Be Light as He is Light

Good morning!

On behalf of Pastor Brian and the Hope Church family, we’d like to say that we are blessed to have you with us this morning. You could have been anywhere, but you chose to be here with us. We count that as a privilege and an honor. If this is your first time coming, we want to send an extra special thank you and invite you to meet us here again next week. If you’ve been kicking the tires on whether you should join us, please feel free to talk to any of the leaders here at Hope. We’d love to hear how we can serve you and your family.

Introduce yourself

Let me ask a question. Have you ever been in a situation when you recognized someone and you feel bad because you know you know this person? You stare trying to figure out whether or not you know them or if they know you. Your eyes meet then they say your name. You stand there like and say something silly like… Hey there friend. They greet you life you were twins separated at birth. It is so awkward because they know more about you than you know about them. You don’t want to look bad so you pretend to know them too. When in reality you can’t remember their name. You know you know this person from somewhere. You know their face, but you don’t know them.

The most awkward interactions are the one’s when people remember you when you were younger. The first words out of their mouth is usually, “You don’t remember me. Do you?”

This same awkwardness can occur with Jesus. If you only know Him as the babe in a manger or if he’s only that guy on a cross, you may recognize him, but there’s more to him. Since Christmas is a time to celebrate Jesus, I believe that we need to know him and what He wants from us as our Lord and Savior.

Open with me to

2 Corinthians 4:1–6 ESV

Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 4:1–6 ESV

Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Let us pray…

2 Corinthians 4:1–6 ESV

Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

4 Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. 2 But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. 3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Let us pray…

The title of my sermon today is “Be Light as He is Light”

Let us pray…

PRAYER

How does Paul arrive to the conclusions in Chapter 4. Let me quickly summarize chapter 3.

This is where we pick up in chapter 4. We, the church, are living temples and the law of God now resides in our hearts. Under the Old Covenant the law condemns in the New Covenant, the law was fulfilled in Christ.

When my baby was younger, like 2, she wanted to go to Chuck E. Cheese for her birthday or Chuck Cheese as she called it. We get there and family and friends show up to celebrate her. I remember it like it was yesterday. We let the kids run around and play. Then that magical time of the party comes when the person comes out in the Chuck E. Cheese costume. And my baby’s joy turns to dread as this six foot mountain of fur rolls up on her. From that point on she admires ol’ Chuck from a distance. We then got everyone together and we sing happy birthday. She opened her presents and she got her big girl draws with Dora the Explorer on them. Why? Because that’s what she wanted. She walks away feeling loved and falls asleep in the car. Good times!

I know her and love her. Knowing her and loving her, especially when we set aside a day to celebrate her. Christmas has become the equivalent of going to Chuck E. Cheese and taking the birthday girl’s presents. Please don’t fall into the cultural trap of making a day to celebrate the birth of Jesus about you. Jesus, every day not just today, deserves to be honored and worshipped. Amen!

As we shift our focus to Jesus, Paul in these verses remind us of the face that we easily forget or may just ignore altogether.

Let’s focus in on verse 6

As we shift our focus to Jesus, Paul in these verses remind us of the face that we easily forget or may just ignore altogether.

Paul says something interesting in verse 6 let’s take a moment to chew on this for a moment… “For God, who said, “let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”

2 Corinthians 4:6 ESV

For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

To know Christ is to what he wants from us.

When did God say “Let light shine out of darkness”?

Genesis 1:1–3 ESV

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.

Genesis 1

Then there’s the verse from Brian’s sermon a couple of weeks ago

John 1:1–3 ESV

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.

John 1:1–5 ESV

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

This brings us to the words of Jesus to his bride, the church

Matthew 5:13–16 ESV

“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 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. 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.

God speaks and says “let there be light”. Jesus arrives on Earth through the womb of a virgin “as the light for all men”. Finally, we are called to be light.

If you pay close attention to these three verses you will see three miracles.

The first miracle in Genesis is that of creation. God invades and overcomes a jacked up universe with light. His glory filled all of creation. Go back and read . He didn’t take something that was okay and make it better. He created something out of nothing. He said “Let there be...” and there was. Something out of nothing.

Who can testify that He still makes something out of nothing! The good news is that He is still working with this nobody making somebody out of him. Amen!

2 Corinthians 5:17

The second miracle is that of incarnation. Back in Genesis when God said, let there be. The very words God spoke was God and the creator of all things. That word became flesh and dwelled among us. Ironically enough, Paul speaks of the believer in

2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

The second miracle is that of incarnation. Back in Genesis when God said, let there be. The very words God spoke was God and the creator of all things. That word became flesh and dwelled among us. Ironically enough, Paul speaks of the believer in

2 Corinthians 3:1–3 ESV

Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some do, letters of recommendation to you, or from you? You yourselves are our letter of recommendation, written on our hearts, to be known and read by all. And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

Just as Jesus is the word made flesh, we are flesh made word (that’s sanctification). We are in this verse letters, the King James calls us walking epistles. When we live our lives according to this book it is not just for ourselves we become living, breathing word. Jesus is the word made flesh.

And that’s the third miracle, sanctification. But sanctification has two sides. Sanctification is both passive and active.

The good news of the gospel is that you didn’t choose God, He chose you. He takes you out of a broken and fallen world and shapes and molds you into the image of His Son, Jesus. He says he will never leave you or forsake you. He sets you apart. He makes you holy. That’s passive.

The second part is the hard part. We have to become a willing participant in our sanctification process. Now let’s not allow this to discourage you. Jesus has done the hard part. He has found you, cleaned you, and set you free. He has made you a city on a hill, a shining light. It is a statement of being followed by a statement of doing.

This is illogical to us because we mistakenly believe that we have to do first so that He will allow us to be. We tell ourselves that if I can get it together, clean myself up, and quit doing bad, then he will love and forgive me. That is a lie because that is not gospel.

The gospel is that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. It wasn’t while i was doing a bangup job of fixing my own sin. He forgave me in spite of my sin.

Romans 12:1 ESV

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

romans 12:1

Some interpretations say, “That is our reasonable service”. So in an act of worship, we obey God and live holy in a dark and sinful world. It’s easy to forget, but since Christ carried that ole rugged cross, he took the lashes, and took the blows, we are to commit ourselves to continuing his work. If you don’t know what that looks like, please meet me or any of the leaders after service and we can talk to you more about how we can partner together to spread the gospel.

Passive sanctification is an act of grace. Active sanctification is an act of the will.

Last month, I had t

Heres the two sides to sanctification: Passive sanctification is a miraculous act of grace. Active sanctification is a miraculous act of the will of a rebellious sinner submitting himself to the will of God.

•The Miracle of Creation: God has made us into something new

The First miracle of creation: God has made us into something new

The Second miracle of incarnation: We are the flesh made word

Last month, I had t

•The Miracle of Incarnation: We are the flesh made word

The Third miracle of sanctification: We are made holy and we live holy

The Second miracle of incarnation: We are the flesh made word

•The Miracle of Sanctification: We are made sinners made holy and live holy

From there we go back to our original text

The Third miracle of sanctification: We are made holy and we live holy

It is with this idea of being active participants in what God is doing in our lives, we pick back up in 2 Corinthians 4:1-6

2 Corinthians 4:1–6 ESV

Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Let’s list the things we are not to do here in verses 1-2.

The Second miracle of incarnation: We are the flesh made word

To get an understanding of this we need to backtrack to chapter 3. I’ll try my best to summarize and we can go from there. But before I do, we need to understand that the Old Testament conceals and the New Testament reveals. In the OT, God used Moses and wrote His law on stone tablets. Paul goes on to say that Moses walked off the mountain with the tablets and hid them in an arc and that arc within a temple. Paul said that they were not bold enough to leave them out in the open. Even so, the children of Israel recited the law but the law had no effect on them. For it says that their hearts were hardened. The Law did not free them. It only reminded them of how Holy God was and how sinful they were. In contrast, the believer is a walking epistle to be read of men in verse 3 of chapter 3.

The Third miracle of sanctification: We are made holy and we live holy

To get an understanding of this we need to backtrack to chapter 3. I’ll try my best to summarize and we can go from there. But before I do, we need to understand that the Old Testament conceals and the New Testament reveals. In the OT, God used Moses and wrote His law on stone tablets. Paul goes on to say that Moses walked off the mountain with the tablets and hid them in an arc and that arc within a temple. Paul said that they were not bold enough to leave them out in the open. Even so, the children of Israel recited the law but the law had no effect on them. For it says that their hearts were hardened. The Law did not free them. It only reminded them of how Holy God was and how sinful they were. In contrast, the believer is a walking epistle to be read of men in verse 3 of chapter 3.

As walking epistles, our life reads of the marvelous works of God to a dark and sinful world.

Let’s take a moment to marinade on this thought for a second.

The current cultural pressure is to keep your politics and your religion to yourself. I’m fine with politics being kept under wraps. It is a man-made system that does what all manmade things do… degrade and fail. God has ordained human government, but at the same time human government is not the reason why we were saved. Christianity has survived imperialism, socialism, Marxism, and currently it is making its way through nationalism. The Bible declares that the grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of the Lord shall stand forever.

That takes us back to verse 1:

Paul speaks to the church at Corinth and to us today at Hope Church on… brace for it holiness. When we think of a person being holy what do we think?

Let’s look at these attrib

Back to the point. Paul says that the lights shine when we see the light of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. How this all works we have to visit a few places to understand the nature of God. Let’s turn to :

1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 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. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

Next let’s turn to :

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 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.

Point 1: Light overcomes the darkness in the world and in us

Point 2: God did not leave us in the dark

Point 3: God will rid the world of the dark

Point 4: We will be the light

Not only will we not do those things but we will boldly proclaim why. This is hard if you put it to practice. This is what it looks like:

Hey Lennard! I got this cool way to save money on your taxes. Don’t look at this as cheating. You’re bending the truth a little bit. But hey, they steal from us all the time. I say, “No thanks. God commands me to render unto Caesar what is Caesar and unto God what is God”.

Hey Lennard! That cashier gave you too much change back. Keep it. No one knows. I say, “Shut up flesh”. Then I return the money.

Hey Lennard! You sure look young for your age… and you’re cute too. I say, “Shut up flesh” then I reply to the person “Thank you” and move to the next topic quickly because I value the worship of God over the worship of self. Then I also have to remind my soul that my weakness is vanity and I am to choose faithfulness to my marriage over flattery.

Hey Lennard! Did God really say that you can’t lie. Doesn’t he forgive you if you tell this one lie...

This conversation differs from person to person and from one pattern of sin to the other. But it is not something you ignore. What I just revealed is a bending of my will to His will. Then the kicker. I have to share why and honestly I don’t want to share why. I believe faith is something personal and I don’t want to make people feel uncomfortable.

Let’s ask ourselves what’s more uncomfortable. I person looking at you awkwardly for living holy or a person burning in a devil’s hell because we refused to live holy and share why. because in verse 3

2 Corinthians 4:3 ESV

And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.

This city is filled with sinners who may or may not pick up a bible or walk into a sanctuary. But you are a walking, breathing miracle. God has done the miraculous work of creation, incarnation, and sanctification so that you may go into a dark, sinful world and be light. They may appear happy and to have it all together outwardly, but if they don’t know Jesus they will perish.

2 Corinthians 4:4 ESV

In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

Satan has blinded them to the light. They do not want to see the light of the gospel. We must live this life, be this light before men. My prayer for you church is that God will give you a boldness to be walking, living examples of His love and grace to those that do not deserve it. Why? Because we didn’t deserve it. They need to see the word made flesh by the the flesh made word. The way they will best see the word of God is when you live the word of God.

The way they will best see the word of God is when you live the word of God.

2 Corinthians 4:5–6 ESV

For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

I pray that in my sermon you see The Christ. I pray that through the gospel, you see his face. I pray that you allow the light that he brings shines into the dark recesses of your heart so that no sin may be left undiscovered.

22 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.

The first page of the Bible, opens with God saying, “Let there be light” the last page of the Bible speaks of Light as well.

Revelation 22:1–5 ESV

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.

In the future, Jesus will become our literal light. There will be no more pain, no more sorrow, no more JEA. Or Lord’s glory will shine throughout the universe.

In the future, Jesus will become our literal light. There will be no more pain, no more sorrow, no more JEA. Or Lord’s light will shine throughout the universe.

and are bookends to a story that God is still writing. We have history and prophecy. In the middle we have today. God begins with light and will continue for all eternity with light. In the middle light binds our story into His story.

It says that the believer will one day see the face of Jesus. But before then, what happens? What are we to do until that Great Day when we see our Lord face-to-face. I believe we are to search for his face until we see his face. Turn with me to . This will be our text for today. Please stand with me

Close with an invitation