Light in the Dark

Pray

Our last evening Carols by Candlelight was in 2019 -

the world was a different place!

Corona was just a beer.

Brexit - was the only news headline - what happened to all that!!

Holidays consisted of travel beyond our front rooms!

One big change I’ve observed as someone who speaks regularly to large groups of people -

Before 2019 in the middle of winter - any public talk was accompanied by a backing track of coughs and sneezers!.

Listen -

leave a silence

Not even a sniffle!

We darn’t let out a cough in a public setting!

I was at my sons choir performance the other day and a lady coughed -

a 10 row radious of people gasped, screams - people dived for cover - the conductor dropped his baton...

Ok - so I exagerate - but it feels a bit like that doesn’t it!

Some like me smiled with amusement as she cringed and squirmed!

It’s going to be terribly awkward now if someone coughs here isn’t it!

Please don’t worry - in reality, people really don’t mind - human beings cough - it is just funny how culture determins our behaviour so significantly.

It’s slightly ironic really that in a culture that demands we accept every view,

opinion,

identity,

cause,

and perceived injustice

- it is also still a culture that is incredibly opinionated and judgemental about those who don’t agree or behave as we think they should.

Very ironic - that everything is acceptable - and no other view will be accepted!

This trend even has a name - ‘woke’.

Tim Stanley, a well regarded - author and newspaper journalist wrote a book about such things and

He quotes an American Bishop to summarise this idea:

‘Everything is permitted but nothing is forgiven’ (Tim Stanley)

How true that is!

Anyone can be anything they want - believe what they want, behave how they want.

Every minority group is to be heard with the same if not a louder voice than the majority.

Every cause is to be upheld - many of which are without question very good and important.

BUt - find yourself on the wrong side of our ‘woke’ culture,

or more precisely find yourself growing up in the previous generations with different traditions and permissions - and there is no forgiveness.

Or find that somewhere in your past you once made a mistake against what is now the culturally accepted.

And you will go down for it.

No forgiveness.

Ricky Gervais - the actor and screen writer - has said recently that

"I want to live long enough to see the younger generation not be woke enough for the next generation. It’s going to happen. Don’t they realise that it’s like, they’re next? That’s what’s funny." (Ricky Gervais)

‘everything is permitted but nothing is forgiven’

What with Covid, Woke culture,

so much permitted freedom to choose who you are - so much that our children ironically don’t have a clue who they are.

So much baggage in our past, fear of judgment from the world, it’s actually a very dark time.

A dark world,

a dark life,

A dark culture.

But there is an alternative culture on offer - a different one from the ever changing culture of our time.

One that never changes,

one that is consistently good,

And one that is very forgiving.

One that embodies the very nature of What Christmas is really all about.

And we heard it read in one of our readings

John 1:14 NIV

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

The Word - another name for God the Son - Jesus - dwelt among us - He was born as a baby - a human being.

Who’s glory and life was countlessly witnessed in history, and written about in the bible

And the end of that verse - The Word Came from the Father God full of..

‘everything is permitted but nothing is forgiven’

No,

Full of grace and truth.

Grace and Truth.

They are the 2 opposites of what’s on offer in the world,

Rather than a culture that says everything is permitted - as deemed permitted by the current culture - so it’s ever changing - with no moral basis,

Jesus was full of Truth - when he was born.

An anchor for what is right and true.

And rather than a culture than never forgets and never forgives -

Jesus brought Grace - when he was born.

Pause

And so unless you have seen some hope in the world,

some resemblance of an eternal truth that will bring peace on earth from our culture.

Or Unless you have found a way through the bad decisions, and unforgiveness, both for yourself and for others,

or some hope beyond covid and even death

that offers Joy to the world..

Shouldn’t we just consider Jesus and the culture he offers?

For He is Truth and Grace.

So what is Truth?

Jesus is Full of Truth

The bible here in this passage in the book of John uses an illustatrion to describe Jesus and His truth compared to our human attempts at truth,

It’s the illustartion of Light and Darkness.

John 1:9–11 NIV

The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.

It’s a true statement isn’t it?

When Jesus lived on earth 2000 years ago, they rejected him as truth so much so that they had him put to death on a Cross.

Light came into the world - but darkness didn’t recognise him.

Some here today have rejected Jesus the light - the truth as well.

HAng on though - what makes Jesus Light?

What makes Him truth?

What gives him the right to make such a claim!?

He’s starting to sound a bit like our woke culture - I can be what I say I am.

But that is to miss the crucial point.

Jesus is no ordinary human being - with no moral foundation other than what he decides it to be.

back to our passage

John 1:1–4 NIV

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.

Jesus (the Word) is God - and He created everything!

We only exist becasue he exists and created us.

And if he did that - then what other truth could there be!?

What other true light can there be.

A creator God has a monopoly on truth - that cannot be defeated or changed.

I know it’s very trendy to think that there is no creator God,

but as many a phylospher and scientist has said,

it is a far greater faith to believe that all this came out of literally nothing at all!

than to believe that there must be a creator God.

Brian Cox - the TV celebrity scientist - not a Christian still says

- We can’t be sure there is no God. - Science can’t explain everything

Richard Attenborough - also not a Christian - still describes how he believes there to be a higher power. He exppains that Much like a termite colony is oblivious to a human who lopped the top of the termite mound and is looking in - they carry on with their busy lives - oblivious to the man above.

So might we be to God.

But they both miss the point,

The creator God of Truth does not just stand above watching,

He loves his created people and so

God became a termite!

He dwelt amoung us.

The light has come.

Full of truth.

His name is Jesus,

The problem is that we, the world, the people of Jesus’ time,

have not lived by and for the truth of Jesus at all times and in every way.

Our culture - and you and me - make up our own truth and rules - and when we compare ourselevs to Jesus the Light and truth, -

we can only appear as very dark!

We have fallen short.

Even Christians - we fail to live in a way that is always for our Creator God.

Decisions, thoughts, actions all without a thought for the Truth and light of Jesus.

The bible calls it sin.

Sin isn’t just doing bad things - Sin is to have not accepted the light - the truth.

The Famous Charles Dickens in A Christmas Carol,

describes the idea like this:

“Darkness is cheap, and Scrooge liked it.”

It’s true isn’t it.

Living for ourselves rather than living for Jesus seems so much easier.

It’s cheap - and we like it.

Ignoring the very idea of a creator who might expect us to live by his truth is easier than having to think about - or live by it.

The problem of course - is the light of Jesus makes us see our darkness - his light is like a mirror to our culture and how we view God,

a mirror to our rejection of him..

And before a perfect God - who we will all face when we die - or Jesus returns again - whichever comes first.

Before A God of Light who stands for turth and therefore justice- we will be judged and sentenced rightly to punishment - to hell.

Those verse in Joy have said - the world has rejected Jesus the light.

And if we are honest wont be surprised when he judges us - we have a sense that we will get what we deserve - a sense that our lives are dark.

A sense that there is a God of truth who we have not lived for..

When Scrouge meets one of the ghosts he says!

You are fettered (meaning chained),’ said Scrooge, trembling. ‘Tell me why?’ ‘I wear the chain I forged in life,’ replied the Ghost. ‘I made it link by link, and yard by yard; I girded it on of my own free will, and of my own free will I wore it. Is its pattern strange to you?

we wont be surprised - when Jesus returns to judge us.

we have a sense that we will get what we deserve - we are making our chain, link by link.

Those chains and links are made up each time we seek light or truth in our culture, or science, or phylosophy, or other religions

- if Jesus is God, our creator all other ways are darkness.

pause

But - this is Christmas -

and the truth, the light of Jesus is not His only Characteristic!

He is also - full of Grace.

Jesus is Full of Grace

Grace is receiving something you don’t deserve!

John 1:11–12 NIV

He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—

Jesus - the Word - the light -the creator God - came to his own - the people he had created - and we rejected him.

either literally at the time of Jesus’ life - or by the way we have ignored him or not lived with him as our God today.

And yet - notice the verse did not say that those who are right with God - are those who lived a good life.

Or those who saved the planet,

or those who joined Black Live Matter,

Or those who survived Covid

For all the good or bad of those things it will never be enough for Jesus the light!

No - all Jesus requires to benefit from His grace - is belief in His name - and we will be children of God.

Grace!

Jesus came to us - God become man and he was full of grace!

Believe in Him and he will not judge us as we deserve,

but he will forgive us and enter us into an eternal relationship with him, as His own children! Children of God.

The world may not forgive - but Jesus does!

In fact -so full of Grace is Jesus - that that is why he became a man.

If he was just truth he could just look down secretly on the termite mound!

but he is full of grace.

`And So that we can know and be with our creator God.

He reveals the character of God to us - by becoming one of us..

He comes to earth as a man,

lives a life of perfect truth and light before His heavenly Father.

He was rejected and died on a cross - and at that moment - all who believe in his name are forgiven.

God the father puts the sin of believers onto the perfect person of Jesus,

Truth is satisfied for a perfect man of light has taken the punishment we deserve before God.

and sinners like you and me in the dark -

are given the light and truth of Jesus instead.

God no longer looks on us and sees darkness - he looks on us and sees through the life, death and resurection of Jesus - !

His precious Chidlren who he loves.

Christmas is not about warm fuzzies,

doing Good,

enjoying family,

Christmas is about God entering our world full or truth and full of grace.

Believe in the name of Jesus to be freed from your darkness,

freed from sin, freed from judgement,

freed from the desperation of this chaotic world.

We have hope, and joy, and peace - in Jesus alone!

Full of grace and full of truth.

Let us repent for our darkness and rejection -

And believe in the name of Jesus,

And by doing so - we become children of God,

No longer tied to our culture

No longer fearful of Covid

We belong to a culture now of truth and grace for all eternity,

whatever happens in this life.

enjoy the light of Jesus for eternity,

as a child of God - we will rise to new life - eternally enjoying the glory of God.

Enjoying his truth and grace

Pray- repentance