(08-09-21) New Light and Old Darkness - 2 Corinthians 4.1-6; Matthew 9.9-13
New Light and Old Darkness – Proverbs 3:13-18; 2 Corinthians 4:1-6; Matthew 9:9-13
· New for old – old wheels instead of new ones
o not normally how it works
§ technology (CDs/tapes, DVDs/video)
o Jesus comes to do a new thing (vv14-17)
§ not to destroy/remove the old
§ but to complete it
· The old, religious order (Pharisees) was all about remaining pure
o avoiding the contamination (v11) of
§ disease
§ death
§ sinners
· Jesus’ new world (God’s kingdom) was, and is, all about bringing healing, life, resurrection
o bringing it to those who were
§ diseased
§ dying
§ sinners
“It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick... For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (vv12-13)
· Not implying that the Pharisees were healthy or righteous...
o Jesus came for...
§ the sick who know they’re sick
§ the sick who think they’re healthy
· Matthew may well be perfect example of the former
o despised, isolated, guilt-ridden?
o directly invited by Jesus to follow Him
§ resurrected?
o Paul: light had begun to shine into Matthew’s life (2 Cor 4:6)
§ Jesus bringing light where there was darkness (new for old)
· The glory of salvation → thinking about light ↓
· Corridor in college – groping in the dark!
· God is a god of light and brightness, not darkness and shadow
o not that he’s not present in darkness
o but that he shines his light there
· Light = rescue (Isaiah 60)
o Genesis 1; John 1
§ light as “a symbol of the saving presence of God in a fallen world” (McGrath)
· Yet Isaiah (60) doesn’t just say that God has come to the rescue
o he tells Israel/us to shine
o recalling Jesus’ well-known words:
§ “You are the light of the world....” (Matthew 5:14-16)
· World of electricity and fluorescent lighting
o yet the meaning remains clear
§ the light we’ve received we aren’t to keep to ourselves
Do everything without complaining or arguing, 15so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe 16as you hold out the word of life... (Philippians 2:14-16a)
· Setting forth the truth plainly – pointing to Jesus (2 Cor 4:5)
o in word and deed (Phil & Matt)
o showing that the light is within you
§ the light, the truth of Jesus revealed in love (Matthew)
o no tricks required to convince people (2 Cor 4:2)
§ making the Gospel more ‘palatable’ is no good...
· We have within us a light that removes all darkness
o the darkness we see in the world around us
o or maybe the darkness we see in our own lives
· This light, this Jesus shines into us and through us
· Jesus is ready, willing and able to shine into your life
o He calls you, like Matthew, to follow Him
§ whether you think you need a doctor or not
§ He is ready to heal, to give life, to forgive
· And if His light is shining in us, then we must let it shine out