I Am–Direction

Introduction

Although this section of Scripture is not strictly about the birth of our Savior, I want to begin with a wonderfully illustrated story of His birth. I believe this story will set the stage for the rest of the message because the Messiah, who is the Light, has come. The following story is pulled from the Gospels of Matthew and Luke’s narrative, where the census came about. Joseph and Mary traveled to Bethlehem, and the inn had no room.

For the census, the royal family has to travel eighty-five miles. Joseph walks, while Mary, nine months pregnant, rides sidesaddle on a donkey, feeling every jolt, every rut, every rock in the road.

By the time they arrive, the small hamlet of Bethlehem is swollen from an influx of travelers. The inn is packed, people feeling lucky if they were able to negotiate even a small space on the floor. Now it is late, everyone is asleep, and there is no room.

But fortunately, the innkeeper is not all shekels and mites. True, his stable is crowded with his guests’ animals, but if they could squeeze out a little privacy there, they were welcome to it.

Joseph looks over at Mary, whose attention is concentrated on fighting a contraction. “We’ll take it,” he tells the innkeeper without hesitation.

The night is still when Joseph creaks open that stable door. As he does, a chorus of barn animals makes discordant note of the intrusion. The stench is pungent and humid, as there have not been enough hours in the day to tend the guests, let alone the livestock. A small oil lamp, lent them by the innkeeper, flickers to dance shadows on the walls. A disquieting place for a woman in the throes of childbirth. Far from home. Far from family. Far from what she had expected for her firstborn.

But Mary makes no complaint. It is a relief just to finally get off her feet. She leans back against the wall, her feet swollen, back aching, contractions growing harder and closer together.

Joseph’s eyes dart around the stable. Not a minute to lose. Quickly. A feeding trough would have to make do for a crib. Hay would serve as a mattress. Blankets? Blankets? Ah, his robe. That would do. And those rags hung out to dry would help. A gripping contraction doubles Mary over and sends him racing for a bucket of water.

The birth would not be easy, either for the mother or the child. For every royal privilege for this son ended at conception.

A scream from Mary knifes through the calm of that silent night.

Joseph returns, breathless, water sloshing from the wooden bucket. The top of the baby’s head has already pushed its way into the world. Sweat pours from Mary’s contorted face as Joseph, the most unlikely midwife in all Judea, rushes to her side.

The involuntary contractions are not enough, and Mary has to push with all her strength, almost as if God were refusing to come into the world without her help.

Joseph places a garment beneath her, and with a final push and a long sigh, her labor is over.

The Messiah has arrived.[1]

It is this Messiah we are here to worship and celebrate. This Messiah is the one who forsook heaven and glory to come like this for us. He is the one who came to give us life and allow us to be with Him in that pure and perfect glory He left for you and me.

This Messiah is the I Am–Direction because this Messiah is the Light. In John 8:12, we read,

John 8:12 ESV

12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

This short verse shows three points of this great Messiah we worship today. The first is that Jesus is the light that has come.

The Light Has Come

In the first part of this Gospel, we read, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:5). Right before this, we see that this light is the “light of men,” that is “life” (John 1:4). “Light is one of the great biblical images of salvation.”[1]Back in Isaiah, we read, “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shined” (Isa. 9:2). Light depicts the coming of God with saving life: “The Lord is my light and my salvation,” sang David (Ps. 27:1).”

We know this life and light to be the Messiah that has come. We do because Jesus entered into a dark and twisted time. Jesus came into this world in a dark and lowly way. Jesus brought light and joy to those who saw Him. Remember the shepherds from Luke’s Gospel? They rejoiced in seeing Jesus and made it “widely known” that He was the Christ (Luke 2:17).

Jesus is the light. Jesus is the guide for the path we can follow because He has come and shown us the way. We are surrounded by darkness these days. It seems it is dark and darker everywhere we look; if it is not, it is certainly heading that way. This darkness is pierced by this light, the light that is life. Jesus is the light in this horrid darkness of His time and all time before and after.

A.W. Tozer wrote about the light in this way, speaking about the Israelites in Egypt:

As Christian believers, we are assured that no matter how dark it becomes around us, God will faithfully provide the illumination of His Spirit. The Old Testament offers in the release of Israel from Egyptian bondage a fitting illustration. When God was moving toward the climax of that deliverance, the darkness of night covered Egypt, but, miraculously, there was light in the dwellings of all of the Israelites. So, too, there is light even now for us who are Christian believers concerning our future. God’s Word is a light that shines in a dark place until the morning star rises in our hearts.

Jesus is this light. Jesus is “the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word is God…In Him was life, and the life was the light of men” (John 1:1, 4). This Word is a “nature, a substance in the universe that is life and light, and it…has personality and, that personality is God. And…God is light. God is life. And in Him is no darkness at all.”

This light is for you to see the path. Jesus is the light on the path. He is our way through this dark and lonely world. If you are feeling surrounded by darkness and worried about what is next, look to the light. Look in His wonderful face and find the peace and direction you need. Jesus guides us and directs us. He is the path, and the path is clear.

The Path is Clear

Just as we read in Psalm 119:105, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path,” Jesus is the light and the path. All who follow Jesus will not walk in darkness. That is what this Psalm says and what we read in John 8:12.

Just like when we drive at night. We have the highway, and we have our headlights. Each one of these provides us clear direction in the darkness. We lose sight of the path if we shut off our lights or pull off into a pasture.

This section of this verse reminds me of teen camp this summer. One of the stations was a maze where the teens had to go through blindfolded. They had another teen as their guide to ensure they made it through. The catch was that the leaders and the other teens told them other ways to go through the course. If the teen stayed attentive to the voice of their guide, they made it through with far less struggle and difficulty.

This is what this is all about. Jesus says, “He who follows me shall not walk in darkness” (John 8:12). He makes this statement because anything off the path from Him is darkness. Darkness is evil, and it is a fearful place to be.

I remember a horror movie from the early 2000s that was about the evil in the darkness. If I remember correctly, it was called “Darkness Falls.” In this movie, there was an evil presence in the darkness. If someone went into the darkness, they were taken or killed by this evil presence. Everyone had to stay in the light to stay alive and avoid this evil. The movie ends with this wicked and evil presence being slain by the light from a bright lighthouse and consumed in fire. But, this was not before many who refused to believe the light was the safe and protected path were taken and consumed by the evil.

Jesus is the light and the path. This light is the light that brings judgment to those who love the darkness more than the light. The light brings all the wickedness to the surface, judges it, and condemns the evil but brings life and joy to all who “do what is true” because those who do “come to the light” (John 3:19-21). The wicked and evil world is “the darkness into which Jesus came as a light. Darkness consists of a lack of knowledge: ignorance, folly, and superstition; it has a moral dimension: evil and fear; it is experiential: bondage, misery and death; and it is judicial: judgment and wrath. What is true of the dark world is also true of every life apart from the shining of the light of Jesus’ gospel.”

Jesus is our greatest gift possible. He is the gift that gives more and more the longer you are with Him. He is not a gift that had a one-time use. Nor is He a gift that you love and cherish for a time, then move on from as you mature. No, Jesus is the gift that the longer you have Him, the more mature you become the more you cherish and love Him. He is your light and path. He is your guide and way through this dark and lonely world. He is the Messiah that has come for you. He is the I Am Direction for all of us who are or have wandered about in the darkness for too long.

Oh, what a joy it is to know and have this light in me and around me at all times. Knowing what lies ahead of me, even when I do not know what this world has for me, provides more comfort than anything imaginable. I can clearly see my future with Him, even if my future on this planet is unclear. I know I can see where I am going because the light has shone into my life. I know the destination. I know that Jesus is my secure anchor in the storms of life.

Jesus is my way, and He is or can be, your way too. He came into this world for you and me, not just to give us life but to guide us and be the light for the path we can follow because of Him. Jesus is not merely a light, but He is The Light and The Path. This sin-darkened world became brighter when He was born almost two thousand years ago. Then, when each person believes in this Savior for their life, the darkness gets less severe because more and more light shines forth.

Jesus as The Light is different because His Light is life. In His Light is Life, and we can know this through Him. He shows you the way because the Light is Life.

The Light is Life

In this verse’s final part, we read that those who follow Jesus and do not walk in the darkness “will have the light of life” (John 8:12). This connects back to what I just said a moment ago: when we cherish and cling closely to this great gift of Christ we have joy and become a beacon too.

In Ephesians 5:8, Paul tells us, “for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.” We become beacons of light emanating the light of life for others to see. Jesus is this light, but we shine it forth for many. Matthew 5:16 says, “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.” Our Messiah came into this cold and dark world and is the light of life. And what is remarkable is that we get to be co-lights with Him when we have His light of life in us. How amazing is that? What a wonderful gift we get to be to others because we received the great gift of the Messiah as our life everlasting.

This is like the wonderful book of C.S. Lewis, “The Chronicles of Narnia.” In this book or movie, the four siblings find themselves in this wonderland of cold and strangeness. There was a wickedness over the land of Narnia. A dark and foreboding evil was in charge, and the light was dim.

There were a few faithful and honorable people and creatures, but many were dark, evil, and cold. The return of Aslan and these children’s being there brought about the change and fall of the wickedness that was in control. The true Light had shone, and the darkness and cold was gone. The evil had been triumphed over, and good reigned. Evil was removed, and joy and peace reigned.

While we are still surrounded by darkness, the Light that came two thousand years ago has made clear that evil will fall. Jesus has made it known that the evil one is on a clock and will fall. We are part of this amazing glory of bringing about the fall of the evil one when we let the true Light shine forth from us in all we do. Jesus has given you this gift, and we get to use it. What a true blessing this is for all of us.

Jesus, the True Light, coming into the world and giving us this Light and life also means we will be around when all this is gone. C.S. Lewis wrote of this, “Nature is mortal. We shall outlive her. When all the suns and nebulae have passed away, each one of you will still be alive. Nature is only the image, the symbol, but it is a symbol Scripture invites me to use. We are summoned to pass through nature beyond her to the splendor which she fitfully reflects.”

The true Light guides us to this correct path. He is our guide and way. He is the source of this life. Jesus is our only hope of not being consumed by the darkness that has fallen over the whole world. His coming is the way to break the darkness and live fully. Find Him and find the light, and there you will find eternal life. A life full of joy even in grief, a life full of peace in chaos, a life full of comfort in difficult times, and a life that is fulfilling when all others are empty. Jesus is the great light of life, and He came to this world for you and me to have this light and life. What a glorious and wonderful gift this is. I pray you will take it and make it your own.

I pray that you find the Great I Am Direction, follow Him fully, and let that light shine brightly.

Conclusion

Just as we began, we end with the arrival of the Messiah. Jesus was born in an obscure village in an unroyal manner. The High King of Heaven was born in the lowliest of ways. The one who “was in the beginning with God” and that “All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made” (John 1:2-3). He is the one who was born into a dark and dreary world. He is the one who took on flesh and suffered for you and me.

The master and creator, the pure and holy, the righteous and perfect, the holy God, came into the darkness to be the light of the world. It only takes one little light in the darkest places to seem brighter than the sun. Just think, the Son of God came into the world and is The Light; now that brightness vanquishes all darkness and calms all fears.

He did that; it is high time we let our lights shine so the darkness that crowds so close cannot take over. It is not our light that shines, but His light in us. Let that shine, and let shine always. Jesus gave it to you, and He wants you to try and burn it out. You will not be able to because He is The Light; since He is, your light is an unending source.

I read where one man said, “I do not know if we will be 100 watts or 200, 300, or 1,000! We might be like fireflies. But somehow, we are going to enter into the fame and approval of God, and we will be glorious beings far beyond all imagination.”

Enter into that glorious being by shining that light bright and show the world Jesus is The Light of the world. Push that darkness back because The Messiah Has Come. The Great I Am Has Come.