Own the Vision – Proverbs 29:18

• January 3, 2021
• Pastor
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Proverbs 29:18; 1 Peter 1:23-2:3; James 1:18, 21; James 6:63

As most of you know, one of my greatest passions is history.  When I was young I was more likely to be seen reading non-fiction than fiction.  Some of you have told me that you’ve learned bits and pieces of U.S. history and world history from my sermons that you didn’t even get in school.  One aspect of history that I particularly enjoy is examining historical figures to see if reality matches our perception.

 

Often, I find myself attempting to vindicate a particular historical figure who’s been given unfair treatment in history.  These days I find myself doing the same with Bible passages.  There are a number of passages in the Bible that we use improperly.  That is to say, the verse or verses seem to say one thing and we’re tempted to assuming that the meaning we’ve always held is the correct one, but upon closer examination the real meaning is completely different.

 

Today I want us to consider one such verse.  So let me invite you to take your copy of God’s Word and turn with me to Proverbs 29:18.  We’re also going to be looking at three (3) passages in the New Testament, so you might want to be ready to flip over there later.

 

While you’re finding your place let me take just a moment and give you a very quick overview of the Book of Proverbs.  It’s in a section of the Bible that scholars often refer to as wisdom literature.  The wisdom books are Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and Job.  It’s also in a section that’s referred to as “the writings.”  That’s how the Hebrew scriptures are divided: the law, the prophets, and the writings.

 

It also has a very different kind of organization.  There’s very little continuity from chapter-to-chapter and verse-to-verse.  You’ll see a verse about money right next to a verse about sexual purity, then over to a verse about work and productivity, followed by a verse that speaks about educating and raising children.  Now I suppose you could make an argument that those kinds of pairings could go together naturally, but it’s a little bit of a stretch.

 

The verses also tend to be shorter and pithy – just imagine a father and son(s) on a camping trip, or mothers and their daughters having a beach weekend, or a grandparent sharing life and life’s lessons with a grandchild.  Many people generally attribute it to King Solomon, although there are other names and persons mentioned in the texts.

 

So, with that little bit of background let’s look at Proverbs 29:18.  I’m going to read it to you from the King James Version, which is the one that’s most often quoted.  “Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.”  It’s a verse that many Christians claim to provide a biblical basis for the importance of vision in leadership.  For example, consider this brief sampling:

 

“My imagination influences my aspirations.  In other words, your dreams determine your destiny.  To accomplish anything, you must first have a mission, a goal, a hope, a vision.  After all, without a vision the people perish.” – Rick Warren

 

“All memorable achievements were brought about by leaders who had vision.  God uses visions to excite leaders because excited leaders get the most out of followers.  Active followers accomplish much, and Christ’s Body keeps getting bigger thanks to prevailing local churches.  That’s why Proverbs 29:18 clearly states, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”  Let a leader grasp a godly vision, and then watch God work.” – Ken Godevenos

 

“Proverbs 29:18 says, “Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained.”  They can’t focus, can’t reach their goal, can’t follow their dream.  An older translation says, “Without vision, the people perish.”  I’ve seen it with my own eyes – without vision, people lose the vitality that makes them feel alive.” – Bill Hybels

 

In the workbook section of Transitioning, which is a text book for leading a church from a “program-driven” to purpose-driven model, Dan Southerland examines vision in the light of Proverbs 29:18, suggesting that we should interpret this verse in the present tense to read “Where there is no visioning…” the people perish.

 

One pastor, quoting this passage, writes, “Without a planned destination, no one knows where to go.  In churches, that leads to people doing ministry without a purpose.  Programs drive these churches because no one has determined where the church is going.  A vision statement paints a picture of the ideal future of your ministry and focuses prayer, energy, and resources.”

 

What’s the vision these church leaders are referring to?  Well one person defines vision as a picture of what God wants to do.  “Vision is a picture of what God will do in His church if we get out of His way and turn Him loose to do so.”  Bill Hybels says that “vision is a picture of the future that produces passion.”  According to these men, vision is an integral part of church leadership.  And it is, but is that what this verse is saying?

 

It’s true; a leader who doesn’t cast and follow vision, leads his church towards destruction.  But is that what we’re supposed to take away from this passage?  The words “the people perish” is often interpreted by proponents of church growth to mean that churches without clear vision will lose members and be unable to grow and flourish.  But is that conclusion supported by this verse?

 

It’s interesting to note that all of these men have quoted the King James Version’s rendering of Proverbs 29:18, which is why I read it.  But it’s a little strange too.  You see, I doubt that many (if any) of these guys would ever preach from the King James Version.  And I’m quite certain they wouldn’t recommend it for study or devotional reading.  So why would they quote from this old translation?  Well, let’s hear the first part of this verse from a few other translations:

 

NIV – Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint…

NLT – When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild…

CEV – Without guidance from God law and order disappear…

NKJV – Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint…

HCSB – Without revelation people run wild…

ESV – Where there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint…

AMP – Where there is no vision [no redemptive revelation of God], the people perish…

 

Clearly, the meaning of these translations is vastly different than the meaning of the King James’ rendering.  And it really comes down to two words.  The Hebrew word that’s causing most of the trouble is chazon, which refers specifically to a “prophetic vision.”  Now this isn’t vision in the sense of “a picture of the future that produces passion,” but rather divine revelation, God’s words.  Furthermore, “perish” doesn’t mean “die.”  It means “to cast off restraint.”

 

So, the meaning of the verse is clear.  Where there is no prophetic vision or revelation from God the people cast off restraint, no longer faithfully interpreting God’s Word and His Laws.

 

I also want you to note that none of the authors I mentioned earlier completed the verse.  The King James renders the rest of the verse as follows: “but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.”  The ESV says “but blessed is he who keeps the law.”  The word “but” contrasts something from the first clause and the second.  Obviously, what’s being contrasted is those who cast off restraint when there’s no revelation from God with those who keep the Law of God regardless.

 

In the time that remains, I want to use this passage as a springboard and offer three other texts that speak of the importance of keeping God’s Word and not casting off restraint and running wild in these chaotic times.

 

Spiritual Milk

 

1 Peter 1:23-2:3, “[S]ince you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding Word of God; for

 ‘All flesh is like grass

    and all its glory like the flower of grass.

The grass withers,

    and the flower falls,

but the Word of the Lord remains forever.’

 And this Word is the good news that was preached to you.  So, put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander.  Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation – if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.”

1. The miracle of new-birth, or regeneration, or salvation is facilitated by the Word of God.  Now I want to be careful here.  I’m splitting a theological hair.  I’m making an important distinction here.  Listen to me closely.  The Bible is really clear that our being born again, our being made right in the eyes of God, our becoming a child of God is by grace through faith.  So, here’s the distinction I’m making: we are NOT saved by reading or even “knowing” the Bible, however our salvation, our being born again does indeed grow by and through the reading and studying and obeying of the Word of God.
2. Our experience of that miracle, our experience of being born again is described here as “tasting that the Lord is good.”  Before we were born again, before we became children of the King, the Lord did NOT taste good.  He tasted bad.  The Word was boring.  His cross was foolishness (1 Corinthians 1:18).  Heaven was unreal.  Nothing about this faith was satisfying or real, but NOW, having been born again, we’ve tasted.  There are taste buds on the tongues of our souls, as it were, and God and His Word are delicious.  The Psalmist says that God’s Word is “sweeter than honey, even honey dripping from the comb” (Psalm 19:10, NLT).
3. Nevertheless, notwithstanding all that I’ve just shared with you, we have to be told to desire this spiritual food.  In other words, “eating” this spiritual meal is not automatic.  Peter wouldn’t tell us to do this if it was automatic.  Our desires rise and fall.  They’re passionate one day and lukewarm the next.
4. Desire the Word of God so that you may grow up in your salvation.  That means that the evidence of your new birth will be shown by your ongoing “feeding” on the Word of God, which works in you all the kinds of things that keep you on the narrow road of eternal life.

So, what we need to ask ourselves this morning is this: if we’re not pursuing a daily strategy of “feeding” on the Word of God, then what’s our alternative strategy for growing in our faith and salvation? If it’s not the Bible, if it’s not God’s own Word, then what is it that we’re looking to in order to grow in our faith?  Otherwise we might cast off restraint, our souls might become cold to the things of God.

 

Save Your Souls

 

James 1:18, 21, “Of His own will [God’s] He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures…  Therefore, put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.”

 

It’s interesting, Peter and James are essentially saying the same thing.  They’re not quoting one another (we know that because the language is so different), nevertheless they’re saying the same thing.

 

One, God brought us forth unto salvation by the Word.  Peter says, “you have been born again…through the living and abiding Word of God,” and James says, “Of His own will He brought us forth by the Word of truth…”

 

Second, Peter says “long for the pure spiritual milk,” and James says “receive with meekness the implanted Word…”  It’s already in you.  You’ve been born again by it, now go on embracing it, receiving it, meditating on it, praying over it, “eating” it, savoring it.

 

Third, Peter says, “that by it you may grow up into salvation,” and James says, “which is able to save your souls.”

 

This is really serious.  Both Peter and James say that the Christian life begins with the new birth, which is brought about by the Word.  Both of them stress that in order to make it home to eternal salvation we need to be receiving the Word meekly and drinking in the Word daily, because by it we grow up into our salvation.  God’s Word keeps us in a vital, happy fellowship with Jesus and brings us safely home. Isn’t that exactly what Proverbs 29:18 says, “Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; but happy is he who keeps the law”?

 

Spirit and Life

 

John 6:63, “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all.  The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.”

 

There it is.  The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.  To which, Peter responds (v. 68), “Lord, to whom then shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life.”  Real and genuine followers of Jesus realize that God’s way of getting them home is preserving them and keeping them in fellowship with Christ by saying, “My words are your life.”

 

So, here, at the beginning of another year, oh how I pray that the Holy Spirit of God would work in our hearts so that we would hear this message – not as a burden but as life.  Would we treasure and cherish God’s Word as one of our most significant possessions?  Would we spend time reading God’s Word – not as an obligation, not because we get a cosmic star on our reading chart if we do – but because in doing so we grow in our salvation.  May we truly taste and see that the Lord is good.

The Light of Wonder: In the Darkness of Uncertainty – Luke 2:8-20

• December 27, 2020
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Luke 2:8-20

The other day, my wife had a memory pop up on her Facebook account that showed our family at Disney World in December 2014.  Jordan was 12, Parker was 10, and we were at Epcot getting ready for the IllumiNations nighttime light and sound show.  More than just an ordinary firework show with some music behind it, this display of sound and light involved fireworks, water fountains, lasers, search lights, and a rotating globe with LED screens.  How many of you had the opportunity to witness that?  Wasn’t it neat?

 

The first time that Melissa and I saw it was in 2000, the year after it originally premiered.  I don’t recall the exact date.  All I remember is that the trip was spontaneous.  We didn’t have children at the time.  It seems that maybe it was coming up to a vacation weekend – perhaps Memorial Day or Labor Day – and we had the benefit of a long weekend, or something like that.  And so, we just threw a bag in the car and headed for Orlando.

 

Besides witnessing this fabulous sound and light show, there are only two other memories that I have of that trip, one is that our AC broke down and we got caught in a traffic jam and almost melted, and the other is that because it was spontaneous, we didn’t have a hotel room.  We finally ended up finding a Disney-themed family room with a queen bed, kids bunk beds and a Nintendo gaming system.  Not something that a newlywed couple would normally choose.  Lesson learned…

 

But I remember that fabulous light and sound show, and when we took the boys a few years ago we were eager to see their reactions.  And ever since then, I’ve thought about that dramatic presentation of sound and light.  But, of course, that wasn’t the first sound and light show, nor the greatest sound and light show.

 

I think the greatest light and sound show that ever took place in human history, took place on a barren field outside the tiny town of Bethlehem.  And while many of us are scurrying around trying to take down our Christmas decorations and get things put away, might I encourage us to linger just a little longer?

 

On the back side of Christmas, is it possible for us to hold onto the wonder of it all just a wee bit more?  Can we let the truth of what has happened in the great Christ-event be for us an experience that is burned into our souls?  There are, after all, twelve days of Christmas, aren’t there?

 

As I conclude this Advent/Christmas sermon series Bethlehem’s Light, I’d like for us to see the light of wonder as it shines in the darkness of uncertainty.  Bethlehem’s Light doesn’t just shine before Christmas.  It shines after Christmas too.  Indeed, Jesus still shines today.  Even though the times in which we live are uncertain, and even though our own personal lives have times of uncertainty, the light of Christ still shines.

 

For those people who gathered there in Bethlehem on that night so long ago, there was a sense of wonder at the things they had heard, seen, and experienced.  It was a night like no other, one they would never forget.  And we’ve not forgotten it, either.

 

Luke tells us that when the shepherds came to Bethlehem and found baby Jesus, they “made known the saying which had been told them.”  They shared what they had heard from the angels, “… and all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them.”

 

I have no way of knowing what happened to those shepherds after that night.  It’s difficult for me to imagine them ever getting over it.  I can’t help but believe that they always remembered it, held onto it, kept it alive in their hearts – the wonder of it all.  Perhaps, some of them were still around when Jesus came to Jerusalem, many years later.  I can almost see them saying to each other, “Remember that night long ago.  We knew then there was something special about Him, and now here He is.”

 

We know that Mary and Joseph held onto the wonder of that night.  Parents always hold on to the wonder of birth.  Luke said Mary “… kept all these things, pondering them in her heart.”

 

Luke also writes that “… the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.”  This experience turned them toward God.  They worshiped God because of what had taken place.

 

In the experience of these people, caught up in the first Christmas, we see some hints for ourselves.  They lived in times more uncertain than our own.  They had none of the advantages and safeguards we have today.  If a baby lived, great!  If a baby (and mother) had complications, well then, maybe they just died.  There wasn’t much understanding of medicine in those days.

 

Add to the uncertainty of birth, the fact that they lived in a predominately agrarian society.  No rain meant no crops.  No crops meant no food.  Fishing wasn’t a recreational activity like it is for me.  No catch meant no money.  If those little details aren’t enough to remind us of the uncertainty faced by Mary and Joseph and Jesus, then consider the domination of Rome.  When Caesar issued decrees people moved, or worse – died.  Yet, despite this, those that experienced that first Christmas were filled with wonder.

 

Do you feel like you’re up against a wall?  Do you think your life is filled with uncertainty and the darkness of it has fallen upon you?  Let the light of wonder shine upon you.  Remember to…

 

Let The Glory Of God Shine On You

 

Luke 2:8-9 says, “And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.  And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear.”  Notice how many times, in the Scriptures, the presence of God is described using terms of light and fire.  We’re told that our God is a consuming fire.  He radiates with the splendor of glory that is brighter than the noon-day sun.

 

Many of you know the real pain and difficulty of seeing in the bright sunlight.  Several of you have had cataract surgery, several of you have some sort of macular degeneration where you have to get periodic shots of medication in your eyes.  When you have your eyes dilated it’s hard to see due to the brightness of the sun.  Yet the Bible describes our God as having a refulgence that even surpasses the sun.

 

I don’t know about you, but I was kind of expecting something more grandiose on Monday, December 21^st when Saturn and Jupiter aligned to create what some call the “Christmas Star” or the “Star of Bethlehem.”  I suppose I was a victim of our own Christmas imagination.  Nevertheless, if you consider the fact that I was seeing that astrological phenomenon from a part of the world with a large degree of light pollution, then it’s not too hard to understand that it was a pretty big deal.

 

Now, I need to be careful here.  Pastors are continually faced with the temptation to make more out of something in the text than was intended.  And we’re often led to make incorrect interpretations and applications for the sole purpose of sharing something “new” with our congregations.  So, I want to be careful here.

 

Luke’s gospel makes absolutely no mention of the “star.”  We read about the “star” in Matthew 2 when we’re introduced to the Magi (wise men).  And if you read Luke 2 and Matthew 2 carefully, you’ll discover that these two gatherings – the shepherds and wise men – didn’t happen at the same time.  In Luke 2 Jesus is clearly born in a stable of sorts and he was laid in a manger (a feeding trough) because there was no room for them in the inn.  However, in Matthew 2:11 we’re told that the Magi entered a “house.”

 

So why am I saying that we need to be careful?  Because I’m getting ready to make a statement that isn’t clearly and explicitly stated anywhere in Luke’s account, but I wonder if the same star that led the wise men in Matthew 2 also helped the shepherds find their way to Jesus?

 

John began his Gospel by writing, “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.” (John 1:4-5)  Jesus is the light which shines upon us.  He’s the light which shines around us to light up the road we travel, to help us find our way.  He’s the light which shines through us, and calls us to be light and share light, even when there’s darkness all around.

 

During the fourteenth century, the Black Death swept across Europe, taking the lives of thousands of people.  In some towns, every person died.  Many people locked themselves up in their homes, hoping to avoid the illness (sounds familiar, doesn’t it?).  On Christmas Eve, in the year 1353, in the town of Goldberg, Germany, there was a man who thought he must be the last person alive.

 

He remembered the joy of other Christmas seasons.  He decided that with his family and friends gone, he did not want to live any longer.  So, he walked out into the street to face death.  As he walked along, he sang a Christmas song, and was surprised that soon another voice joined his own.  Several people came out and joined him, and when they reached the end of the street, they found they had a group of 25 men, women, and children.

 

They all sang together.  Then, they returned to their homes and began to put their lives back together again.  The worst had passed.  A tradition was begun there that lasted for centuries.  Each Christmas Eve, the people march through the streets and sing these words:

 

To us this day is born a child.

God with us.

His mother is a virgin mild.

God with us.

 

Despite the darkness of uncertainty that’s in the world, Bethlehem’s Light – the light of Christ can shine in us, and we can let it shine.  Let the glory of God shine on you and in you.

 

Remember also, to…

 

Let The Angels’ Song Fill Your Heart

 

Luke 2:13-14, “And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!’”

 

When the shepherds came to Bethlehem, their hearts were full of what they had heard from the angels.  It was because of that announcement that they said to each other, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened.”  When they got there, they shared what they had been told.

 

And although Scripture doesn’t explicitly tell us this, you have to believe that from that moment on, whenever they experienced uncertainty and anxiety and stress and worry and disappointment, they heard the song of the angels in their heads.  Much like you hear the words and tunes of Amazing Grace or It Is Well or Just As I Am.

 

Some of us need to catch that.  All of us need this song in our hearts, the song of the angels, the great anthem of Christmas – “Glory to God in the highest…”  In fact, we sing those very words every Christmas in the hymn Angels We Have Heard on High.  The chorus (or refrain) that we sing is “Glo…ria in excelsis Deo.”  In case you didn’t know, that’s Latin.  And when you translate that phrase what do you get “Glory to God in the highest.”

 

What if we could take those words to heart?  What if we could make it a part of us?  What if, like Amazing Grace or How Great Thou Art or Great Is Thy Faithfulness, we had “Glo…ria in excelsis Deo” in our heads and hearts too?  Maybe then, we could make Christmas something more than an event or a day that we find our way through only to pack it up in a box and put away until next year, to something we live all year long.

 

Some of us live like someone has eaten the chocolate off our peanuts, licked the stripe off our candy cane, or popped our little bubble, instead of realizing that we’re joining a host of countless angels in praising the God who become man and lived among us, to be our Savior, our Christ, our Lord.  We let the uncertainty of life overwhelm us, but it does not have to be that way.  Let the song of the angels continue to fill your heart.

 

First, the light, then the sound.  And finally…

 

Let The Savior’s Birth Transform Your Life

 

Luke 2:17 says, “And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child.”  The shepherds went from tending sheep to talking about the Savior.  They left their jobs as shepherds – even if only temporarily – and became broadcasters.  Announcers of the greatest event in human history.  Journalists proclaiming the Messiah’s birth.

 

But it wasn’t simply sharing the Good News of great joy in casual conversation or even exuberant exclamation.  Verse 20 says, “And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.”  The shepherds went from tending sheep to praising God.  They exchanged their shepherd’s robes – at least temporarily – for choir robes.  They went from sitting quietly in some pasture to singing joyfully of everything they had seen and heard.

 

We can let the good news of Christmas, and the joy of Christmas fill our lives with a sense of wonder which we can take away with us.  This sense of wonder can transform our lives and our living and give us a new purpose, a new direction, a new destiny.  Would we let Bethlehem’s Light lift our lives and our living above the ordinary and the mundane?  Could we just let the wonder of Bethlehem’s Light change us?  Is it possible that we go from quietly sitting and watching to glorifying and praising?

 

I know this year has been tough.  I know that we still have unanswered questions on the horizon.  I know that life is uncertain, but let’s just take a minute and let Bethlehem’s Light and the wonder of it all move us to proclaim “Glory to God in the highest.”

Christmas Eve Service

• December 25, 2020
• Pastor
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The Light of Joy: In the Darkness of Fear – Luke 2:8-20

• December 20, 2020
• Pastor
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Luke 2:8-20

Let me invite you to take your copy of God’s Word and turn with me to Luke 2.  We read the first 7 verses last week when we considered Bethlehem’s Light of salvation in the darkness of oppression.  This week we’re going to be reading the next 13 verses – some of the most familiar and happy words of Christmas – as we consider Bethlehem’s Light of joy in the midst of fear.  So follow along with me as I read:

 

⁸ And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.  ⁹ And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear.  ¹⁰ And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  ¹¹ For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  ¹² And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.”  ¹³ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

 ¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!”

 ¹⁵ When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.”  ¹⁶ And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.  ¹⁷ And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child.  ¹⁸ And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them.  ¹⁹ But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.  ²⁰ And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

 

I want to begin this morning by just breaking down verse 11 for us.  It was a real day.  “For unto you is born this day…”.  It happened on a day.  A day in history.  Not a day in some mythological, imaginary story, but a day when “Caesar Augustus was the emperor of Rome and Quirinius was governor of Syria” (vss. 1-2).

 

It was a day planned in eternity before the creation of the world.  Indeed, the whole universe – with untold light-years of space and billions of galaxies – was created and made glorious for this day and what it means for human history.  The Apostle Paul would write these words concerning this day, “For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities – all things were created through Him and for Him.” (Colossians 1:16).

 

It happened on a day.  The perfect day.  In the fullness of time.  The perfect time appointed by God before the foundation of the world.

 

But it was also a real city, “For unto you is born this day in the city of David…”  It happened in a city.  Not in Narnia.  Not in Middle Earth.  Not in a galaxy far far away.  It happened in a city about 6,000 miles from Greenville.  The city still exists today.  It’s a real city named Bethlehem.

 

Verses 4 and 15 both confirm that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, approximately six miles from Jerusalem.  Bethlehem, the city where Jesse lived, the father of David – the great king of Israel.  Bethlehem, the city that Micah prophesied over saying, “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for Me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days” (Micah 5:2).

 

It happened on a real day, and it happened in a real city.  A real city, just like Greenville, Greer or Landrum.

 

And the child that was born there was Savior, Messiah, and Lord.  “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior…”  A Savior.  If you’ve ever sinned against God you need a Savior.  In Matthew’s gospel, the angel said to Joseph, “You shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).

 

Only God can forgive sins against God.  That’s why God sent the eternal Son of God into the world, because Jesus is God.  That’s why Jesus said, “The Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins” (Matthew 9:6).  So, a Savior was born.

 

But He’s more than just the Savior.  He’s also Christ.  “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ…”  Christ is the English for Christos, which means “anointed one,” which is the meaning of “Messiah” (John 1:41; 4:25).  This is the long-predicted, long-awaited, anointed one above all others (Psalm 45:7).  The final anointed King.  The final anointed Prophet.  The final anointed Priest.

 

In Him all the promises of God are yes! (2 Corinthians 1:20).  He would fulfill all the hopes and dreams of godly Israel.  And more, vastly more.  Because He is also “the Lord.”  “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

 

He’s the Lord, the ruler, the sovereign, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Lord of the universe.  The prophet Isaiah would put it like this, “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulder, and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).  So, He’s Savior, Christ and Lord.

 

Finally, notice that one angel can bring the news, but it’s not sufficient for one angel to respond to the news, “And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host [army!] praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!” (Luke 2:13–14).  So, I exult with you today that we have a great Savior, one who is Christ and Lord, one who was born on a real day in a real city to save us from our real sins.  Bethlehem’s Light is the light of joy (amen?).

 

On these Sundays, we’ve been thinking together about the theme: Bethlehem’s Light.  Today, I want us to focus our attention on the fact that the light of joy shines even in the darkness of fear.  As Phillips Brooks’ great hymn, O Little Town of Bethlehem tells us, “The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.”

 

This is why Christmas is always such good news for us.  It has this great message for us, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.”  Because this one child was born, we can face all our fears.  We all have fears, in one form or another, at one time or another, in one way or another.  Even in the darkness of fear, the light of joy still shines.

 

LET THE LIGHT OF JOY BE A SURPRISE

 

Luke tells us there were shepherds out in the fields, keeping watch over their flocks.  Luke writes, “An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear.”

 

Just outside Bethlehem, about 1.5 miles away is the Shepherd’s Field.  It’s a vast pasture area still today, where the winter rains cause grass to grow.  Shepherds still take their sheep there to feed.  You can stand down there in those fields and see Bethlehem out in the distance.  And in that place, the shepherds were surprised as “the glory of the Lord shone around them.”

 

Reminds me of the preacher that went to see one of the families in his church.  He was met at the door by a six-year-old boy who said, “Preacher, am I glad to see you.  I have some good news.  Daddy and I are taking mama to the hospital to get a baby.  But don’t tell her about it.  We want it to be a surprise.”

 

Sometimes, the things we plan with the greatest detail turn out to be a surprise.  I suppose our problem is we think we have to plan it all; even life’s surprises.  Maybe what we should do instead is stand back, catch our breath for a moment and let the glory of the Lord shine on us.

 

Maybe we could dare to do that – open our lives up to a surprise by God and let God shine His light of joy on us, especially in those times when, like the shepherds, we’re afraid.  That’s when we need to be surprised most of all.  In the darkness of fear, let the light of joy shine on you.

 

LET THE LIGHT OF JOY GIVE YOU COURAGE

 

This was the message that the angel gave the shepherds, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.”

 

Did you get that?  Don’t be afraid.  Why?  Because good news of great joy has come to all people.  It doesn’t read, “Be not afraid… instead, be courageous, be brave, be strong.”  None of these human qualities are the antidote of fear.  The antidote of fear, the cure of fear, is joy.  The joy of Christmas will keep you from being afraid.

 

Armed with Bethlehem’s Light – the light of joy shining around us – we can stand against anything and everything which would threaten us.

 

Bethany Hamilton is probably best known as the surfer that survived a shark attack leaving her without her left arm.  She ultimately returned to professional surfing and wrote about her experience in the 2004 autobiography Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family, and Fighting to Get Back on the Board.  In that book she says, “Courage doesn’t mean you don’t get afraid.  Courage means you don’t let fear stop you.”

 

In December 1944, in the Ardennes forest outside a little Belgian town known as Bastonge, the German army surrounded the 101^st Airborne.  On December 22, the American troops were sent an ultimatum from the German forces outside of the town, demanding “the honorable surrender” of the town within two hours.  Brigadier General Anthony McAuliffe sent a brief and succinct reply: a one-word message, “Nuts!”  It was one of the greatest responses of military history.

 

That’s the message of Christmas for every Herod and every heartache and every hatred and every hardship and everything that seeks to destroy you – “Nuts!”  Or, as the angel put it, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.”

 

In the darkness of fear, let the light of joy give you courage.

 

LET THE LIGHT OF JOY ENABLE YOU TO ACCEPT THE GIFT

 

We’re back to where we started.  The angel told the shepherds, “To you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”  The Savior is for you.

 

One of the great hymns of this season is by Isaac Watts – Joy To the World.  In that song we sing these words, “Joy to the world, the Lord is come!  Let earth receive her King.”  Would we let that sink in for a moment?  Just let the words of that familiar tune settle over your heart and mind: joy to the world, the Lord is come, let earth receive her King.

 

Jesus is the light of the world.  He’s the light of joy.  This is your best gift at Christmas.  He has come to save you, to redeem you, to pardon you, to restore you to a right and holy relationship with God the Father.

 

This is why in the darkness of fear the light of joy still shines on us.  It’s a joy which casts out all fear – even the fear of our own death.  Would you accept this gift this Christmas?

 

Sometimes, it is easy for us to give a gift, but not as easy to accept one.  We’re gracious givers, but sometimes we’re not gracious receivers.  A gift comes to us out of the love of the other person, and not because we deserve it or earn it.  That’s why it’s a gift.

 

Christmas is a gift.  The light of joy is a gift.  Our Savior, Christ the Lord, is a gift.  And because of this gift, we can stand against, above, and even in the midst of, the darkness of fear.  But we have to receive Him.

 

Would you accept the gift of Christmas joy, the gift of Christ the Lord, the gift of a Savior?  If you would, you would then be able to face all that life brings your way.  In the darkness of fear, Bethlehem’s Light still shines.

The Light of Salvation: In the Darkness of Oppression – Luke 2:1-7

• December 13, 2020
• Pastor
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Luke 2:1-7

Let me invite you to take your copy of God’s Word and turn with me to Luke 2.  On these Sundays of Advent, leading up to Christmas, we’re considering the light of Bethlehem.  Of course, Bethlehem’s Light is a reference to none other than Jesus.  And the idea behind this series is to remind us that the Light of Bethlehem still shines on us today.

 

All that Jesus came to offer: love and forgiveness, grace and mercy, joy and peace, yeah, even a way to be made eternally right with God.  Salvation is still available to us today in the light of Bethlehem.  So, this morning I want us to think about the light of salvation amidst the darkness of oppression.  Follow along with me as I read these oh-so-familiar words from the true Christmas story:

 

¹ In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered.  ² This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria.  ³ And all went to be registered, each to his own town.  ⁴ And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, ⁵ to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child.  ⁶ And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth.  ⁷ And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths and laid Him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

 

Joseph and Mary went to Bethlehem for one reason.  It’s mentioned four times in these seven verses (vss. 1, 2, 3, and 5).  The sole reason – besides fulfilling prophecy and ultimately God’s plan of redemption – was “to be registered.”  In case you didn’t know; that’s short-hand for “keeping track of everybody.”  It’s slang for “making sure we get all the money that’s due to the state.”  It’s akin to “signing up for military service.”  The Greek term is apographesthai.  It’s a compound word made up of a prefix (apo – meaning “away from”) and the root verb (grapho – meaning “to write”).  In this case it’s specifically referring to entering into the public records the names of men, their property and income, and to enroll them for possible military service.

 

The bottom line was this – everyone was living under the oppression of Rome.  It had been that way for centuries.  First, the surrounding enemies had conquered Israel, then Judah, then came the deportation to Babylon.  That was followed by a time of freedom under the Persians.  Soon the Greeks came, and then the Romans.  The Israelites were oppressed.  They needed a Savior and they knew it.  The irony is, the Savior came, and yet many didn’t even know it.

 

The salvation that Jesus brought would be greater than any political freedom.  It would be broader than the borders of any kingdom or empire.  The light that Jesus brought into the world – the light of salvation; folks, it still shines.  It shines into the darkness of any, and every, kind of oppression.

 

Are you oppressed today?  Oh sure, we don’t think of ourselves as oppressed.  After all, that’s what we call defeated and persecuted people – not people that live in the “land of the free and the home of the brave.”  Or are we?  Oppression comes in many forms, you know.

 

How many of you (if you were honest with yourselves) are oppressed by fear?  You’re just scared.  Scared about tomorrow.  Scared about what could happen, what might happen, what will happen.  Scared to live but also scared to die.

 

Or perhaps fear isn’t you’re thing.  How many of you are oppressed by sorrow?  Sure, we think of Christmas as a fun and festive season, but there are countless people out there for whom this season is nothing but tears and sadness.

 

Maybe your flavor of oppression is failure?  How many of you are still haunted by the fact that you just couldn’t cut it?  You flunked out of school and that cloud still hangs over your head?  Your business endeavor has taken a hit with this economy and the thought of bankruptcy and losing your retirement is crippling?  You weren’t the parent you wished you’d be and the only thing you see in the mirror is failure?

 

Or maybe, just maybe, your oppression is physical suffering that just won’t quit.  You have doctor appointments every day and twice on Monday.  Radiation and chemo seem like they’re never going to end.  Aches and pains aren’t an inconvenience anymore; they’re your constant companions.  You finally came to grips with one diagnosis only to receive another.  You recovered from one surgery only to be told you needed another.

 

Oppression was real for Joseph and Mary.  It was real for the Israelite nation.  And it’s real for you and in our world too.  But Christmas brings to all of us the good news of the Savior’s birth.  There’s a way out of the darkness of oppression, because the light of salvation still shines.

 

Let me suggest three things that enable us to receive the Savior and stand in the light of salvation this Advent and Christmas season:

 

Look For Jesus Expectantly

 

That’s something basic.  Yet, if we don’t do this, we won’t find Him.  We won’t see Him.  We won’t know of His coming to us if we aren’t looking for Him expectantly.

 

Think about the birth of a baby.  Most parents look forward to the birth of a baby.  That’s why we use the term “expecting.”  But that says nothing about the reality of the situation.  The reality is that a baby is on its way into the world.

 

Mary was pregnant, and she and Joseph were expecting that little fellow to arrive immediately.  They went to Bethlehem knowing He could be born at any time.  There’s no doubt that ride on the donkey encouraged Him to arrive even sooner…  All of the people involved in the first Christmas had this same sense of expectancy.  Not only these parents, but the shepherds and the wise men.  They all came to Bethlehem expecting to find Jesus.

 

That’s what we need, this sense of expectancy.  So many of us have such a low sense of expectancy.  We have no expectations.  We feel like we’ve already seen it all and done it all.  Been there, done that, have the t-shirt.  Isn’t that what we say?  In many cases we live like that day-to-day.  We spend our lives aiming at nothing and hitting nothing.  We’re not looking for anything, not expecting anything.

 

We have to work on our sense of expectancy.  One of my favorite hobbies is fishing.  Many of you have seen me hauling my kayak around in my pickup truck.  I also have access to my father-in-law’s 17’ bass boat and little John boat, but the reason for the kayak is because there are so many smaller bodies of water, little farm ponds, little backwaters that can only be accessed by a personal watercraft like a kayak.

 

Unlike the professional kayak anglers out there, I don’t have my kayak rigged with a fish finder (yet).  So, when I go fishing in my kayak a large part of my fishing experience – whether it’s going to be a good day or bad day – is based on my expectancy.  Am I going with this state of mind that is looking forward to hook “the big one,” even though I’m not outfitted with all the gear that would lead me to it.

 

It can be hotter than blazes or the wind can be pushing me all over the place, but as long as I have that expectation that the “next cast” could be the one, then I’m okay.  When that expectation begins to wane, then it’s over.  I know it’s time to head for the house.

 

In all areas of our lives, we have to expect something to happen.  This is especially true of Christmas and what it can mean to us.  We’ll only get out of it what we’re expecting.

 

There’s a great little book by author, Joseph Girzone, called Joshua: A Parable for Today.  It’s the story of Jesus as told through a modern lens.  At one point, Joshua explained to a man how we see what we are looking at differently.  Joshua earned his living working with wood.  He told the man we look at life with different vision.  We see what we want to see.  Three men may look at the same tree.  One sees valuable lumber to build a house.  Another sees firewood to keep warm.  And the third sees a work of art waiting to be carved.

 

That’s the way Christmas is.  We must cultivate within ourselves the sense of expectancy about the Savior being born anew in us.

 

Prepare For Jesus Thoroughly

 

First, look for Jesus expectantly.  Second, prepare for Jesus thoroughly.  We’ll miss Him if we don’t do this.  Again, think of the birth of a real baby.  We have to make the certain and necessary preparations for a baby.  So, too, with Christmas.

 

Mary and Joseph made the best preparations they could.  They were traveling all the way from Nazareth to Bethlehem – a trip of about 80 miles (walking and riding a donkey).  And sometimes you just have to do the best you can with what you have and where you are.  Mary and Joseph did that.

 

Maybe the question we face isn’t, “How would you like to experience Christmas?” but “How would you like to completely miss Christmas?”  How would you like to not be affected by Christmas at all this year?  That’s a danger many of us face.

 

It doesn’t matter whether you were born in the 30’s, the 60’s, the 90’s or even have small kids today, there’s a game we all played and enjoyed called Hide and Seek.  That simple game where somebody closes their eyes and counts, while the other players hide.  The counter signals that they’ve finished counting and they’re getting ready to seek by saying (what), “Ready or not, here I come.”

 

That’s the way it is with Christmas and the birth of Jesus.  Ready or not, Christmas comes.  Have you made proper preparations?  Have you opened your heart and your mind to this great truth about Christ being born:

 

God’s only Son coming into the world…

Becoming God with us…

Getting down to our eye level…

Taking upon Himself the human experience…

Identifying Himself with us and all we suffer through

Enduring all our sins, sorrows, hurts, and shame, even death…

And then winning a victory over all of this for us because He is the

Savior.  Have you prepared to receive Jesus?  Are you preparing now?

 

There’s an old story about a slave woman who had a great Christian faith.  She couldn’t read, but the children she cared for had taught her to recognize the name of Jesus.  She knew it when she saw it.  Every evening she would sit down with the Bible and run her fingers up and down the pages searching for the name of Jesus.

 

In that same spirit, let us be preparing ourselves thoroughly for His coming.

 

Welcome Jesus Graciously

 

Look for Jesus expectantly.  Prepare for Jesus thoroughly.  And welcome Jesus graciously.  We’ll never know that Jesus has come if we don’t do this.  Again, just think of the real-life birth of a baby.

 

One of life’s most memorable moments is in the delivery room.  When a baby is born those parents open their arms and welcome that little one into their family.  Mary and Joseph opened their lives to this baby.  They received Him as a precious gift.

 

Now, we know that everyone didn’t receive Jesus that way.  Most folks in Bethlehem never even knew what had happened.  Of course, Matthew’s gospel tells us that king Herod tried to kill baby Jesus by having all the boys under 2 years of age murdered.  But most people just missed it entirely.  We, on the other hand, need to receive Him in a gracious way.

 

A number of years ago, on Christmas Eve, the Atlanta airport was iced in.  Anxious passengers were hoping to catch their flights home.  For a while, all flights were cancelled.  But, things began to open up.  Passengers listened for their flights and rushed to board them.  A couple of people spotted a man in a fine business suit who seemed unconcerned: going about his work, reading reports, his first-class seat, probably, confirmed.  They thought he was another Ebenezer Scrooge.

 

Then a young soldier appeared with a low-priority ticket, hoping to get a seat on the flight to New Orleans.  He was told there was little hope.  He was almost frantic.  He was going to Afghanistan in less than a month and he said this might be his last Christmas at home.

 

The agent was sorry, but there was nothing she could do.  When the boarding began, the seats were called out and the plane began filling up.  The businessman walked up to the agent and said, “I have a confirmed ticket.  I’d like to give my seat to this young man.”  Tears ran down the soldier’s face as the man told him, “Good luck.  Have a fine Christmas.  Good luck.”  

 

What if, this Christmas, you and I could open up a place for the Savior?  What kind of glow might burn in us if we could open our lives to the light of Bethlehem?  Won’t you give Him a place?  He has a confirmed ticket waiting just for you.  That’s the reason He came in the first place – to buy your pardon, to suffer God’s punishment for your sin.  The price has been paid in full.  Would you receive His free gift of grace for you this day?

Hanging of the Greens

• December 7, 2020
• Pastor
• 0 Comments

The Light of Life: In the Darkness of Suffering – John 1:1-18

• December 7, 2020
• Pastor
• 0 Comments

John 1:1-18

Have you ever found yourself on a vacation and your plans or your day was unexpectedly changed?  Perhaps you went to the beach and woke up to a day of rain.  Or maybe you went to the mountains and a storm knocked out the power.  Or maybe that’s your idea of vacation – nothing to do and no place to go and no interruptions.

 

Well, several years ago I found myself on such a vacation.  We were at the beach and it was a rainy afternoon and I found Sidney Sheldon’s novel, The Windmills of the Gods, on the shelf of the home we had rented.  By the way, it’s not a book about windmills or God.  But that’s beside the point.

 

There’s a scene where the main character, a lady named Mary, lost her young husband, a doctor.  She was left with her two children, and was trying to put her life back together.  She laid awake one night thinking how easy it would be to die, how happiness and love were so easily snatched away.  Then this thought ran through her mind, “The world is Dachau, and we are all Jews.”

 

Now… add to that story this one:

 

It was the Christmas of 1968.  Gerald Coffee was spending his third Christmas in prison.  His Vietnamese guards gave him and his fellow POW’s some candy.  He heard the guards outside talking and laughing with their families, celebrating Christmas.  One of the guards had a son who was about three or four years old, and Coffee thought of his own children back home.

 

He ate the candy and looked at the red and silver foil.  He began to form that foil into three shapes – a swan, a rosette, and a star.  That made him think about the star of Bethlehem.  He placed those three shapes above his bed and just laid there looking at them.  Then, he began thinking about the birth of Christ.  He knew it was only his faith that was getting him through.

 

Later, in his book Beyond Survival, Captain Gerald Coffee wrote that in that place there was nothing to distract him from the awesomeness of Christmas, even though he had lost everything that defined who he was.  He wrote, “Yet, I continued to find strength within.  I realized that although I was hurting and lonely and scared, this might be the most significant Christmas of my life.”

 

I share these two stories to highlight the fact that in times of darkness and suffering and disappointment and despair, one person saw nothing but darkness and the other saw the light.

 

Let me invite you to take your copy of God’s Word and turn with me to John 1.  On these Sundays in Advent, leading up to the Christmas season, we’re in a series that I’m calling Bethlehem’s Light – where we’re thinking about Jesus as the light of Bethlehem.  Today, I want us to see Jesus as the light of life amidst the darkness of our suffering.

 

Today’s passage isn’t about the birth of Jesus, or about Mary and Joseph getting the news.  Rather, it takes us back to the very beginning – before there was even a human history – and it introduces us to the Son of God, to Jesus, as the Word.  Follow along with me as I read:

 

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.

 

⁶ There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.  ⁷ He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through Him.  ⁸ He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.

 

⁹ The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.  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.  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.

 

¹⁴ And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.  ¹⁵ (John bore witness about Him, and cried out, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because He was before me.’”)  ¹⁶ For from His fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.  ¹⁷ For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.  ¹⁸ No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, He [Jesus] has made Him [God] known.

 

The first eighteen verses of John’s Gospel are called his prologue.  It’s this long statement about the Word becoming flesh.  The Greek word for “word” is logos, the creative power of God at work in the universe, God Himself.

 

The Bible begins with this same kind of language, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1)  And the next thing God created was the light, “Let there be light” (Genesis 1:3).

 

This creative power in the universe, this Word, this logos, God Himself, has come into the world in human form.  John tells us, in verse 4 that “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.”

 

John also tells us that at a certain point God (Himself) stepped onto the stage of human history, and when He did that, He stepped right into the middle of human suffering.

 

The Jews were suffering under the rule of Rome.  Now, it’s true that the Romans had brought about a time of peace (Pax Romana), but it was because no one could oppose them.  They brought developments in civilization, and had advanced human life in many ways, but at the same time the thumb of Rome had come down hard upon everybody.

 

Added to the political realities of living under Roman occupation you also had to face life filled with disease and hunger, sickness and death, injustice and persecution.  Yet, in the midst of all that suffering, the Bible says that Jesus was, “the light of all people” (John 1:)

 

Listen to me this morning; whatever it is that you’re facing right now . . . Christmas holds for you the promise of help and hope, the promise of light and love, the promise of joy and peace.  In the darkness of your own suffering, there’s a light that still shines.  To the darkness of sin, He is the light of holiness.  To the darkness of lies and falsehood, He is the light of truth.  To the darkness of ignorance of God, He is the light of wisdom.  To the darkness of sorrow, despair and depression, He is the light of joy.  And to the darkness of death, it’s none other than Jesus Christ who is the light of life.  And this morning I want to show you three ways that Jesus – Bethlehem’s light – ministers to us in the midst of our suffering.

 

Jesus Is The Light That Overcomes All Darkness

 

That’s the testimony of these verses.  Look at verse 5 again; “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

 

John is giving us the conclusion of the story before he even begins.  He’s telling us ahead of time how things turn out.  At the beginning of Jesus’ life – even before His official ministry and His crucifixion – He had already defeated the darkness of sin and death.

 

Imagine it; lying there in the manger was God’s answer to physical death.  God’s answer to spiritual death was the Babe of Bethlehem.  Jesus is the light that overcomes spiritual darkness and sin.  Do you know what this means for us?  It means that no matter what we face He has already defeated it.  He has already conquered it.  He has already overcome it.

 

Now don’t misunderstand me.  This doesn’t mean that we won’t face persecution or difficulty or suffering or disappointment.  Christians still face unpleasant medical diagnoses.  Christians still face persecution and death because of their faith.  Christian businesses still face all the same struggles that other small-business owners face.  Christian marriages and families still have to work through all the same difficulties and disappointments that life brings.

 

The difference is that believers in Jesus Christ, those that have put all their faith, hope, and trust in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, have the ultimate assurance that Jesus has overcome these things.  This means that the awesome news of Christmas is also the awesome news of Easter and the resurrection – VICTORY!  Jesus Christ has already won the victory, and everything you and I could ever possibly face has already been defeated.

 

That’s why we bow down around a manger.  It’s not because Jesus is a sweet, cute, bouncing, baby boy.  It’s because of what He became and what He did.  He drove the darkness right out of our lives.  This is something to brag about.  This is something that should make Christmas an exciting time – God has done this for us by sending Jesus.

 

Methodist minister, and later bishop, Ernest Fitzgerald recalled a man who taught a Sunday school class at a little church in the Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina.  One Sunday, his lesson was titled, “What I Have Learned Thus Far.”  One of the things he mentioned was this, “Never forget in the dark what God has told you in the light.”

 

This Advent season, I hope that you’ll remember Jesus Christ is the light that has overcome all darkness and sin.

 

Jesus Is The Light That Enlightens Your Life

 

Look back at verse 9.  John tells us that, “The true light that enlightens every man was coming into the world.”

 

Jesus brought people out of the darkness and into the light.  He called out a Legion of demons from a possessed man in the Gerasenes.  He called Lazarus out of a tomb.  He called Zacchaeus out of the shade.  He called Bartimaeus out of blindness.  In John 8:12 Jesus says, “I am the light of the world.  Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.”

 

Jesus is the light of life.  The One whose birth we anticipate this time of the year is, indeed, the light of the world.  He’s the true light that enlightens people – that is, He brings spiritual understanding and appreciation of exactly who He is and the truth of His Word.

 

The Bible is clear.  From cover to cover, from Genesis to Revelation and everywhere in between we’re told (and we know from our own experiences) that we are sinners.  Proverbs 4:19 says, “The way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they do not know over what they stumble.”  The Apostle Paul would put it like this in his first letter to the church in Corinth, “In their case [i.e. those that are perishing] the god of this world [i.e. the Devil, Satan, the great deceiver] 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.” (1 Corinthians 4:4-6)

 

The light that Jesus gives can reach into the dark corners of your life, and illuminate the truth of His Word and who He is and answer the perplexities of life.  The light of Christ can and will warm your heart so that you will see Him for who He is – your Savior.  Bethlehem’s light can and will fill your daily living with love and good deeds so that others will glorify your Father in heaven.

 

Remember that Jesus Christ will enlighten your life.  He knows how to turn the lights on because He is the light.

 

Jesus Is The Light That Empowers Your Living

 

Look at verse 13.  John says, “To all who received Him, who believed in His name, He gave power to become children of God.”

 

Jesus Christ is the light that empowers your daily living.  But this isn’t just any daily living.  This isn’t just power to get through the day.  It’s power for a specific purpose: “to become children of God.”  That’s who we are.  That’s who God has called us to be.  That’s what Jesus Christ empowers us to become – children of God.

 

That’s what Paul was after when he wrote to the Christians in Rome, that all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God, and if they are the children of God, then they are the heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ.  That is, if we are willing to suffer with Him and thereby be glorified with Him (Romans 8:16-17, paraphrased).  That sheds a new light on the darkness of human suffering.

 

Do you really want your living to be empowered?  Do you really want Jesus Christ, who is the light, to bring you to the light that shines, in the midst of your suffering?  It just might cause you to do something you never would have thought of before.  You just might find yourself being a light person, spreading the light, sharing the light, giving away the light in the darkness of suffering.  That’s part of what it means to become a child of God.

 

Let me conclude with this little story.  I’ve used it before, so bear with me.  If you’ve never heard it, then I pray it will speak to you this Sunday of Advent.

 

A wealthy man enjoyed taking his son on business trips.  Often on these trips, the man would purchase various works of art – sometimes Renaissance, other times Impressionism, still others were Classics.  He filled his home with these paintings.

 

The boy grew to manhood and when war broke out, he went to serve his country.  In just a few months, the man received word his son had died in battle, trying to save the lives of some of his friends.  When the next Christmas came, the man found it difficult to get through the season.  The suffering he had experienced was too much.  But on Christmas morning, a young soldier came to his door and presented him with a portrait of his son.  The young soldier was among those whose lives had been saved.  The father placed the portrait over his fireplace.  He would often sit in front of it and think of his son.

 

Several years later, the man died.  His lawyer carried out his will.  The instructions were that the home and everything in it was to be sold at auction.  The first thing to be sold was the portrait of the man’s son.  When the auctioneer called out, “Do I hear a bid?” no one seemed to want the portrait.  To move things along, a man in the back said, “Ten dollars.”  The auctioneer said, “Going, going, gone.  Sold for ten dollars.  The auction is over.”

 

There was an outcry as people exclaimed, “What!  What do you mean ‘The auction is over’?”  The auctioneer explained, “The terms of the will are very clear: Whoever receives the son, receives everything.”

 

The Bible tells us that, “He who did not spare His Son, but gave Him up for all of us, will He not also give us all things with Him” (Romans 8:32)?  If you will receive the grace of this most indescribable gift of Christmas, then you will have it all, for you will have the light of life.  You will enter into a relationship with the One who said, “I have come that you might have life and have it more abundantly” (John 10:10).

The Light of Hope: In the Darkness of Despair – Isaiah 9:1-7

• November 29, 2020
• Pastor
• 0 Comments

Isaiah 9:1-7

A student at The University of Georgia got a job as a disc jockey at a little radio station in Commerce, Georgia.  He also got a room at a hotel in town and commuted to school, which was not far away.  Sometimes, at night, he would crawl out of his window and sit on the roof of the hotel.  He would look out over that little town and ponder.  One night when he was up there, he wrote a song called “City Lights.”  And as they say; the rest is country music history.  His name was Bill Anderson.

 

A few years earlier, an Episcopalian minister in Boston worked himself to near exhaustion.  He was on the verge of a complete breakdown.  He was greatly depressed and almost gave up in despair.  But, he took some time off and went away on a trip.  He traveled to a place where he had never been before.  He saw the lights of a small town, walked along its streets, and in those lights, he found hope again.  He wrote a song which has in it these words:

 

O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie;

above thy deep and dreamless sleep, the silent stars go by.

Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting light;

the hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.

And as they say; the rest is church history.  His name was Phillips Brooks.

 

The light of Bethlehem.  The light of Bethlehem is an everlasting light.  Over 2,000 years there’s never been a time when that light has gone out.  And today, that light of Bethlehem still shines on us.  On these Sundays of Advent, leading up to the season of Christmas and beyond, I want to share with you how the light of Bethlehem still shines on us.

 

So, if you have your copy of God’s Word, then let me invite you to turn with me to the book of Isaiah.  Similar to Jeremiah, where we were last week, the Book of Isaiah was written during a dark and dangerous time.  During a period of 150 years, both the northern and southern kingdoms were threatened by their enemies.  Both kingdoms fell and the people suffered the worst kind of defeat and agony.  Eventually, even Jerusalem was overrun – the walls torn down and the temple destroyed.  But in the midst of those years of darkness, even before the worst had come, the people were offered hope.

 

Call him a singer, call him a preacher, or call him a prophet; whatever you choose, he gave the Israelites words of hope.  And here are the words he gave them:

 

¹ “But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish.  In the former time He brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time He has made glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.

 ² The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.

³ You have multiplied the nation; You have increased its joy; they rejoice before You as with joy at the harvest, as they are glad when they divide the spoil.

⁴ For the yoke of his burden, and the staff for his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian.

⁵ For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult and every garment rolled in blood will be burned as fuel for the fire.

⁶ For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulder, and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

⁷ Of the increase of His government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore.  The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.”

 

And as they say; the rest is Bible history.  By the way, his name was Isaiah.

 

The people who heard those words of God from that preacher needed to hear them because there was darkness all around them.  Powerful enemies had been trying to destroy them for centuries, and they were on the verge of destruction.  But in the darkness of despair, words of hope came to them.

 

The people living during that time, and on up to the time of Jesus, believed good and evil were equated with light and darkness.  They believed in the powers of darkness and the powers of light.  We don’t tend to think that way, although we still use phrases such as, “It’s a dark time,” “The dark night of the soul,” “The dark side,” “I’m wandering around in the dark,” “There’s a light at the end of the tunnel,” and “I’m beginning to see the light.”

 

We use these words and phrases because they describe what many of us have experienced.  It’s a common feeling.  It’s part of the human experience.  In fact, many of us have described this year in those terms.  2020 has been a year where it seems as though a cloud has settled over our world, and there’s a palpable darkness – even if the sun is shining.

 

And this happens on a personal level, too.  You test positive for COVID and begin spending 14 days in quarantine.  If you’re lucky you have a job that’s secure, but many don’t have that luxury.  If you don’t work you don’t get paid.  Some have even lost their jobs.  Then add to that all of the relationship dynamics that come along with missing out on church, missing the kids and grandkids, missing school friends, missing work colleagues, and on and on.  And we haven’t even gotten to the societal upheaval that we’re facing as a country.

 

Is it any wonder that many people feel hopeless.  Many people are sensing despair.  Many people are deeply discouraged, even as we move into a time of the year that should bring out the best in us.  Sometimes we find that the worst of our situation boils to the surface during Advent and Christmas.

 

Dr. William Carl, III, former President of Pittsburgh Theological Seminary imagined a conversation between Archie Bunker and his son-in-law Meathead, who asked Archie if he knew what Advent meant.  Archie said, “Yeah, you add up all your hostile feelings and then you just vent them on somebody.  It’s people like you that make me enjoy Advent.”

 

Doesn’t that sound like 2020?  You just add up all your hostile feelings and then you just vent on somebody.  The darkness of despair is something that you can even experience during this season of Advent and Christmas.  But today Isaiah has a message for all of us – and especially for everybody that’s sensing the darkness of despair of 2020.  The message is that the light of Bethlehem and the light of hope still shines.

 

In fact, that’s the first thing I want us to consider this morning:

 

The Light Of Hope Still Shines On You

 

The light of hope shines brightest in despair.  Look back at verse 2, “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light.”  This was hope for the present and for the future.  You know, it really doesn’t take much light to shine in the darkness.  A little light goes a long way.

 

I was watching one of my favorite HBO mini-series the other day for the umpteenth time – Band of Brothers – about the 501 Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101^st Airborne Division during WWII.  And during the Battle of the Bulge, when both the Allies and Germans were locked in this seeming stalemate, the Allies had to be so careful about their fires.  You have these freezing cold temperatures and snowy conditions, made more difficult by the fact that our troops didn’t have winter gear and the natural tendency was to build a fire.  But the smallest flicker of flame would give away your position.

 

A little light goes a long way.  And there’s a light that still shines upon us, today.  It’s the light of hope.  Isaiah called it a “great light.”  But it wasn’t that great in the beginning.  Very few people even noticed it at first.  Isaiah gives us more detail about this great light in verse 6: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given” (Isaiah 9:6).  The light of hope would shine in the face of a child.

 

United Methodist theologian, and preacher, Paul Scherer, said we can have hope in a world “where Christmas comes out of a stable, the Son of God comes out of a smelly, little village, and twenty centuries of Christianity comes out of a tomb.”  Jesus is the light that shines in the darkness.  He’s the light of hope.  He’s the source of hope.  He’s our only reason for hope.

 

Some will miss it, of course.  I had a few errands to run the other night, and I saw a lot of people working really hard, frantically trying to purchase some happiness, hoping to bring some light into the darkness of their lives and the lives of those they love.  And just so that we’re clear; there’s nothing wrong with presents at Christmas and getting gifts for those you love – but the real light of hope is such a small thing it can almost be missed.

 

A man took his granddaughter to see the live manger scene at their church.  She stood there looking at everything: the manger, the holy family, the Wise Men, and the shepherds.  Then she pointed to the star.  He asked her if she thought the light shone into the stable.  She said, “Of course it does.  That’s why it’s so bright inside.  But, granddaddy, you can’t see how the light shines in, unless you get down and look up.”

 

Put yourself in a place where you can see the real light of hope, and it will shine on you.

 

The second thought I want us to consider this morning is this:

 

The Light Of Hope Will Enable You To Find Your Way

 

This light of hope will shine on the road you travel.  Look back at verse 2, “Those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shined.”  Not only had they seen a great light, that light had shined on them.  Not only does the light of Bethlehem signify hope – that someone is out there in the darkness – but the light of Bethlehem also enables us to find our way.

 

There was a little boy who was born in England in 1903 – the fifth of seven sons.  His family immigrated to the U.S. in 1908, when he was only five.  For those of you that remember, the teacher used to call the roll by last name first.  So, when she got to his name it was Hope, Leslie.  The other children started calling him, “Hopeless.”  He didn’t like that, because he was not hopeless.  He was a happy person.  He wanted a name that had a “friendly ‘Hiya, fellas!’ sound” to it.  Most of you know Leslie Hope as Bob…Hope.

 

Whatever is facing you, and whatever darkness surrounds you, there is a light that shines in the darkness, and that light shines on you.  And not only does it shine on you it enables you to find your way.

 

In her book Appointment Congo, author and missionary, Virginia Law told of her experience as a missionary in the Congo.  She said that at their mission station, there were men who served as night sentries.  They carried oil lanterns.  One night, one of them brought her a message.  She noticed his lantern and said, “That lamp doesn’t give much light, does it?”  He replied, “No.  It doesn’t.  But, it shines as far as I can step.”

 

This morning, I want to point you back to the words of Isaiah and remind you that you can find your way, as far as you can step, to wherever you need to go, in the light of Bethlehem’s hope.  The final point I want us to consider this morning is this:

 

The Light Of Hope Can Be Shared By You

 

Not only does the light of Bethlehem still shine in the darkness, and not only does the light of Bethlehem shine so that you can find your way, but you can share the hope of Bethlehem’s light so that others can find the way.

 

Isaiah also wrote how the joy of the nation had increased, how the people rejoiced, how the yoke of their burden was broken – for this child shall be called “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6)

 

You can share the light of hope, and increase joy, and break yokes of despair.  You can be a witness of this light by living the meaning of it, by being a person of hope, by reflecting the light of Christ, by sharing the warmth of it in your daily life, by inviting other people to come into this lighthouse to learn of the light and feel the warmth of it.  In this light, they will find hope.

 

Centuries ago, a nobleman in Europe built a church for his people.  It was a place of beauty.  He thought of everything.  But when it opened, and a great crowd of people came there, some of them noticed there were no lamps.  The nobleman pointed to lamp holders all down both sides.  Then, he gave each family a lamp and said, “Each time you are here, the place where you sit will be lighted.”  It was up to them to bring the light and share it.

 

On Christmas Eve, many, if not most, churches hold some form of candlelight worship.  In many of these services (like our own), worship ends when one-by-one the light of a single candle is passed from one person to another, until the entire sanctuary is filled with Bethlehem’s light.  The light of hope is something that we can share.  You don’t have to be a professional evangelist.  In fact, the best witnesses are often regular everyday people.  Your message doesn’t have to be perfect.  In fact, all of our stories of salvation are marked with scars and imperfections because we were sinners in need of a Savior.  You just need to be willing to extend the light of hope to your neighbor.

 

Author and pastor, Thomas Pilgrim, told a story about one year when the youth of the church where he was serving decided to have a live manger scene in front of the church.  One of the men built a stable.  The Sunday afternoon of the first performance, he went to the church to put the light in the stable.  He carefully held it in place and secured it with several nails.  He bent down to pick up one more nail, and when he looked back up, the light fell and hit him right above his left eye.  He ran inside and called his wife and told her to come quickly and take him to the emergency clinic.  He was bleeding too badly to see how to drive.  When she asked what happened, he told her, “The star of Bethlehem fell on me.”

 

I wonder, in this Advent season, if you would be willing to let the light of Bethlehem fall on you?  And would you then be willing to be a person who shares the hope of Bethlehem’s light with others?