2022-11-27 The Light of the World (1): Reveals Reality

 THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD (1): REVEALS REALITY (John 1:4-8) November 20, 2022 Read John 1:4-9 An old joke asked, "How many people does it take to screw in a lightbulb in the basement of the White House?" Ans: "None. They prefer to work in the dark." In many ways, that describes the world in which we live. We are hiders by nature - bugs scurrying for cover when their rock is lifted. But light is essential to life, especially John's one-of-a-kind light. We have here two of John's primary themes - life and light. "In him was LIFE." All life originates in the Logos. That phrase takes us back to Gen 2:7: "Then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life." Without God we're what? - a pile of dust. But we've been animated by His breath (Spirit), given life. Because "in him [alone] was life." From the get-go, we owe everything to Him. But here, John moves quickly to LIGHT: "In him was life, and the life was the light of men." As the one and only source of life, he is also the one and only source of light - the life leads to the light. So what does it mean that Christ is the light, and why is light needed anyway? Well, light warms, light melts (or hardens); light welcomes. But John has something else in mind. What is the primary purpose of light? 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." Light pre-eminently reveals. It uncovers truth. It discloses the otherwise unseen. All that the darkness covers; the light exposes. There is little question that we live in a world of moral, intellectual and theological darkness. So, that's John's subject from vv. 4-9 - Christ as the light. Today we'll look at Light Revealed and Light Ratified. Next week: Light Rejected and Light Received. I. Light Revealed (4-5, 9) To see the significance of Christ as light we have to start in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve were given both life and light by God. Perfect surroundings: perfect fellowship - truth reigned! All was light and life. And they might have earned sinless perfection forever! But Gen 3 - they failed the simplest of tests, choosing the word of Satan over the Word of God. And the moment they ate that fruit - darkness descended over them like a blanket of doom! Instantly, everything changed. God had told them, Gen 2:17: "but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die [dying, your will die]." They ate; and they died. They died spiritually as evidenced by their running and hiding in their own fig leaves. And they died physically as the forces of decay and disintegration were immediately set loose in their bodies. God's good creation was now irrevocably subjected to the alienating power of the Enemy. What the creative power of the Word had unified in a Garden of perfection was now at the mercy of disintegrating forces. Creation was turned into de-creation; moral and spiritual darkness permeated all of Creation. Man was alienated from God, from his wife, from nature and from himself. An evil force was set in motion that man was powerless to stop. So, a devastating spiritual darkness, the absence of God, has invaded every part of our being. It is the de-creation of all that was good in God's original creation. Our mind, will and emotions are all affected. God describes us in Eph 4:18: "They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to hardness of heart." A man might be a PhD in nuclear physics, but apart from God he has a mind that is blind to reality and a heart that doesn't want to know. I Cor 2:14: "The natural (outside Christ) person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned." When Adam fell the lights went out. Isa 59:9-10: "Therefore justice is far from us, and righteousness does not overtake us; we hope for light, and behold, darkness, and for brightness, but we walk in gloom. 10) "We grope for the wall like the blind; we grope like those who have no eyes." This is the state of mankind without God -- out of touch with reality. One of the plagues in Egypt was deep darkness. God told Moses, Ex 10:21: "Stretch out your hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, a darkness to be felt." This is life without God. This is moral and spiritual blindness resulting from sin. Without the light of God, mankind is not getting better, we are not more moral or wise or finding our true selves. We are in a constant state of returning to the darkness of de-creation. But God was ready. Even as Adam and Eve covered up with the work of their own hands, God sought them out. He covered them with animal skins which required a blood sacrifice. Then, by grace alone, He promised them an ultimate sacrifice - a seed of the woman who would crush the head of the serpent. A promise - a glow of light. And it was enough for them. By faith, Adam named his wife, Eve - mother of all living. He trusted God to deliver the promised seed. So did Eve. In Gen 4:1: "Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord." She thought she'd gotten the promised seed. Instead, she had the first murderer. But the seed was coming, just not yet. Meantime, with a few exceptions, moral and spiritual darkness prevailed. Cain became a murderer. Lamech became a polygamist and murderer. Even as mankind learned to settle cities, work with metals, advancing quickly in his secular learning, moral and spiritual darkness led to this conclusion in Gen 6:5: "The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." Darkened hearts prevailed. Only Noah found favor with God, so through the flood, God provided a new start. A flickering of light. But soon mankind again descended into the pit of unbelief. By Gen 11, man is building a tower to "make a name for ourselves" (Gen 11:5). God is crowded out again. This time God thwarts the plan by confusing the languages. Then He calls Abraham out of moon-worship to be His representative to bless all nations. A flickering light. But we know that story. The trend, even among God's chosen people, is toward darkness. They had the light of God's Word. Psa 119:105: "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." But that light was largely ignored, sometimes lost, and seldom treasured. And it was not the seed, not the ultimate light that could provide salvation. But suddenly, in 4 BC everything changed. Hundreds of years after the promise to Adam and Eve, the seed at last arrived in the person of Jesus Christ. Matthew characterized the beginning of His ministry by saying, "the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned" (Mt 4:16). The light is now on the stage of world history. Jesus Himself proclaims, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." John 12:46: "I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness." The light has come. What is the purpose of light? Light reveals; light exposes; light bares truth. Jesus tells Pilate, Jn 18:37b: "For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world - to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice." What truth is that? In simplest terms, here it is. "You are more sinful than you ever dared imagine; but you are more loved than you ever dared hope. So, I'm here to save you from your sin." That's the message. His light exposes us for sinners we are, but His light reveals God for the Savior He is. The contrast is at once devastating; and it is redemptive. "You are more sinful than you ever dared imagine; but you are more loved than you ever dared hope." That light shown brightest at the cross. He didn't just say it; He showed it. He told His arresters, "But this is your hour, and the power of darkness" (Lu 22:53b). Then He hung on the cross for 3 hours in the utter darkness of midnight between noon and 3:00. Sin was displayed in all its horror. Its price was incalculable. The most horrendous disintegration of all occurred as the Father forsook the Son who had been credited with all our sin. On the cross He was de-created so that we could become a new creation in Him. Our sin put Him there where in the darkest of dark - a darkness that could be felt, the horror of sin was uncovered - revealed for all to see. The God who is a consuming fire of holiness turned away as His own Son paid our price. But God's love was also shown there in all its glory! What kind of love would pay this price for a lost race? It's a love that knows no bounds, that overcomes any hurdle to seek the lost sheep, a love that is unspeakably profound. This is what the light has revealed; this is the life the light has purchased. This is the ultimate expression of truth: "You are more sinful than you could ever imagine, but you are more loved than you ever dared hope." He was de-created so that we might be re-created to new life in Him. What love! The darkness had its hour; it could not win. John 1:5: "The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." Why? Resurrection! The worst Satan could do had no chance against the best that God can do. And so - the resurrection which proved - it's all true! The old creation is replaced by a blood-bought new creation. It is only for me to receive it, to claim it, to accept it as mine, to return to the reality of life with God at center. Bc I deserve it? No - it is all by grace alone. Archibald Campbell, 40-year missionary to Korea says spiritual darkness prevailed until the gospel came: "Men sold their daughters, their sisters, and even their wives into prostitution. Wife beating was commonplace. I have seen a man dragging his wife along the street by the hair. Onlookers shrugged their shoulders and said, 'That thing's going to die.' A frantic appeal to the Chief of Police proved useless. Hospital service was a horror. If they can't pay for it, let 'em die! Lepers were outcasts. The blind were beggars." A grim pix, duplicated worldwide where God is ignored. But the gospel came to Korea and the nation was transformed within two generations. An example: One couple, refugees in the Korean War, had a son, Oh In Ho, who came to the US to study. One evening, he was attacked by a teen-age gang and killed. His parents, still living in a hovel, took their scant savings and sent it to the US, requesting the murderers of their son be forgiven and sent to a Xn school to learn of Jesus. That's what happens when people respond to the light of the love of God. Those murdering boys "were more sinful that they could have dared imagine, but more loved than they could have dared hope". Guess what? So are you - and so am I. II. Light Ratified (6-8) So, the light arrived, but he was not alone. 6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him." This was John the Baptist, of course. He came "to bear witness about the light." His whole mission was to point people to Christ. He was the first of what would become millions to say, "Yes, it's true. Jesus is the light." But John was first to ratify that identity. He began his preaching a few months prior to Jesus' arrival. His message: Mt 2:2: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." "Repent! Acknowledge your sin to make way for the One who is coming. Own up to who you really are." Many responded, Mt 3:6, "and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins." Great - but no water, not even the Jordan River, can actually remove sin. This was stage one. Stage two came when Jesus arrived. John pointed to him and said, Jn 1:29, "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." That completes the message. Repentance is step one. Trusting Jesus to remove sin - that's step 2. Repent and believe. Repent because you are more sinful than you ever imagine. But believe in Him to remove the sin because you are more loved than you ever dared hope. John was not that light. But he pointed to that light and said, "There He is. It's all true. Just repent and believe and His life becomes your life." What a message, what a God, what a Savior. Conc -- A boy named Tom was walking the neighborhood one night with friends when a police car stopped them. They hadn't done anything wrong but feared they'd be accused, so they ran down an alley, hiding behind some trash cans. The spotlight found Tom as the others ran: "What are you doing?" "Nothing." The cop said, "So why run and hide?" Tom replied, "I was afraid so I ran. I knocked over these cans in the dark, and I'm sorry for the disturbance." By now the light was beaming bright in his eyes. There was nowhere to hide. Tom was sure his life was ruined if the officer told his folks. But then the voice behind the light said, "Son, I'm not here to punish you; I'm here to protect you." And with that, Tom got a glimpse of what it's like to stand before the Light of the world - totally exposed, completely undone - yet completely protected. Knee deep in garbage, yet cleaner than ever. That's what the light can do for you if you will come to the Him. Let's pray. DONE Possible conclusion. Conc - Don't turn from the Light Beloved. Fifteen years before he died Gandhi wrote: "I must tell you, Hinduism entirely satisfies my soul, fills my whole being, and I find a solace in the Bhagavad Gita and Upanishads that I miss even in the Sermon on the Mount." But just before his death he wrote again: "My days are numbered. I am not likely to live very long - perhaps a year or a little more. For the first time in 50 years I find myself in the slough of despond. All about me is darkness; I am praying for light." What a tragedy. I hope he came to light before he was assassinated. The light would have revealed that even he was a greater sinner than he had ever imagined. But it would also have revealed that he was loved more than he ever dared hope. And that's what you'll find too if you come to the light. Let's pray. 7