Carols 2025 long

“The Light We Can’t Live Without”

Isaiah 9:1–7 – Carols by Candlelight

Introduction – Light in a Dark World

One of the reasons people love a carol service like this is the atmosphere of light.

Candles. Fairylights. Warmth. It feels… safe. Comforting. Beautiful.

But if we’re honest, the world outside these walls doesn’t feel like that very often.

We don’t have to look far to see darkness, do we? The headlines. The wars. The cost-of-living worries. The loneliness. The anxiety. The uncertainty about the future.

And if we’re really honest, the darkness isn’t just “out there”. All of us know something of it “in here” — fear, guilt, regret, disappointment, confusion.

The reading we heard from Isaiah was written into a world like that. And it begins, not with tinsel and sentiment, but with a very honest description of the human condition:

“The people walking in darkness have seen a great light.”

I want us to see three things from this passage tonight:

The darkness we cannot escape

The joy we cannot manufacture

The King we cannot replaceAnd then we’ll finish with one simple question:What will you do with the Light?

1. The Darkness We Cannot Escape (vv1–2)

Before Isaiah talks about light, he talks about darkness. To understand him properly, we need to know where we are in the story.

Isaiah is preaching in the 700s BC. God’s people have reached a crisis point. They are:

Rejecting God’s word,

Chasing other gods,

Treating justice lightly,

Trusting political power instead of the Lord.

At the end of chapter 8 we read this:

“Then they will look toward the earth and see only distress and darkness and fearful gloom.” (8:22)

They have turned their backs on the God who is light… and they are now walking in the dark.

Politically, the Assyrian Empire is rising like a storm. The northern regions — “Galilee of the nations” — will be the first to be invaded. They will be conquered, humiliated, exiled.

So when Isaiah speaks of “darkness” in 9:2, he’s not just talking about feeling a bit low. He’s talking about the darkness of sin, the darkness of judgement, the darkness of life apart from God.

That is the historical context.

But Isaiah doesn’t just describe their world. He describes ours.

“The people walking in darkness…”

Some of us hear that and think, “Yes, that’s exactly how life feels right now.” Uncertain. Heavy. Confusing. Painful.

But others might think, “That’s not really me. I’m okay. My life is pretty good. I don’t feel as if I’m in darkness.”

And I want to acknowledge that honestly. Many people feel they can see just fine without God.

But here’s the crucial thing: In the Bible, darkness is not how you feel – it’s where you stand.

You can be in darkness without realising it.

A room can feel safe in the dark — until you try to walk. A road can feel smooth — until the bend suddenly appears.

The Bible’s claim is that without God, we cannot see ourselves clearly, we cannot see Him clearly, and we cannot see where the road of life is really leading.

We might feel absolutely fine. We might be successful, comfortable, respectable.

But if we are living life on our own terms, rather than God’s terms… if we ignore Him, or push Him to the edges… if we assume we don’t need forgiveness, don’t need a Saviour…

Isaiah says we are “walking in darkness” — even if our life looks bright on the outside.

Darkness isn’t just the pain we feel. It’s the separation from God that we don’t feel.

And that is why the next line is so astonishing. It doesn’t say:

“The people who rescued themselves…”

“The people who found their own way…”

“The people who finally sorted themselves out…”

No.

“The people walking in darkness have seen a great light.”

Not reaching for the light. Not deserving the light. Not even aware how much they need the light.

The light shines on people who cannot save themselves.

Which means there is hope for people like us.

If darkness is our natural condition without God, then of course we cannot generate lasting joy by ourselves. We can brighten life temporarily — but we cannot change what’s going on between us and God.

And that leads to Isaiah’s next theme — and to a question every one of us carries deep down.

2. The Joy We Cannot Manufacture (vv3–5)

Isaiah moves from darkness to joy:

“You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as warriors rejoice when dividing the plunder.” (v3)

He’s talking about the kind of joy that goes all the way down:

Like a farmer at harvest time — the crops are in, the work has paid off, there is security.

Like soldiers after a victory — the battle is over, the danger has passed, the future is open.

It is the joy of relief. The joy of safety. The joy of knowing that the worst is behind you.

But where does that joy come from?

Look at verse 4:

“For you have shattered the yoke that burdens them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor.”

God is the One who breaks what is crushing His people. He shatters the yoke they cannot lift. He ends the oppression they cannot stop. He brings an end to the battle (v5).

In other words, real joy — the deep kind — doesn’t come from us improving our circumstances or cheering ourselves up.

It comes from God intervening to save.

We know something of this, don’t we?

We spend so much of life chasing joy:

In success,

In relationships,

In experiences,

In possessions,

In comfort,

In approval.

And some of those things can be very good. But they never quite deliver a joy that lasts.

The promotion is followed by new pressures. The relationship has its cracks. The experience fades. The holiday ends. The gadgets age. Even the best things can’t silence the quiet fear of death, or erase the burden of guilt, or give us peace with God.

We can brighten the darkness around the edges… but we cannot change the fact that, by nature, we are still walking in darkness.

If the darkness is too deep for us, and the joy is too great for us to manufacture, then what we really need is someone beyond us —

Someone who can do what we cannot.

And that is exactly where Isaiah takes us next.

3. The King We Cannot Replace (v6)

Isaiah says the answer is not a new philosophy, not a new policy, not a new self-help technique… but a Person.

A King.

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders.” (v6)

He speaks as if this future King has already arrived — that’s how certain God’s promise is.

And then he piles up four titles to show us just how unique, how beautiful, how irresistible this King is.

These titles are fulfilled in Jesus Christ. The New Testament makes that connection very clear.

But tonight I want you to feel what Isaiah is saying first of all: This is not just a nice baby. This is the King every human heart has been longing for.

Let’s look briefly at each title.

a) Wonderful Counsellor – Wisdom That Actually Helps

“Wonderful” here means miraculous, supernatural. A counsellor whose wisdom is not just interesting, but effective — it actually changes things.

We live in the age of information. We have more advice than ever:

Podcasts,

Blogs,

Books,

Influencers,

Opinions on tap.

And yet people feel more confused than ever.

We don’t know what to do with our guilt, or our suffering, or our past, or our identity, or our fear of death.

Jesus, the Wonderful Counsellor, knows you completely. He understands you better than you understand yourself. He tells you the truth about God, the truth about your heart, the truth about life and death and eternity.

And He speaks with compassion. He doesn’t just diagnose — He heals.

Some of us tonight feel lost. Jesus is the wisdom you have been searching for — often in all the wrong places.

b) Mighty God – Strong Enough to Save Us

The child Isaiah speaks of is not just human. He is “Mighty God”.

That’s an enormous claim. This King will be God Himself, come to rescue.

And that is exactly how Jesus speaks and acts.

The truth is, we cannot fix the darkness. We cannot erase our own guilt. We cannot defeat death. We cannot free ourselves from the power of sin.

We might clean up the outside. We might improve our habits. But we cannot change our hearts or cancel our debt before a holy God.

Jesus came into the world, not just as a teacher, but as a Saviour.

He lived the life we have not lived. He died the death our sin deserves. He rose again to open the door of forgiveness and new life.

Only “Mighty God” can do that.

He is the only King strong enough to save us.

c) Everlasting Father – Gentle Enough to Heal Us

This title isn’t saying Jesus is God the Father. It’s saying He rules with father-like care:

Protective,

Tender,

Faithful,

Compassionate.

Many of us carry wounds from fathers or from other relationships that should have been safe. For some, the idea of God as Father is not comforting — it is painful.

But Isaiah says: This King is not distant and cold. He doesn’t use people and discard them. He doesn’t give up when we fail.

He is committed. Constant. “Everlasting.”

When Jesus walked this earth, you see that fatherly heart everywhere He goes:

Touching the untouchable,

Welcoming the outsider,

Weeping at the tomb of a friend,

Forgiving those who nailed Him to the cross.

He does not crush the broken. He restores them.

He is the only King gentle enough to heal us.

d) Prince of Peace – The Peace We Desperately Need

Finally, He is the “Prince of Peace”.

This is not just inner calm, although He can give that too. It is peace with God.

By nature we are not neutral towards God; we are separated from Him, guilty before Him, running from Him.

Jesus, the Prince of Peace, comes to end that war. Through His cross, He takes our sin and bears our judgement, so that we can be reconciled to God.

He offers forgiveness of the past, strength in the present, and hope for the future.

Peace that begins now, and stretches into eternity.

This is why, in the New Testament, Jesus can say:

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

He is the wisdom we lack, the strength we need, the love we long for, the peace we were made for.

Jesus is the only King strong enough to save you, and gentle enough to heal you.

He is not merely useful. He is glorious.

Not just believable. Irresistible.

The question is: what will you do with Him?

4. What Will You Do With the Light? (v7)

The Kingdom We Cannot Ignore

Isaiah ends with a breathtaking promise:

“Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign… with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever.” (v7)

This King will not be swallowed up by history. His kingdom will not crumble like every human empire. His peace will not run out. His justice will not fail.

Everything our world aches for — justice, goodness, stability, righteousness, peace — He will establish forever.

And then Isaiah gives us the foundation beneath it all:

“The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.”

Not human effort. Not religious performance. Not moral improvement. Not political power.

God Himself brings this salvation. God Himself raises this King. And God Himself shines this Light into our darkness — for His glory.

But here is the wonder: when God is glorified in Christ, that is where we finally find the joy, purpose, peace, and forgiveness our hearts were made for.

So what will you do with the Light?

Isaiah has shown us the human condition: we walk in darkness. He has shown us the human longing: a joy we cannot manufacture. He has shown us God’s answer: a King we cannot replace — strong enough to save us, gentle enough to heal us, glorious enough to reign forever.

But now the question becomes personal.

Will you stay in the darkness, or will you come into the Light?

Jesus said:

“I am the Light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Following Him means trusting Him. Receiving Him as Saviour. Bow­ing to Him as King. Turning from the darkness and stepping into His peace.

It doesn’t mean you have everything sorted. It doesn’t mean you understand everything. It means you come as you are — to the One who knows you, loves you, died for you, and rose to bring you home.

Tonight, the Light has shone. Not because we deserved it, but because “the zeal of the LORD Almighty” — the passion of God Himself — accomplished it.

So let me ask you gently but clearly:

If Jesus truly is the King strong enough to save you and gentle enough to heal you… why stay in the dark any longer?

He offers Himself to you tonight. Will you come to Him?