did it mean in His culture and how does it speak to us today? Finally, what does it mean to our beliefs, our behavior and our lives?
Jesus said, “I am the bread of life” because He is necessary to sustain us, necessary for us to live. While food is a physical necessity Jesus is a spiritual necessity. In today’s scripture Jesus said, “I am the light of the world” because just as light is necessary to see the physical world around us so is Jesus necessary to see the spiritual world. He is the One who guides us and leads us. Jesus gives light not to our physical eyes but to our spiritual eyes. He calls us out of darkness and sin into the light, his light. Jesus went on to say, “Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.” The light of life is Jesus shining in our life, showing us the path to salvation and eternal life.
What did light mean in Jesus’ culture and how does it speak to us today? With this metaphor we don’t see many cultural differences. Light and dark haven’t changed and are still symbols for good and evil. We have many more ways to get light at night when it is dark than they had two thousand years ago but light and dark have remained the same. Darkness was a symbol of spiritual darkness for them the same as it is for us. They lived in a time of great evil; starvation and disease were rampant, they were bound by the law and by the Romans, crucifixion was a common form of execution. We live in a time of perhaps greater evil or at least evil on a larger scale. For most of our lives we have lived knowing that humankind has the ability to destroy not only ourselves but our planet. Destruction on a massive scale. We live in a world where genocide has happened and continues to happen. Evil may come in somewhat different forms but it remains with us today. The light of Jesus is needed just as much now as it was then.
Have you ever been in a place of absolute darkness? I remember going on a tour of an underground cave. At one point they turned off the lights. I literally could not see my hand in front of my face. To take even a step was dangerous because we might trip over something and get hurt. Our eyes can only function when there is light. Without light we cannot see our way forward. Without Jesus we cannot see the way forward in our lives, we are lost, crying out in the darkness.
A story is told of an explorer who was walking along the top of a mountain when he fell down through a hole, deep down several hundred feet into this cavern and was stuck in total darkness for over a week.
Every day he cried out, “Help Me!” He kept hoping that somebody would hear his voice and figure out he was down there. Finally, a week later, another hiker came along and heard this very faint sound. He looked around and found this hole. Because of his discovery, some rescuers came and dug this man out.
When they asked the man, “How did you hold on to hope day after day after day in total darkness?” He said, “There was one little pin hole ray of light that was coming through and I just kept focusing on that ray of light.” Light gives hope in the darkness. In the darkest place even a tiny light shines brightly. Did you know that in the darkness a candle can be seen from miles away. Jesus is the light of the world who gives us hope, hope that all the spiritual darkness in our world will one day be driven away.
Millions in our world walk in darkness; they do not know Jesus and wander around lost and searching, unable to see the way forward. They are trapped in the darkness without any way out. Jesus said, “Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.” Jesus is the light of the world, He and He alone can lead us out of darkness. He alone can take us from the darkness of our sin and bring us into the light of His presence.
So, if Jesus is vital to our life and our faith how does this affect us? If Jesus is the light of the world for us than we will seek Him when we need direction or guidance. Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” We will search our bibles for the truth and ask for wisdom and understanding. We will make decisions based not on what we want but on what we discern God wants. That will always be first in our life. As we say in the Lord’s prayer, “Thy will be done,” God’s will not ours.
Just as Jesus is light to the world we will seek to bring that light to the world. In Matthew’s gospel Jesus said, “14 “You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. 15 No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven. (Matt. 5:14-16) Jesus is the light of the world and He has passed this task on to us. We are to be the light of the world. We are to be letting our light shine before others.
I have a funny story for you this morning about a steadfast light that refused to move. While on maneuvers, a battleship lookout noted a light in the dark, foggy night. After noting the light’s coordinates, the captain recognized his ship was on a collision course with the other vessel. The captain instructed, “Signal the ship: We are on a collision course, advise you change course 20 degrees.” The return signal countered, “Advisable for you to change course 20 degrees.” The captain signaled, “I’m a captain, change course 20 degrees.” The response was, “I’m a seaman second class, you’d better change course 20 degrees.” By this time the captain was furious. His signal curtly ordered, “I’m a battleship. Change course 20 degrees.” The reply: “I’m a lighthouse. You make the call.”
Just as a lighthouse cannot be moved the light of Christ is changeless. Allow the light of Christ to be steadfast in your life. Shine where He says shine, Go where He says Go.
If we believe Jesus is the light of the world then we will have a heart for evangelism, we will want to be light in our community.
Let’s think of some ways we can be light in our community. Recently we had a craft fair at our church. Many people who came said they didn’t even know we were at the end of the road. One couple showed up the next Sunday. Perhaps we could have craft fairs regularly. Perhaps we could be more intentional about having a church presence there.
The Learning Center is the biggest mission of our church. I asked Sharon how many children there are in the center. She told me there are sixty. That’s sixty children who have learned about Jesus. It’s also sixty families that have been exposed to Jesus through their children.
Many churches have nursery schools in their building but there is no connection between the church and the school. The Bible Time I do with the Learning Center children is another way our church reaches out to the community. The children are exposed to Jesus perhaps for the first time, and they learn songs about Jesus. Parents have told me the children will sing the songs at home. I’ve learned that songs will stick with us long after words have faded.
These are some of the ways we can reach out into our community to show the light of Jesus to the world. Individually, we will seek to share our faith with others in ways that are winsome and inviting. We will want to help others grow closer to Jesus.
The beginning of John’s gospel speaks about Jesus and says, “What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.” The darkness cannot overcome the light of Jesus. He is stronger, He is brighter. Shine, Jesus, shine, fill this land with the Father’s glory.