Come to the Dark Side
The Other Side of Christmas • Sermon • Submitted
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Ever make a plan that goes perfectly?
Gracie’s birthday scavenger hunt
Started off with this note:
Good morning Gracie, and happy birthday. Today, you will find a series of clues you need to follow. Many of them will have gifts from Nannie and Papa. If you decipher them all, you can arrange them as one to give you a final location. In that location is Ronnie’s gift to you. Good luck and may the Schwartz be with you.
I had to have an entire series of clues orchestrated for her to follow
She went under the sink, in the dog treats, all over my parents house...
She had to solve crossword puzzles, use deciphers, listen to Alexa’s instructions and look in the comments of her favorite YouTuber
Ultimately, at the exact right time, she opened my parents trunk and found her brothers present to her - a Nintendo Switch Lite (Ronnie got a job)
As Gracie went through the day, she had no idea what would happen next...
But she knew that I did, and at the end it was going to be awesome!!
God’s plan works the same way
In our lives, we don’t know what’s going to happen next
But we know that God does, and at the end it’s going to be awesome!
As Christmas approaches, again, it’s the same deal
No one knew exactly what was going to happen!
You can look through the OT Scriptures and see God’s clues, at it was clear the end would be awesome
And then, it did happen and it was awesome!
Today we’re going to look at God’s plan
YouVersion: Come to the Dark Side
John 1:3-5 and 10-13
Here is the analysis of God’s plan
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.
Everything was made through Christ!
Everything by Him, nothing apart from Him, including life itself.
Not just biological life, but the principle of life!
Glenn teaches that if Christ isn’t real, life is still better
And light, as in goodness!
He will bring us goodness and light
Yours might say “comprehend”
Comprehend means “overcome”, as in darkness cannot defeat the goodness of Christ
Mankind was created, Genesis says it was good
But there was a huge problem: SIN!
Turn out the lights
Sin has created a darkness
The lights have been dimming for awhile, I wonder when you noticed?
Thats what sin does
It slowly changes everything until thats what you’re used to
That’s the thing about darkness though, it is the absence of light!
You can’t make something so dark that light won’t penetrate it!
It’s not like you say “That’s too bright, go turn on more darkness!”
Darkness CAN NOT overpower light!
And so even in the darkest space - Jesus still makes things bright
Light up Jesus
God was fully aware we would bring sin
And so He had a plan all along! The plan was Jesus...
The Messiah, the Christ, The Light of the World!
In Star Wars, what does Darth Vader say to entice Luke?
Come to the dark side!
Guess what, we ARE the dark side!
Call me Darth Dan...
And Jesus came!
But He didn’t come to join the dark side...
He came to bring light to the dark side!
Lights to Sermon
Jesus has brought victory! Peace! Love! Hope to the world!
Yoda and Obi Wan are dancing!
The evil empire has fallen!
Or not!!
Now look at us…
10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.
What happened to us?
We have fallen so far that we cannot even recognize our Creator when He is standing next to us...
He sent messengers, angels, prophets… and we missed it?!
This week I’ve been reading Ecclesiastes for personal reading
Solomon wrote before Jesus
“Everything is vanity”
“All we do is work”
“Enjoy what you can cuz it’s all we get”
9 What has been is what will be,
and what has been done is what will be done,
and there is nothing new under the sun.
How terrible
Nothing changes, no one learns, nothing gets better
Solomon’s kind of right!
What were the problems back in his day?
Greed, sexual immorality, worshipping other gods, sickness...
What are our problems today?
Greed, sexual immorality, worshipping other gods, sickness...
We’re not different at all...
Here is the Christmas message from our side of Christmas:
Christ came, He revealed God to us, we responded by killing Him
But He didn’t leave it there! He could have said “I tried, it’s on you!”
Solomon complains because there is nothing new
Mankind is terrible now just like always
He’s right about man, nothing new under the sun
Maybe the secret isn’t in changing what’s under the sun
S-U-N...
Maybe it’s changing it so we’re under the S-O-N!
The Son of God!
God promised a return to Israel AND a promised Messiah in Isaiah:
Only read “doing a new thing”
18 “Remember not the former things,
nor consider the things of old.
19 Behold, I am doing a new thing;
now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness
and rivers in the desert.
And Jesus gives us a promise for our future in Revelation:
Only read “all things new”
5 And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
So while the darkness of sin is still a problem...
The Light of the World is the new everlasting solution
That’s why John says this:
12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
What a plan!
Some of us who are called to Him, get to be called children of God
Catch this “nor the will of man”… there is nothing we can do, but God Himself calls us to Him
This Christmas has been weird so far:
I’m in Illinois
There’s a pandemic going on
There’s not even a congregation in here right now...
Tash teases because every year I try to rekindle old memories
But I always fail, because I try for presents, lights, feasts
But that’s not what Christmas is!
These are tools to connect to what Christmas is, but somehow we have put them in front
Please don’t forget what this is all about!!
Hamilton Wright Mabie: Blessed is the season which engages the whole world in a conspiracy of love.
It’s about a moment
One of my favorite things to do in a house is electrical...
Why? For the moment...
You’re working and working...
Running wire, nutting things together, screwing on plates, turn the breaker on...
And… flick! The light goes on!
In a moment you see you are victorious! Light in the room!
That’s what Christmas is - everything changes!
Think of the Christmas verses:
“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among...”
“They shall call his name Immanuel (which means, God with us)...”
“ For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior...”
“ For to us a child is born, to us a son is given...”
All of that changed in a moment
Suddenly here was God in the flesh and everything that was hopeless turned to hope!
That’s Christmas right there.
And this being, “The Word”, created all
All of nature, every fragment of the universe from the biggest galaxy to the smallest electron
He made you to have life
He designed your hand to open and close
He designed your eyes to take in light and build an object in your mind
He designed your heart to pump blood through your body
But He also made you to love
He allowed Rembrandt to paint, Mozart to compose and Shakespeare to write
Everything was made by Him, and nothing exists without Him
He made good, and He is more powerful that evil
There is nothing with more knowledge, power or good and He should be far away from us
But He is isn’t - He is with you this Christmas
He came to the dark side - and we will never be the same
