Sunday 4 December 2011 Light in the Darkness

Psalm 36.9 For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light.

Once a King went travelling dressed in servant clothes,
journeyed to a place foretold, at his Father’s bidding,
in the hush of night; come the hour, came the light.

Into a world where hope was gone came the light, came the light.
Into our hearts a lantern shone, came the light, came the light.

Lowly his beginning, on a bed of straw, darkness all around he saw.
but not for the righteous, in the hush of night; come the hour, came the light.

Once my Lord did suffer, so I’d suffer not,
took our place upon the cross. but no tomb could hold him,
in the hush of night; come the hour, came the light.

Mark Niedwiedz




St Paul’s Cathedral
is famous for more than just the current protest camp outside.
Inside is Holman Hunt's famous painting, 'The Light of the World'.
It shows how Jesus stands outside the closed door of a person's life.
The door is shut and there is no handle on the outside;
it has to be opened from inside
but to judge from the weeds growing around the door
it's been closed for a long time.

The painting poses two questions:
Will the person inside open up to Jesus?
And as Jesus looks directly at us in the painting
the painter is asking us, what about you?

John 1.4-5.9-12

4 ‘In him was life and the life was the light of men.
5 The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.
9 The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.
10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him,
the world did not recognize him.
11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.
12 Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name,
he gave the right to become children of God--

WHO RECEIVES THE LIGHT?

The question is, how much do we really know of the light of God?
It is clear from John 1 that the light has to be received,
not everybody gets it automatically.
When electricity was brought into the more remote areas of Ireland, 40 years ago
it was said that some old people would switch on the new electric light
in order to see to light up their old oil lamps.
The they would switch the electric light off
and enjoy the flickering light of the old lamps which they were used to
and which they said they liked better.

There is a light from God, strong and bright, available to everyone
but it’s as if people switch it off because they like the old light better.
We are not talking about physical eyesight
but about spiritual and moral vision.

WE ARE IN THE DARK WITHOUT GOD

I once heard a humanist give a ‘word for today’ on radio
about what the birds can teach us.
He was eloquent about their examples
of devotion and community and self sacrifice
and how much we have in common with the rest of nature.
Of course he didn’t explore where those values of devotion etc. come from.
It’s good that he recognises that those things are good
but by shutting out the light of God, he has no logical explanation
why it is good and right to be devoted and community minded
and willing to sacrifice for others.

Paul in Romans 1 20-21 does not use the actual word ‘light’
but he maintains that
‘since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--
his eternal power and divine nature-- have been clearly seen,
being understood from what has been made,
so that men are without excuse.
For although they knew God,
they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him,
but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.’

That is the sad state of so many
who don’t recognise God and don’t give thanks
- futile thinking and foolish darkened hearts.
People are thinking ‘We’ll manage with the light we’ve always used.’
But they lack both the light of God and the life of God

This is the tragic trapped situation of human beings:
we are made in the image of God, made to worship and serve God,
we reflect at our best many wonderful aspects of God’s nature,
wise, caring, just, patient, creative,
with great dignity and beauty and capacity to love
and yet we are in the dark, left to ourselves, we just don’t get it.

The light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not understand it.
The Greek word which is translated ‘understand’ in the NIV
could also be translated ‘overcome’ engulf.
The KJV says the darkness comprehended it not’
didn’t take hold of it, couldn’t get it.

John is possibly using both meanings
affirming that darkness can never conquer God’s light
but the main meaning is that darkness
just doesn’t ‘grasp’ or ‘understand’ God.

John is saying that without Christ, we just don’t get it.
This is something which will be opened out a few verses later
how the true light that enlightens every man was in the world
but was not received by the world.

That is to say, people have drawn their blinds against the light.
The Light of the world comes knocking on the door
but they pretend they are not home, they tell him to go away.
Or maybe they use the light for a little while
they make a commitment to Jesus, they sort out a few things in their lives
but then they switch back to the old light.

How do you respond to all this talk about the light of God
and to the hymn we will sing in a few minutes?
Lord, the light of your love is shining,
in the midst of the darkness, shining:
Jesus, Light of the world, shine upon us;
set us free by the truth you now bring us --
shine on me, shine on me:
And we could also say shine in me, shine in me.

Will we open the door and ask Jesus in the words of the old prayer
‘Come into my life, Lord Jesus. Come in today. Come in to stay.’

When we sing those words,
are they just words to sing to a nice tune and that’s it?
Or whenever you think of Jesus light of the world
do you get a sense of light dispelling darkness in your spirit?

This is so important, so vital. It is authentic Christian experience.
If you have no sense of God’s light shining on you and in you through Jesus
then it is most likely that you are still in darkness and far from God.

Lets just see how this is supported in other places in the New Testament

THE LIGHT SHOWS UP WHAT WE ARE REALLY LIKE

We know so well John 3.16 but lets also read John 3.16-21
"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.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but to save the world through him.
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.
This is the verdict: Light has come into the world,
but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.
Everyone who does evil hates the light,
and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.
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."

These verses explain why Holman Hunt’s picture is so sadly true of many lives.
We hide in the shadows, we keep the door shut.
Perhaps we are afraid what that pure searching light will show up.
Perhaps we are, even worse, just proud
and think we are doing all right and our good deeds will get us by
but v 21 is so clear that 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."

A praise leader in church was singing out the song ‘When the music fades’
with that line ‘It’s all about you, it’s all about you Jesus’
and then to his horror he realised he had been singing
It’s all about me, it’s all about me’.

He then realised it was more than a slip of the tongue,
God was prodding him as to how much of his religious activity
singing, praying, evangelising, church work, charity work
was really about his own needs and self esteem and ego.

It’s all too easy at this time of the year to be high minded
about the people who shop and party at Christmas
and don’t seem to get Christ at all.
And we pray sincerely
that they would stop being dazzled by Christmas lights and come to the true light.
But church goer, committed Christian, we need first of all to ask ourselves
how much of our Christian activity
has actually been about ourselves and not about Jesus.
Do we, believers, committed people
not need to keep coming into the light of Christ
that he may assess the quality and worth of what we have been doing -
was it all about him or still too much about us?

Lets not be afraid to come to the light, walk it the light of Jesus.
It’s a searching but also a forgiving and restoring light

‘BY YOUR BLOOD I MAY ENTER YOUR BRIGHTNESS’

In 1 John 1.5-9 John challenges Christians who thought they could live any old way
with what it means to live in the light, to enter Christ’s brightness.

'This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you:
God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.
If we claim to have fellowship with him
yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth.
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light,
we have fellowship with one another,
and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.
If we claim to be without sin,
we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.
if we confess our sins he is faithful and just
and will cleanse our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness .'

God is light and we are called to walk in the light
Let me offer some examples of both light and darkness

If we grumble and gripe, that is darkness, a true 'gloom'.

If we give genuine praise and appreciation that is light;.

If we criticise someone behind their back, that is darkness
but if we confront them in private about their fault
that, though costly to you and them, is light;

If we grasp at and demand to have more and more, that's darkness
but if we give away gladly without needing thanks and attention, that's light.

If we are negative and cynical, that is darkness ­hope and joy bring light;

If we are obsessed by the failings of others, or burdened by our own faults,
either way that is darkness,
but if we rest humbly in Christ's forgiveness, that's light.

If we are saying ‘it’s all about me’ that has to be darkness
but if we even get to the point of saying
‘LORD, it has been all about me but I do want it to be about you
then that is the dawning of light and there is great blessing in it.

Let me tell you a little about my Sunday morning half hour’s drive
to the first service at Aghada.
I am usually on my own, which is just as well,
considering some of the things I am talking to the LORD about.
I remember some years ago driving along
struggling with something which had been burdening me for some time.
I won’t give you details.
Enough to say that I came to the conclusion somewhere around Glounthane
that at the root of the problem, it had been ‘all about me and not about Jesus’
and I realised that that had to change.

It was like light dawning in darkness and a burden lifting.
So much so that later that morning
two people said to me independently of each other
‘You look very happy today.’
(which may suggest that most Sundays I don’t look happy).

Often I find when God is trying to reinforce something in your life
he send two witnesses along to back it up.
Those two remarks about happy I looked
reinforced for me the truth that if we confess our sins
God is faithful and just and will cleanse our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

There is no one here who does not need to keep hearing these words.
If we have God talk but not God walk, we are in the dark, we are lying
it is still ‘all about me’ and not at all about Jesus.

Truly to have fellowship with God
is to walk in the light as he is in the light
and that gives us two wonderful blessings:
one is to have fellowship with each other;
we are in the clear, in the light with each other.
the other blessing is referred to in that hymn
‘By your blood I may enter your brightness’
The blessing of being cleaned from all sin by the blood of Jesus, God's Son.
It is because Jesus died for us that we have forgiveness for all sin.
Through that forgiveness we come into a relationship with God
where we may walk in the light,
forgiven, set free and in true fellowship with each other.

How much light from God are you receiving at this moment?
Do you sense that he is he near us? Are we glad he is near us, or afraid?
Do we sense (what the hymn calls) 'the sunshine of his love'?
Or are there clouds in the way? Things that we don't want God to see?
Or are you in fact in the dark about God?
You're in church today, going through the motions of worship,
singing praying listening but it does not make sense.
You know that you have God-talk but not God walk;
you realise that you are in the dark 'without God and without hope'?
(Ephesians 2.12)

Let no-one despair,
the reason Jesus came was that those who follow him
should not walk in darkness but should have the light of life.
Back to the picture of Jesus standing at the door.
Have you opened the door to Jesus? Have you received the light?

It can begin so simply
as simply as when someone knocks on your door
and you open it and say ‘Come in’
Use this prayer to ask him in:
‘Come into my heart, Lord Jesus, come in today, come in to stay.

But we need to understand this is not an invitation
to come in for a while and then go away again.
It is to ask him in to all of our life and for all time.
It’s not just into the front hall or the best room
and it’s not just for a limited time, it’s for ever, to stay.

I invite you, I call you if you are serious about God to walk in the light.
Allow Jesus to come in and close no door against him:
he will correct us and that can be uncomfortable
but he will not condemn, he will not reject
and in the light of his love and acceptance we shall reflect him to others.

In him was life and the life was the light of men.
The light shines in the darkness
and the darkness did not understand it grasp it.

LORD, shine on me and shine in me.
Help us to stop pretending we are all right,
with everything under control, with no sin worth talking about,
or nothing that could not be swept under the carpet.
We simply say to you that our lives are in a mess
and that we have offended you
and we have no reason to be forgiven
except that your love is such that Christ died for us.
By his blood we may enter the brightness.

Come into my heart LORD Jesus,
come in today,
come in to stay.

The sun will no more be your light by day,
nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you,
for the LORD will be your everlasting light,
and your God will be your glory.
Isaiah 60:19