1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:08,200 If you will, turn of me in your Bibles to John chapter 8, and I'm going to be reading 2 00:00:08,200 --> 00:00:15,280 from verse 12 through verse 20 of John chapter 8. 3 00:00:15,280 --> 00:00:23,080 And what we are looking at here are the I Am Statements of Jesus. 4 00:00:23,080 --> 00:00:26,520 Some of those statements you are very familiar with. 5 00:00:26,520 --> 00:00:29,200 I am the good shepherd. 6 00:00:29,200 --> 00:00:33,360 I am the way, the truth, and the life. 7 00:00:33,360 --> 00:00:45,560 And today we are going to look at Jesus who describes himself as the light of the world. 8 00:00:45,560 --> 00:00:56,120 Let's give our attention to how Jesus describes himself as he is getting in a dispute with 9 00:00:56,120 --> 00:00:59,280 the Pharisees. 10 00:00:59,280 --> 00:01:05,920 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, I am the light of the world. 11 00:01:05,920 --> 00:01:14,160 Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. 12 00:01:14,160 --> 00:01:18,800 The Pharisees challenged him, here you are appearing as your own witness. 13 00:01:18,800 --> 00:01:22,240 Your testimony is not valid. 14 00:01:22,240 --> 00:01:31,080 Jesus answered, even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid, for I know 15 00:01:31,080 --> 00:01:34,840 where I came from and where I am going. 16 00:01:34,840 --> 00:01:40,600 But you have no idea where I came from or where I am going. 17 00:01:40,600 --> 00:01:44,080 You judge by human standards. 18 00:01:44,080 --> 00:01:47,000 I pass judgment on no one. 19 00:01:47,000 --> 00:01:51,880 But if I do judge, my decisions are true, because I am not alone. 20 00:01:51,880 --> 00:01:55,440 I stand with the Father who sent me. 21 00:01:55,440 --> 00:02:00,680 And your own law, it is written that the testimony of two witnesses is true. 22 00:02:00,680 --> 00:02:04,400 I am the one who testifies for myself. 23 00:02:04,400 --> 00:02:08,720 My other witness is the Father who sent me. 24 00:02:08,720 --> 00:02:12,720 Then they ask him, where is your Father? 25 00:02:12,720 --> 00:02:15,840 You do not know me or my Father, Jesus replied. 26 00:02:15,840 --> 00:02:20,920 If you knew me, you would know my Father also. 27 00:02:20,920 --> 00:02:26,720 And he spoke these words while teaching in the temple court near the place where the 28 00:02:26,720 --> 00:02:28,880 offerings were put. 29 00:02:28,880 --> 00:02:33,840 Yet no one seized them because his hour had not come. 30 00:02:33,840 --> 00:02:40,040 Let's ask God to bless his holy and inerrant word. 31 00:02:40,040 --> 00:02:46,520 Heavenly Father, we need your Holy Spirit now, so that we not only are hearers of the 32 00:02:46,520 --> 00:02:51,680 word, but doers of your word. 33 00:02:51,680 --> 00:02:55,480 Help us to be people of the light. 34 00:02:55,480 --> 00:02:58,520 You walk in the light. 35 00:02:58,520 --> 00:03:07,480 Hear us as we ask for your help, because we are weak and needy, and sometimes we are stubborn, 36 00:03:07,480 --> 00:03:10,400 and we don't want to hear what your word says. 37 00:03:10,400 --> 00:03:16,000 Be with us now, amen. 38 00:03:16,000 --> 00:03:19,800 What do the following have in common? 39 00:03:19,800 --> 00:03:30,720 A flashlight, the sun, the moon, headlights, or a torch? 40 00:03:30,720 --> 00:03:32,760 What do they all have in common? 41 00:03:32,760 --> 00:03:36,720 Yes, and the answer is? 42 00:03:36,720 --> 00:03:38,120 They all make light. 43 00:03:38,120 --> 00:03:39,120 Very good. 44 00:03:39,120 --> 00:03:44,680 For you today, they either create light or they reflect light in some ways. 45 00:03:44,680 --> 00:03:50,400 Now, if you're a human being living in this world, we've got to have light. 46 00:03:50,400 --> 00:03:52,320 It is important to us. 47 00:03:52,320 --> 00:03:59,960 Now, every year I have to make my yearly trip to Orlando, and for whatever reason, American 48 00:03:59,960 --> 00:04:06,920 Airlines on the way back cannot seem to get me from Orlando to Pensacola in one shot. 49 00:04:06,920 --> 00:04:13,560 I always have to leave Orlando, go to Miami, and wait, and wait, and wait for a plane. 50 00:04:13,560 --> 00:04:19,240 And finally, it is like nine or ten o'clock at night when I can get on that plane, and 51 00:04:19,240 --> 00:04:25,200 you get on it, and then after a while they dim the lights, and it is very dark. 52 00:04:25,200 --> 00:04:30,160 And you look out at the airport, you can see a few lights, but then you take off, and you 53 00:04:30,160 --> 00:04:34,600 get up over Miami, and what do you see? 54 00:04:34,600 --> 00:04:36,840 All of those lights. 55 00:04:36,840 --> 00:04:44,000 I mean, not just a few, there is a lot of lights in Miami at night, and I just think 56 00:04:44,000 --> 00:04:48,480 about all the power that is being expended to keep all those lights going. 57 00:04:48,480 --> 00:04:53,880 But believe me, it is very beautiful to be in the air at night, and you're looking down 58 00:04:53,880 --> 00:04:55,920 on a major city. 59 00:04:55,920 --> 00:05:01,080 It is no wonder that our satellites from outer space can look down on this earth, and they 60 00:05:01,080 --> 00:05:07,160 can see all the lights from those major cities. 61 00:05:07,160 --> 00:05:09,080 Because we need to have light. 62 00:05:09,080 --> 00:05:10,960 You've got to have light to get around. 63 00:05:10,960 --> 00:05:13,240 You've got to have light to keep you safe. 64 00:05:13,240 --> 00:05:17,080 You've got to have light in your house at night so you don't stumble over things. 65 00:05:17,080 --> 00:05:24,160 And let me ask you, have you ever been in a situation where it is total darkness? 66 00:05:24,160 --> 00:05:30,520 And most of the time, there is background light, especially if you live in a city. 67 00:05:30,520 --> 00:05:36,080 There has been one time in my life when I'd experienced total darkness, and it was in 68 00:05:36,080 --> 00:05:44,520 my first year of teaching, we took a group of kids camping in the Appalachian Mountains, 69 00:05:44,520 --> 00:05:47,480 and there was no background light. 70 00:05:47,480 --> 00:05:52,080 And since we were roughing it, we did not allow them to have flashlights, which by the 71 00:05:52,080 --> 00:05:54,800 way, that was a mistake. 72 00:05:54,800 --> 00:06:00,400 And I remember walking along, you could not see in front of you. 73 00:06:00,400 --> 00:06:05,880 You were worried about, were you going to trip, or would you run into some sort of animal 74 00:06:05,880 --> 00:06:11,120 and or creepy crawly that you did not want to meet? 75 00:06:11,120 --> 00:06:14,400 It occurred to me then, you need to have light. 76 00:06:14,400 --> 00:06:18,600 You've got to have it so that you do not get in trouble. 77 00:06:18,600 --> 00:06:26,400 Well in this I am statement, Jesus tells us, he's the light. 78 00:06:26,400 --> 00:06:35,280 I am the light, he said, and just as there is darkness in this world, so there is spiritual 79 00:06:35,280 --> 00:06:44,360 darkness, which can be very dangerous and deadly to those of us who are Christians. 80 00:06:44,360 --> 00:06:50,640 And the reason the Holy Spirit has given us this passage of Scripture is that it shows 81 00:06:50,640 --> 00:06:59,280 us that Jesus is the light of truth in a very dark world. 82 00:06:59,280 --> 00:07:04,800 And if you read through this passage in other portions of John's Gospel and Epistle, there 83 00:07:04,800 --> 00:07:08,280 is that contrast between light and darkness. 84 00:07:08,280 --> 00:07:11,320 Well Jesus is the light. 85 00:07:11,320 --> 00:07:14,080 He's the light of truth. 86 00:07:14,080 --> 00:07:25,600 And we as His people need to understand what are the implications for that for our life. 87 00:07:25,600 --> 00:07:30,880 Jesus said, I am the light. 88 00:07:30,880 --> 00:07:31,880 So what does it mean to you? 89 00:07:31,880 --> 00:07:40,400 Well first of all, when he says I am the light, he reveals that he is the truth that is the 90 00:07:40,400 --> 00:07:41,400 light. 91 00:07:41,400 --> 00:07:43,640 That's what we need to understand. 92 00:07:43,640 --> 00:07:49,560 And that image is used of light, it means truth. 93 00:07:49,560 --> 00:07:52,640 That's what Jesus is talking about here. 94 00:07:52,640 --> 00:07:56,960 And in the Bible, that word light, it can refer to many things. 95 00:07:56,960 --> 00:08:06,520 It can refer to literal light like sun produces, the light of a lamp, the light that comes 96 00:08:06,520 --> 00:08:09,400 from God himself. 97 00:08:09,400 --> 00:08:19,560 The Bible, when God appears on the scene, he is so great that he manifests light, which 98 00:08:19,560 --> 00:08:23,120 people can barely tolerate. 99 00:08:23,120 --> 00:08:29,760 But we also have to keep in mind when light is used, it is referencing also something 100 00:08:29,760 --> 00:08:32,360 about God. 101 00:08:32,360 --> 00:08:35,720 The God is truthful. 102 00:08:35,720 --> 00:08:38,640 God is good. 103 00:08:38,640 --> 00:08:41,560 His salvation is true. 104 00:08:41,560 --> 00:08:43,160 It is not unreal. 105 00:08:43,160 --> 00:08:45,240 It is not false. 106 00:08:45,240 --> 00:08:51,040 What you see and hear from God is what you get. 107 00:08:51,040 --> 00:08:53,000 Because God is light. 108 00:08:53,000 --> 00:08:57,320 And what does Scripture say in John chapter 1 verse 5, God is light. 109 00:08:57,320 --> 00:09:01,080 In Him there is no darkness. 110 00:09:01,080 --> 00:09:07,600 That light of God is His glory and it is His truth. 111 00:09:07,600 --> 00:09:12,680 And if you look at what the Bible says here, over and over throughout this passage, that 112 00:09:12,680 --> 00:09:18,120 word truth, validity, it is used over and over again. 113 00:09:18,120 --> 00:09:24,160 In verse 32, then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free. 114 00:09:24,160 --> 00:09:29,600 And think about it from the old cartoons that you used to look at. 115 00:09:29,600 --> 00:09:34,600 Remember when someone had a great idea, what would you see over their head? 116 00:09:34,600 --> 00:09:35,840 A light bulb. 117 00:09:35,840 --> 00:09:41,320 Yeah, or we say, let's say you go and hear a good talk or a good speech. 118 00:09:41,320 --> 00:09:44,600 Oh, that was illuminating. 119 00:09:44,600 --> 00:09:46,680 See the idea? 120 00:09:46,680 --> 00:09:49,880 Light and truth go together. 121 00:09:49,880 --> 00:09:54,720 And Jesus is saying here, I am the truth of God. 122 00:09:54,720 --> 00:09:56,640 I am the light. 123 00:09:56,640 --> 00:09:59,320 I and God are one. 124 00:09:59,320 --> 00:10:11,160 Jesus reveals the ways of God to man through His words and through His character. 125 00:10:11,160 --> 00:10:17,120 You want to know the truth about religion and salvation? 126 00:10:17,120 --> 00:10:18,120 Turn to Jesus. 127 00:10:18,120 --> 00:10:19,600 He's the light of the world. 128 00:10:19,600 --> 00:10:23,600 You want to know the truth about the way to live? 129 00:10:23,600 --> 00:10:24,880 Turn to Jesus. 130 00:10:24,880 --> 00:10:27,800 He is the light of the world. 131 00:10:27,800 --> 00:10:33,040 You want to know the truth about the condition of this world? 132 00:10:33,040 --> 00:10:34,680 Turn to Jesus. 133 00:10:34,680 --> 00:10:38,160 He's the light of this world. 134 00:10:38,160 --> 00:10:45,960 Now we need to ask ourselves this morning, so what does that mean for me? 135 00:10:45,960 --> 00:10:53,400 First of all, truth in today's world is a very rare commodity. 136 00:10:53,400 --> 00:10:56,480 You don't hear a lot of truth. 137 00:10:56,480 --> 00:10:59,600 The world is dark. 138 00:10:59,600 --> 00:11:07,720 And we have got to think that God is the one who reveals truth. 139 00:11:07,720 --> 00:11:11,200 He does not lie. 140 00:11:11,200 --> 00:11:15,920 He does not represent, misrepresent Himself. 141 00:11:15,920 --> 00:11:19,560 And look at the problem, the Pharisees were having here. 142 00:11:19,560 --> 00:11:25,920 Jesus tells them, you guys judge things by the flesh in a more literal translation or 143 00:11:25,920 --> 00:11:28,200 according to human opinion. 144 00:11:28,200 --> 00:11:31,280 Jesus says, I tell you the truth. 145 00:11:31,280 --> 00:11:37,960 And it's not only coming from me, it's coming from God who bears witness to me. 146 00:11:37,960 --> 00:11:42,240 And here's the type of people who need to hear this this morning. 147 00:11:42,240 --> 00:11:47,280 Let's just say you go out and you tell someone about this church. 148 00:11:47,280 --> 00:11:50,240 Let's just say you tell them, look, the Bible is taught here. 149 00:11:50,240 --> 00:11:54,080 If you want to know the truth about how you get to heaven, come to Warrington Presbyterian 150 00:11:54,080 --> 00:11:56,200 Church. 151 00:11:56,200 --> 00:12:04,440 And the response may be, oh, there are many ways to heaven. 152 00:12:04,440 --> 00:12:06,560 We don't need to be too fanatical. 153 00:12:06,560 --> 00:12:08,480 I'm sorry. 154 00:12:08,480 --> 00:12:13,160 And what goes on in your mind when you hear that time after time again, you start to think, 155 00:12:13,160 --> 00:12:17,320 well, maybe God hasn't revealed the truth to us. 156 00:12:17,320 --> 00:12:22,240 Or let's just say you are married to your husband. 157 00:12:22,240 --> 00:12:27,360 You tell him over and over again the truth of salvation that we find in Jesus Christ 158 00:12:27,360 --> 00:12:29,080 and His Word. 159 00:12:29,080 --> 00:12:35,080 And you tell him these things for years and years and years, but he's a macho man. 160 00:12:35,080 --> 00:12:39,440 He likes to go out there and do that manly hunting and fishing. 161 00:12:39,440 --> 00:12:42,360 It has no time for church. 162 00:12:42,360 --> 00:12:49,360 But that wife tells him and the husband says, well, that's for wimps. 163 00:12:49,360 --> 00:12:52,200 He's dying on the crosses for wimps. 164 00:12:52,200 --> 00:12:53,440 I don't think so. 165 00:12:53,440 --> 00:12:55,840 But what has that wife tempted to think? 166 00:12:55,840 --> 00:13:02,080 Well, maybe it's not the truth. 167 00:13:02,080 --> 00:13:07,440 Keep in mind, brothers and sisters in Christ, you should not be ashamed of what is a very 168 00:13:07,440 --> 00:13:10,320 narrow view. 169 00:13:10,320 --> 00:13:11,320 God is like. 170 00:13:11,320 --> 00:13:13,080 Jesus is like. 171 00:13:13,080 --> 00:13:15,920 And the light is truth. 172 00:13:15,920 --> 00:13:23,600 And as Jesus later says, that truth will set you free. 173 00:13:23,600 --> 00:13:30,920 And I want you to think for a moment of the imagery of light and truth for a moment. 174 00:13:30,920 --> 00:13:37,120 When Jesus is talking to these people, it's probably the Feast of Tabernacles. 175 00:13:37,120 --> 00:13:42,360 And during the Feast of Tabernacles, the Jews would light lights and put them out in their 176 00:13:42,360 --> 00:13:44,800 courtyard. 177 00:13:44,800 --> 00:13:50,360 And maybe when Jesus is telling him this, he can see the light from those candles around 178 00:13:50,360 --> 00:13:52,720 him. 179 00:13:52,720 --> 00:13:55,440 But it's not just light. 180 00:13:55,440 --> 00:14:02,520 It's the true light with him or think of our New Year's service or our Christmas Eve service 181 00:14:02,520 --> 00:14:04,800 rather. 182 00:14:04,800 --> 00:14:09,320 The best part of that service is after the word has been read and the hymns have been 183 00:14:09,320 --> 00:14:15,720 sung, we light the candles and all is dark. 184 00:14:15,720 --> 00:14:18,880 But you could see the light. 185 00:14:18,880 --> 00:14:22,760 Brothers and sisters in Christ, that light is truth. 186 00:14:22,760 --> 00:14:25,760 And Jesus has shown it to us. 187 00:14:25,760 --> 00:14:32,200 Jesus does not lie because he is the light. 188 00:14:32,200 --> 00:14:38,800 And we face a world that has a lot of human opinions, which simply are not true. 189 00:14:38,800 --> 00:14:41,520 When it comes to Christianity. 190 00:14:41,520 --> 00:14:48,160 Now, all this talk about truth sounds awfully intellectual, doesn't it? 191 00:14:48,160 --> 00:14:50,760 But there's more here. 192 00:14:50,760 --> 00:14:55,360 We are not simply to be hears of the word, we're to be doers of the word. 193 00:14:55,360 --> 00:15:01,800 And look in verse 12 what else Jesus says about the light. 194 00:15:01,800 --> 00:15:04,360 He says, I am the light of the world. 195 00:15:04,360 --> 00:15:09,800 Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. 196 00:15:09,800 --> 00:15:11,680 Did you see what he's saying there? 197 00:15:11,680 --> 00:15:15,080 You're not to walk in darkness. 198 00:15:15,080 --> 00:15:22,280 That is a way of saying the actions in your life should not reflect the evil of the world 199 00:15:22,280 --> 00:15:24,360 around you. 200 00:15:24,360 --> 00:15:32,600 You should not be walking in a way that is constantly denying by your life. 201 00:15:32,600 --> 00:15:35,880 The idea of the word of God. 202 00:15:35,880 --> 00:15:38,480 And that's what a lot of people do. 203 00:15:38,480 --> 00:15:46,920 You and I want to reflect the holiness and righteousness of God. 204 00:15:46,920 --> 00:15:51,000 Listen to what Paul says in Ephesians chapter five. 205 00:15:51,000 --> 00:15:57,600 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. 206 00:15:57,600 --> 00:16:00,480 Live as children of light. 207 00:16:00,480 --> 00:16:05,720 The fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness, and truth. 208 00:16:05,720 --> 00:16:11,280 And find out what pleases the Lord, have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, 209 00:16:11,280 --> 00:16:14,920 but rather expose them. 210 00:16:14,920 --> 00:16:25,040 Our life in Christ is to reflect the light and truth of God. 211 00:16:25,040 --> 00:16:27,040 That's what he's saying here. 212 00:16:27,040 --> 00:16:32,960 You need to ask yourself some questions this morning. 213 00:16:32,960 --> 00:16:38,920 Can people see the light of God in you? 214 00:16:38,920 --> 00:16:47,400 Can they see His truth in my works and beliefs? 215 00:16:47,400 --> 00:16:55,640 Can they see the light of the love of God in my behavior? 216 00:16:55,640 --> 00:17:05,320 Can they see a sinner who trusts in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ? 217 00:17:05,320 --> 00:17:10,800 Years ago, President Bush came out with a statement that a lot of people made fun of. 218 00:17:10,800 --> 00:17:16,360 He said that in America we need to be a thousand points of light, and for various reasons people 219 00:17:16,360 --> 00:17:18,720 made fun of it. 220 00:17:18,720 --> 00:17:24,160 But I can't get over that image when it comes to the Christian church. 221 00:17:24,160 --> 00:17:26,860 Because we are to be those points of light. 222 00:17:26,860 --> 00:17:35,320 We are to reflect the light of God by what goes on not only in this church, but in our 223 00:17:35,320 --> 00:17:38,320 homes and in our workplace as well. 224 00:17:38,320 --> 00:17:47,000 That is why Jesus tells His disciples, let your light shine before men, and realize that 225 00:17:47,000 --> 00:17:49,920 walking in the light, it is good for you. 226 00:17:49,920 --> 00:18:02,240 It is not bad, evil is darkness, and there is a lot of that evil darkness in our behavior, 227 00:18:02,240 --> 00:18:04,200 and in the behavior of this world. 228 00:18:04,200 --> 00:18:09,440 Recently in the news journal this week, there was an article that came out. 229 00:18:09,440 --> 00:18:15,560 And there is some debate in a school, I believe it's in Orlando or in South Florida, and here's 230 00:18:15,560 --> 00:18:18,320 the debate. 231 00:18:18,320 --> 00:18:27,480 There is a girl in name only who has gotten kicked off the volleyball team. 232 00:18:27,480 --> 00:18:29,640 Why did she get kicked off the volleyball team? 233 00:18:29,640 --> 00:18:34,080 Because according to state law, she's not a girl. 234 00:18:34,080 --> 00:18:37,440 She was born a boy. 235 00:18:37,440 --> 00:18:44,560 And what happened is the mom, when this child was in first grade, started giving that child 236 00:18:44,560 --> 00:18:46,920 puberty blockers. 237 00:18:46,920 --> 00:18:53,240 And I'm thinking to myself, how many of you listen to what your one year old wants? 238 00:18:53,240 --> 00:18:58,240 But yeah, when it comes to human sexuality, we throw that all out the window. 239 00:18:58,240 --> 00:18:59,240 That's darkness. 240 00:18:59,240 --> 00:19:04,760 Do you realize what that type of drug does to the human body? 241 00:19:04,760 --> 00:19:06,000 And that's just one example. 242 00:19:06,000 --> 00:19:07,680 There are other examples as well. 243 00:19:07,680 --> 00:19:13,440 If any of you want a good PBS series to watch, it's called Guilt. 244 00:19:13,440 --> 00:19:21,400 It takes place in Scotland, and it begins with a man and his brother who has had a bit 245 00:19:21,400 --> 00:19:26,520 too much to drink running over a man. 246 00:19:26,520 --> 00:19:28,160 And they try to cover it up. 247 00:19:28,160 --> 00:19:32,320 But here's what you find out as the story unfolds. 248 00:19:32,320 --> 00:19:38,960 That man who got run over, one of his relatives was killing him by giving him poison, but 249 00:19:38,960 --> 00:19:40,640 the other characters don't know that. 250 00:19:40,640 --> 00:19:44,840 And then you've got the mob involved in all of this. 251 00:19:44,840 --> 00:19:47,120 And the theme, guilt. 252 00:19:47,120 --> 00:19:48,280 What's happening? 253 00:19:48,280 --> 00:19:53,800 They're all leading miserable, guilty lives because they have chosen a path of darkness 254 00:19:53,800 --> 00:20:03,880 by their behavior and their words, which is killing them, destroying their lives. 255 00:20:03,880 --> 00:20:06,880 Darkness causes chaos. 256 00:20:06,880 --> 00:20:10,400 And what do we see in our world? 257 00:20:10,400 --> 00:20:19,680 A lot of chaos because of darkness and people refusing to walk in the light. 258 00:20:19,680 --> 00:20:28,720 So you may be saying to yourself, now, well, Pastor, how do I walk in the light? 259 00:20:28,720 --> 00:20:30,640 Well here's how. 260 00:20:30,640 --> 00:20:33,440 First is it a desire of your heart. 261 00:20:33,440 --> 00:20:40,080 Here's what separates the nominal Christian from the one who is truly saved. 262 00:20:40,080 --> 00:20:48,520 The spiritual person has a desire to walk in the light. 263 00:20:48,520 --> 00:20:54,520 Carnal Christian, as some have called them, or the not so spiritual one just doesn't care. 264 00:20:54,520 --> 00:20:58,040 It's Christianity in name only. 265 00:20:58,040 --> 00:21:01,280 That's why they're nominal Christians. 266 00:21:01,280 --> 00:21:03,440 They don't care about what Jesus wants. 267 00:21:03,440 --> 00:21:05,040 They may go to church. 268 00:21:05,040 --> 00:21:07,880 They may put on a good facade. 269 00:21:07,880 --> 00:21:12,360 There is no desire to do exactly what Jesus wants. 270 00:21:12,360 --> 00:21:19,520 Two, you need to keep in mind that in this world you are a walking advertisement for 271 00:21:19,520 --> 00:21:21,560 God. 272 00:21:21,560 --> 00:21:24,000 Why does God say walk in the light? 273 00:21:24,000 --> 00:21:27,480 Why does he say don't cover up your light? 274 00:21:27,480 --> 00:21:34,080 Because your acts and words lead people to God. 275 00:21:34,080 --> 00:21:35,520 Think of it this way. 276 00:21:35,520 --> 00:21:43,720 If you go to New York and you go to Times Square, you see those big electric signs with 277 00:21:43,720 --> 00:21:47,400 all their lights, what do they want you to do? 278 00:21:47,400 --> 00:21:56,440 Buy that product in the more lights, the brighter, the more you may be tempted to do exactly 279 00:21:56,440 --> 00:21:58,920 that. 280 00:21:58,920 --> 00:22:03,400 That's what you are as witnesses of Christ. 281 00:22:03,400 --> 00:22:14,200 Your righteousness is in part designed to draw people to Christ, not turn people off. 282 00:22:14,200 --> 00:22:22,160 Ask yourself, is your behavior different from a non-Christian? 283 00:22:22,160 --> 00:22:26,560 You know, I've been doing the church work for quite a while now. 284 00:22:26,560 --> 00:22:33,920 And most of the time there's not a lot of difference between believers in name only 285 00:22:33,920 --> 00:22:35,640 and non-believers. 286 00:22:35,640 --> 00:22:37,920 They both act the same way. 287 00:22:37,920 --> 00:22:40,680 They're not walking in the light. 288 00:22:40,680 --> 00:22:47,240 Finally, take a look at Galatians chapter 5 and I'll repeat this over and over again. 289 00:22:47,240 --> 00:22:52,560 If you want to know how to walk into the light, ask what the Spirit is doing in your life. 290 00:22:52,560 --> 00:23:01,880 Are you filled with love and joy and peace and patience and kindness? 291 00:23:01,880 --> 00:23:06,840 Those are the activities of light. 292 00:23:06,840 --> 00:23:09,920 See Jesus is light. 293 00:23:09,920 --> 00:23:11,680 Walk in the light. 294 00:23:11,680 --> 00:23:22,360 And one other bit of information here that you realize is that light also gives life 295 00:23:22,360 --> 00:23:26,920 in other words, it's good for you. 296 00:23:26,920 --> 00:23:27,920 Think of photosynthesis. 297 00:23:27,920 --> 00:23:30,840 You've got to have light for plants to grow. 298 00:23:30,840 --> 00:23:37,320 In body, you've got to have sunlight to produce vitamins in your body. 299 00:23:37,320 --> 00:23:44,440 Well, the light of God's ways give us light. 300 00:23:44,440 --> 00:23:49,840 Now I've been a Christian since, I guess, my teenage years. 301 00:23:49,840 --> 00:23:53,400 So that's several, several decades. 302 00:23:53,400 --> 00:23:58,480 And I would not tell you that everything in my life has always been pleasant in following 303 00:23:58,480 --> 00:23:59,480 Christ. 304 00:23:59,480 --> 00:24:01,000 There have been some very tough times. 305 00:24:01,000 --> 00:24:03,960 There have been temptations. 306 00:24:03,960 --> 00:24:14,840 But I would also have to tell you I'm a lot better off and a lot more alive from following 307 00:24:14,840 --> 00:24:20,400 Jesus Christ than not. 308 00:24:20,400 --> 00:24:23,880 And there have been people who have been born in the exact same situation I have. 309 00:24:23,880 --> 00:24:24,880 And what has happened to them? 310 00:24:24,880 --> 00:24:28,600 They have made a mess of their lives. 311 00:24:28,600 --> 00:24:32,760 They are in darkness. 312 00:24:32,760 --> 00:24:39,720 But I thank God for the grace of the light of the Lord Jesus Christ. 313 00:24:39,720 --> 00:24:42,120 And it's shown on me. 314 00:24:42,120 --> 00:24:44,760 And that it saved me from darkness. 315 00:24:44,760 --> 00:24:53,880 I thank Jesus that He is the light. 316 00:24:53,880 --> 00:24:59,000 And that is so important in this dark, dark world. 317 00:24:59,000 --> 00:25:01,240 Let's pray. 318 00:25:01,240 --> 00:25:06,520 Our Heavenly Father, how we need the light of your presence, of your salvation, of your 319 00:25:06,520 --> 00:25:08,080 glory. 320 00:25:08,080 --> 00:25:14,440 And may we get it inside of our heads that we should not be ashamed of the truth of God 321 00:25:14,440 --> 00:25:22,880 but instead help us to believe it, to walk in it and even to enjoy it. 322 00:25:22,880 --> 00:25:29,480 Be with your people now so that we reflect the light of God. 323 00:25:29,480 --> 00:25:55,480 Amen.