Light for the New Year

Introduction

This Sunday falls between two holidays: Christmas and New Year’s.

From a church calendar point of view, we’ve spent the last four weeks in Advent, and we have now entered the season of Christmas.

But from an American calendar point of view, Christmas is basically over. The decorations are coming down, the music is fading, and we’re already looking ahead to what’s next - Our New Year’s celebration.

Rather than choosing one calendar over another — Christmas or New Year’s — what might serve us better is to ask a different question altogether:

How does our faith and the church’s calendar shape the way we actually live our lives?

Or to put it another way: How does the story of the Bible — the true events that occurred in history and were written down by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit — shape and direct our own stories?

As we prepare to enter a new year, how does the truth of Christmas — the coming of Jesus, the Light of the World — shine light into our lives in 2026?

Read John 1:1-9

I invite you to turn in your Bibles to the Gospel of John, chapter one, starting in verse one.

John begins his Gospel differently than Matthew or Luke. He doesn’t start with Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem, but takes us all the way back to the beginning of time.

Listen now as we read from John 1:1–9.

(Read John 1:1–9)

Prayer

1. Embrace the Eternal Light of Jesus

Transition: As we look for light for the new year, I encourage you to begin by embracing the Eternal Light of Jesus.

John begins his Gospel with these powerful words: “In the beginning.” For readers familiar with the Old Testament, this immediately recalls Genesis 1:1: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”

But here we see something even more astonishing: Jesus was present at creation, was with God, and is God Himself. And John tells us — Jesus is the Light.

But what does it mean to embrace the Light? How do we do it in our lives today?

1. Creation — Gives Life (John 1:4)

First, the Light reminds us of creation. Jesus created all things. Light shining in darkness was the first picture of God’s creative power.

John says in verse 3: “All things were made through Him.”

And creation didn’t stop with Genesis. Verse 4 tells us: “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.”

To embrace the Light of Jesus means to recognize Him as our Creator and to find life in Him.

2. Revelation — Reveals Truth (John 1:9)

Light also refers to revelation.

God is invisible. John reminds us in verse 18: “No one has seen God at any time.”

Yet Jesus, the Light of the World, became flesh and dwelt among us. In Him, the invisible God is revealed.

To embrace the Light of Jesus is to experience that revelation: seeing who God is, experiencing His love, and allowing our lives to be shaped and guided by the Light.

3. Salvation — Overcomes Darkness (John 1:5)

Finally, the Light points to salvation.

The world is full of darkness — the darkness of sin, the pull of our flesh, cultural pressures, and even spiritual forces. Left on our own, we are lost.

But verse 5 says: “The light shines in the darkness,”

Jesus is the Light shining into the darkness, offering life and eternal hope.

Illustration: The Lighthouse

There is a famous lighthouse off the coast of England. Before it was built, the reef was a graveyard for ships. Month after month, ships crashed against the rocks, and many sailors were lost to the sea.

After the lighthouse was installed, shipwrecks dramatically declined — not because the storms stopped, but because sailors finally had light to guide them safely home.

A life trapped in the darkness of sin is far more dangerous than the rocky English coast. Yet Jesus is a far brighter Light than any lighthouse, offering salvation — eternal life — to all who believe.

Application

As we look to the new year, I invite you to embrace the Eternal Light of Jesus: believe in Him and experience the salvation He offers.

2. Walk in the Transforming Light of Jesus

But this salvation is not the end of your spiritual journey — it’s just the beginning. We are called not only to embrace the Light of Jesus, but to walk in the transforming Light of Jesus.

In addition to writing the Gospel of John about the life of Jesus, John also wrote three letters to churches encouraging them in their lives as believers. Notice how he starts the first of these letters, 1 John 1 in verses 5-7:

Read 1 John 1:5-7

1 John 1:5–7 NKJV

5 This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

As you can tell John care deeply for these church members and wants them to embrace the light of Jesus. But he isn’t looking for merely saying it.

It’s easy to say “I’m a Christian” or “I have fellowship with God.” But that doesn’t mean too much to say if we still walk in darkness.

So what does John teach: walk in the light.

Illustration:

When I was a kid I lived in the jungle in the Philippines. We had no electricity. So at night we mostly stayed inside with our kerosene lanterns.

But at times we might need to go outside. So we’d walk out into the darkness of the night and my dad would hold the lantern up and it would cast a circle of light around us.

America has 4 types of venomous snakes. The Philippines has 5,000.

So when we walked at night we certainly walked in the light of that lantern.

John is urging believers to live with that same urgency when it comes to the light of Christ.

Application:

Walking in the light is not about following a list of rules to earn salvation. Jesus earned that for us on the cross, he paid the debt we could not pay.

Walking in the light is less about asking what would Jesus do, and more about marveling at the overwhelming love Christ has already shown me and being moved by that love to love God and to love others.

Walking in the light is about fellowship with God the father and his Son Jesus Christ.

We walk in the light when we have fellowship with God through:

Prayer

Our Bible

Worship

Fellowship with other believers

We confess sins and experience forgiveness

In 2026 I pray that as a church each one of us might take our church purpose to heart and commit to walking in the transforming light of Jesus by experiencing Christ’s love and sharing that love with others.

3. Share the Life-Giving Light of Jesus

Transition: And sharing of the Life-Giving light of Jesus is our last principle to prioritize in the New Year.

Read Matthew 5:14-16

Matthew 5:14–16 NKJV

14 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

There is something humbling about being called “the light of the world” by Jesus. Yet God has always called His people to shine as lights in the darkness.

Israel was called to be a light to the nations. And as Jesus fulfills that mission perfectly — offering light and salvation to all mankind — God’s mission for His people remains.

So the perfect Light now calls all believers to be lights to the world.

How Can I Shine That Light?

You may wonder: How can I shine that kind of light? I don’t generate light like Jesus!

Think about the moon. The moon can’t generate any light at all. And yet every night it shines brightly in the sky.

The light you and I share to the world doesn’t come from within us . It comes from Christ. Jesus shines His light on us and asks us only to share it with others.

Illustration: Christmas Gifts Are Meant to Be Shared

We’ve just experienced Christmas. Did anyone here get a good gift?

Good gifts are meant to be used, aren’t they?

I received a new Bible — but it doesn’t mean much if it just sits on a shelf.

Caleb got a disc golf mid-range driver — but what good is it if we never go to the disc golf course?

And I got Sunny a vacuum… just kidding!

Good gifts are meant to be used. Great gifts, however, demand to be shared.

Great gifts are the ones we want others to experience.

Great gifts fill us with joy we want to give away.

The Light of Christ is the greatest gift of all. Jesus invites you to share that light with others so they, too, may experience the joy, life, and hope it brings.

Conclusion

As we move into a new year, 2026, will you experience Jesus’ light for the New Year?

Will you embrace the life and light Jesus offers?

Will you commit to walk in that light every day?

And as you experience His love and light in your life, will you share that life-giving light with others?

Invitation

Those shepherds, many years ago, were forever changed when they met the baby Jesus. They couldn’t keep the good news to themselves — they had to go and tell.

As we respond to the Light of Christ this morning, I invite you to join your voices in proclaiming how we will go tell this good news — on the mountains, in the hills, and everywhere — that Jesus Christ is born.

Will you stand and sing with joy?

Sermon Notes

1. Bible Translation

I’m choosing the NKJV for preaching because I believe it offers the strongest balance of faithfulness to the historic text of Scripture, clarity for modern readers, and continuity with the church’s worshiping tradition.

At the same time, I deeply value other faithful translations—such as the NASB, ESV, CSB, and NIV—which also serve the church well and can enrich our understanding of God’s Word.

2. Commentary Recommendations

3. Quotes and Illustrations Used

Lighthouse Illustration:

https://www.trinityhouse.co.uk/lighthouses-and-lightvessels/eddystone-lighthouse

4. Scripture References

Going Deeper