Reflect His Light.

Our theme for 2022 is “Begin Again”

This is Christmas Eve, the conclusion of our 2022 Advent Series.

Advent literally means “the coming.”

It is a time of building anticipation for Christmas, which is the celebration of Christ’s coming.

We recently completed a series on the Gospel of John, so someone suggested to me, “Why not do an Advent series from the Gospel of John?”

I thought it sounded like a good idea.

It’s especially interesting because John is the only Gospel writer who does not include any details about the birth of Jesus.

John is more that just a historian, he’s an artist.

He tells us the story of the gospel through images.

The Creator of the world is coming into the world that He made.

He is trying to communicate with the people of the world in terms that they understand.

He is using terms life life and light - we are like ‘yeah, we know what those mean’

But our understanding is like that of a child compared to His.

Or rather, if we really believed, like a child does, we might understand better.

Jesus, the real Jesus, is the bridge between our human reality and that of our Creator.

Last week we talked about life that is beyond mere existence.

And John parallels life and light, so that we can understand that life, light and good are vastly more powerful and substantive than are darkness, death or evil.

John 1:4–5 ESV

4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

What is light?

Light is energy - electromagnetic radiation.

We know a lot about light, but we are still not entirely sure of what it is.

What does light do?

Light illuminates!

It helps us to see and to know the world around us

In the universe, light provides a constant by which time and space can be measured.

It dispels darkness, which is the absence of light.

Light nourishes and supports life.

Light is also what gives life beauty, because it opens our eyes to a whole world of color which is made possible by light.

Objects are made visible by the light that they reflect.

Light shows us what beauty and goodness are.

And our job is to spread God’s goodness and his light.

Light Reflects the Creator.

John 1:6–8 ESV

6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.

After John begins His gospel that Jesus is the light coming into the world, he tells us that John the Baptist is not the light, but reflects the light.

John says that John the Baptist “bears witness” to the light.

To bear witness is to give testimony to the truth.

It is reflecting the light.

I can shine a light, but you won’t see the light until it hits something that reflects it back.

Light, itself is invisible, but it becomes visible when something reflects it, or bears witness to it.

God Created light as a representation of His goodness.

Genesis 1:3–4 ESV

3 And 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 darkness.

Augustine points out that God called the light good.

He didn’t say it after he separated the darkness, in case we might also thing that darkness is good.

Light is good and darkness is just the backdrop against which we see that it is good.

God is good and He is light.

“The goodness of creation is the goodness of God” - Augustine

I said last week that we can know something about God just from observing His Creation.

John the Baptist is created by God and therefore reflects something of his Creator.

You and I are created and reflect our Creator just by virtue of the fact that we are human.

But Jesus is more than a reflection - He is the light that is come into the world.

By saying that john the baptist is not the light, John is declaring that Jesus is uniquely different.

Jesus is the light!

He is not just a reflection or a representation of God - He is God.

The church has affirmed this from the earliest creeds.

The Nicean Creed was first formulated in 325 AD and concluded in 381 AD, but this part was one of the first to be written.

We believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father; God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God; begotten not made, one in being with the Father. Through Him all things were made. For us men and for our salvation He came down from heaven. By the power of the Holy Spirit He was born of the Virgin Mary and became man.

This is what we are celebrating at Christmas time, that light came into the world.

God became human.

The Creator became one of His creation.

The Light that created the world from His own substance, came to ignite something of the same in us.

Light makes God’s goodness visible.

Since John uses a lot of imagery in writing his gospel, I thought it would be good to illustrate John’s points with some of our own American Christmas imagery.

What should I use to illustrate light? Why, lights, of course!

We are in the middle of Hanukkah the festival of lights.

Who doesn’t love to drive around and see all of the Christmas lights on a cold winter evening!

In 1880, Thomas Edison had already invented the incandescent light bulb and was looking for a way to advertise it. So he hung up lights on the outside of his laboratory to show them off to passersby.

A couple of years later, one of his employees realized that the lights could be used to solve the problem of fires caused by candles on Christmas trees. So he strung 80 red, white, and blue Christmas lights around a Christmas tree and called local newspapers to cover the brilliant idea. Understandably, the idea took off, especially once several Presidents started lighting trees at the White House.

General Electric bought the patent from Edison and started selling Christmas tree lights to the public. But Christmas lights were very expensive, especially since they required installation and electricians were few and far between at the time.

Department stores even suggested that families rent the lights rather than buy them! Though we still use incandescent bulbs in many applications, over time, companies were able to make Christmas lights much safer and more affordable.

You might remember that the whole idea of lights on Christmas trees is attributed to Martin Luther.

He was said to be out walking on a winter evening and composing a sermon when he saw the stars shining through the evergreen trees ans wanted to duplicate that experience by wiring candles to the branches of a tree.

Christmas tree candles were notorious for causing fires, so Edward Johnson, who worked for Edison, made the first Christmas tree light bulbs.

So now people could burn down their house more efficiently with electricity!

The idea is not to burn down the house, but to light up the dark winter nights.

And with light bulbs you can do it bigger, better and in color!

Some neighborhoods even have competitions to see whose house is the brightest or the prettiest.

Now you can get computer programs to control all of your lights and even time them to flash to the beat of your favorite tunes.

Lighting up you house or your tree becomes a visible expression of holiday cheer.

On Tuesday evening, some of us went around the neighborhood singing Christmas carols.

One problem, how would we know which houses to go to?

Some people are grumpy and might not take kindly to us ringing their door bell or singing to them.

But our experience has been that many people are delighted to have a surprise visit from carolers.

We decided to go to the houses that are lit up with Christmas decorations.

After all, their lights are a visible expression of their Christmas celebration and we would be adding to their joy.

How was God supposed to know who would receive Him until He came?

John 1:9–12 ESV

9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,

God is good - but how are we supposed to know what good is unless something or someone expresses that goodness to us.

If God had not created light on the first day, nothing else that God created would have mattered.

You wouldn’t be able to see it.

Everything is made visible by light.

And it is sustained by light.

Animals and plants depend on light to some degree for their survival.

So how does God show us His goodness?

He comes into the world that He has created, and how people respond to him shows what they are made of.

John 3:17–21 ESV

17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

So many people think that God is up there just waiting for them to mess up so that He can judge them.

But that is a reflection of our own guilty conscience, it’s not a reflection of God’s goodness.

God came to save the world, not to judge the world.

But when the world judges God, they judge themselves and show that they are not made of the same goodness that is God.

However, the good news is that you have a choice.

If you recognize what is happening, you can change the outcome.

If you know that you are not good like God, the key is to admit it.

Admit that the light of God exposes your darkness.

And here’s the secret- move toward the light!

When we recognize that we are sinners, our initial reaction is to try to hide.

We try to pretend to be good.

Or we might say, “forget it, I’m going to be the bad guy and push people away.”

Either way it’s not the truth of who you are.

God made you good - He made you to be like Him.

The Bible says God made us in His image and likeness.

But when sin came into the world it tarnished that image.

We can never be good like God without His intervention.

The truly “good news” is that God has intervened.

Jesus came into the world as light, both to show us what God intended, to redeem - buy us back for God, and to transform us by His own power.

God has done everything necessary to restore us to His goodness.

Our job is to let Him do it in us.

Just let His light shine on us and in us.

Move toward His light and you will see His goodness and light reflected in you and through you.

Other people will see your light and they will think it is you.

And it is you - or at least it is you bearing witness to the true light.

But it doesn’t originate with you - it originates with God and you are an extension of His light and his goodness.

And they can be an extension too!

Goodness and light increase as they spread.

John 14:15–17 ESV

15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.

Before Jesus came, the holy Spirit would come upon people at various times and for various reasons to accomplish God’s purpose.

But after Jesus ascended into heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit to indwell His followers.

Acts 2:1–4 ESV

1 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Notice how the fire divided an rested on each of them.

The light was multiplying and increasing as each of them became and extension of God’s goodness and light.

So as a spirit-filled believer, I am not just reflecting God’s light, I have a source of light inside of me.

We are talking electricity baby!

Remember how electric light bulbs changed the way we decorate for Christmas?

Well that’s the kind of revolutionary transformation that the Holy Spirit is through the church.

We are all connected together and His current is flowing through us to bring light to the world.

We are ready to set this world on fire, faster and more efficiently than ever before!

As long as we stay connected to each other and to our source.

I know that for many Christians, we don’t always feel the power.

The world seems sometimes to be getting darker all the time.

If you are watching the news, there is not a whole lot that reflects the goodness of God.

In fact, if you are attuned to it, there is much about our world today that is opposed to calling anything good that has to do with God.

Is as if people love darkness and hate the light, Just like John says.

But when the darkness is darkest, that is when the light shines the brightest.

Matthew 5:14–16 ESV

14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, 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 who is in heaven.

Never underestimate the power of your light.

Before electric lights were available to light up the whole house, people decorated with a single candle in each window.

But you probably didn’t know that the candle in the window was more than just a decoration.

European Christians used to display a burning candle in the windows of their house that was visible from the outside. The candles in the window indicated to other Christians that the house was a Christian house and that other Christians were welcome to come worship with the residents.

The candle in the window isn’t just a decoration, it’s an invitation to come in and worship with us.

That is the true light that has come into the world.

The light are not there just to look pretty, they are to put us in awe of God’s goodness.

It’s not about entertainment, its about redemption.

The lights are not just a decoration, they are an invitation.

Move toward the light, let it change you until you become light to others.

The darkness will never be greater than the light that is inside you.

We are going to conclude our service this evening with a candle lighting service.

This tradition was first practiced by the Moravians in 1847. It became a regular practice in the Moravian College to pass around lit candles to each of the students before returning home for the holidays as they would sing about Christ the Morning Star and to remind them that they take the light of Christ with them as they return home.

Today we each light our candles from one adjacent to us and we let the light spread down the rows and from front to back.

It reminds us, not only that we take the light of Christ with us, but that we spread it from one to another.

Remember to keep your lit candle upright and hold the unlit candle sideways to light it.

We will hold our lit candles through the closing song.