Pastor Scott Jonas
The History of Light
12/25/17
Grace and Christmas peace to you
from God our Father and his son Jesus Christ.
In the beginning, God uttered four words. These four words
could be the Title for the History of
the world. We could put these four words on the cover of the
Bible and they would be an accurate
description of what happens from Genesis to Revelation. The
four words are, “Let there be light.”
God breathed out “Let there be light” and those powerful
words flowed from His mouth and
worked their magic throughout the course of civilization.
Eve and Adam look up from behind a bush and hear “Let there be light.” Noah sees the dark clouds finally
parting and hears, “Let there be light.”
Abraham and Sarah look into the face of their newborn baby
and hear, “Let there be light.” Joseph looks up from the bottom of a well and hears “Let there be
light.” Moses stretches out his staff and all of Egypt goes dark and yet he hears, “Let there be light.”
Joshua and Caleb hide in a closet, protected by Rahab and they hear, “Let there be light.” Gideon holds
up a torch with three hundred other Israelite soldiers and they hear “Let there be light.” Ruth and Naomi,
homeless and grieving hear ““Let there be light.” Jonah in the fetal position inside a big fish hears
clearly “Let there be light.” Kids of Bethlehem on that first Christmas are tucked into bed and yet they
hear, “Let there be light.”
The Bible is the history of Light. After God said “let there
be light,” God formed a garden that
was perfect for his children of the light, Adam and Eve.
They were able to see the Father in all his glory. In Him there is no darkness at all and yet His light did not
blind them. They enjoyed the light of the father like a happy dog that sits by the window on a sunny
day. The world was warm and bright. But darkness crept into the garden. The devil fled the light
of heaven and stayed in the
shadows. He wanted humans to live in the darkness like he
did. He was like a snake coming our of a
deep hole in order to strike unsuspected prey. He spoke to
the humans, pretending to shed light on
their situation. He told them that if they listened to the
prince of darkness rather than God then their
eyes would be opened up. Adam and Eve would be like God. Rather
than reflect God’s light they were convinced they would be the source of light. It was a lie.
Instead of being the source of light, Adam and Eve turned their back on their Father. They were now unable
to be in the presence of the Lord of Lights.
Light and darkness can not be in the same place at the same
time. Light destroys darkness, everytime. The Lord had to protect his children from himself. He had to
cast them into the darkness in order to not destroy them with his own glory. Humanity found itself
stumbling in the dark trying to figure out how to get back.
But God did not give up on them. “Let there be light” was
still working, it was just harder for people to see. The world got darker and darker as people did
worse and worse things to each other. At one point even God the Father cried over what his creation
had become. It saddened him that the wickedness of man was great on the earth and it grieved him
in his heart. But God had a plan to restore the light. He gave signs of the plan so that mankind would
not despair. He sent a rainbow to remind people that he was still there. His light is beautiful, full
of color and majesty.
Sometimes his light was really difficult to see. The Devil
attacked Job, stealing away God’s
blessings of family, friends, home, wealth and wellness. Job
cried and sat in misery. In a way, he grieved over his life the way the Father grieved over what had
become of the earth. Job shared his pain with God praying, “Let the day of my birth be erased, and the
night I was conceived. Let that day be turned to darkness. Let it be lost even to God on high, and let no
light shine on it. Let the darkness and utter gloom claim that day for its own. Let a black cloud
overshadow it, and let the darkness terrify it. Let that night be blotted off the calendar.” Job questioned
whether God knew what he was doing. So God replied, “I am the one who made the stars, and laid the
foundations of the earth. I command the sun to shine and it does so. Have you seen the depths of the
devil’s darkness? Do you control lightning? Job repented saying, “Now my eyes see you, therefore I hate the
darkness inside me and turn to you.”
The Lord refused to let his creation go completely dark. One
day a man named Moses stumbled across a bush full of light. It was unlike any light he had
ever seen before. Moses was a faithful Jew for he knew that God’s light and Man’s darkness can not coexist.
He fell to the ground petrified, covering his eyes. But this light seemed to penetrate all of him. He
feared the light of God would be his end. But God protected Moses saying, “Moses, Moses, Do not come too
close.” Still, Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. The Lord convinced Moses that he
was for him and not against him.
The Lord freed Moses and the Israelites from slavery. He led
the Jews out of Egypt and into the wilderness. But this wilderness was different than the one
adam and eve were thrown into. The Light of the Lord went with Moses and his people. A pillar of fire
displayed a powerful light that told them that God was with them. The pillar of fire was like a night
light, reminding his people that God was stronger than all of the scary things in the night. Monsters
like the Egyptians, wild animals, disease and bandits live in the darkness. All God’s people had to do was
look to the light to remember their faithful Lord.
Moses grew so close to God that he wanted to see God’s
shining face. God told Moses that he
was not ready. For you see, only the Son and the Holy Spirit
can withstand the full lightness of God.
Moses begged and begged like a kid asking to open presents.
Finally God told Moses to hide in the
shelter of a cave. God would show a portion of his likeness
in front of the cave. Moses was the first
person since Adam to see God.
Years past, Moses died and was buried. Many people forgot
all the Lord had done. But God
kept a remnant faithful. One of them was Isaiah. He warned
Israel to consult God’s instruction in the
Bible. If anyone claims to speak for God but it contradicts
scripture then there is no light in that so
called prophet. Isaiah was a prophet. He encouraged Israel
saying, “The Lord of Light will restore the
tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept.
I will also make you a light for the Gentiles,
that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth. Those
walking in darkness will see a great light.
The light will be God with us just like in the garden. No
longer will the blind lead the blind. Arise, shine, for your light is coming, and the glory of the Lord rises
upon you.” Some waited for the light like a
camper sleeping next to dying coals of a campfire waiting
for the warm dawn.
The world went dark for four hundred years. There was no
Glorious God brightly walking in the
Garden. There was no burning bush. There was no pillar of
fire. There was no light of prophecy. Where is God? Has he forgotten us? We can’t survive any longer in
this darkness. Sin has made this world
uninhabitable. It is turning us into something twisted. We
need light to grow and live. Take away the
darkness. We can’t take it any longer.
The dark world was now ready. During the day no one notices
a bright star. But when the earth is pitch black, a bright star gets every ones’ attention.
The star shouted, “God hasn’t forgotten us! The light is here. The light is here!” Indeed the light was
here. John wrote that “In Jesus was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the
darkness, and the darkness can not overcome it.” Light always wins over darkness. People were drawn to this
light. The Wisemen followed the star, believing that a King of the Jews must have been born. They
followed the light or walked in the light until they met Jesus.
For the first time ever Darkness was scared. Darkness was
used to being scary. Darkness had made children hide under the covers for years. But now light
was pouring into the world, threatening the darknesses very existence. The powers of Darkness
decided to do anything it could to eliminate Jesus the source of this light. King Herod tried snuffing
out baby Jesus but ironically Jesus and his family escaped to Egypt. Centuries earlier Jesus’ forefathers
escaped out of Egypt but now Jesus escaped into Egypt. It was almost like God was rewinding history,
resetting the clock back towards the beginning when everything worked the way it should. John the Baptist was a rewinding to the prophets of the Old
Testament like Elijah or Isaiah. God revealed Jesus’ true nature to him. So John testified to the
light, baptizing Jesus in the Jordan river. Just then the clouds opened up, a beam of light poured down and
the Father said, “This is my son, Listen to
him.”
Men, women and children began to follow him, walking
behind him like a miner to a lantern. People wondered if this was the Messiah and Jesus couldn’t
have been any clearer when he said, “I am
the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk
in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
More and more people became disciples, but Jesus warned them
of dark times ahead. Jesus said, “Light
has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead
of light because their deeds were evil.
Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come
into the light for fear that their deeds will be
exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the
light, so that it may be seen plainly that what
they have done has been done in the sight of God. You are
going to have the light just a little while
longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness
overtakes you. Whoever walks in the dark does
not know where they are going.”
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Jesus was right, men met in windowless rooms to conspire
against Jesus. His opponents would
rather be Kings of the darkness rather than children of the
light. While they were plotting Jesus took
Peter, James and John up on a Mountain. All of a sudden, out
of nowhere there was Elijah and Moses.
The disciples fell to the ground afraid for their lives.
They looked up, shielding their eyes. They didn’t
see a burning bush, or a pillar of fire. Instead Jesus,
Elijah and Moses became radiant, and intensely
bright. It was nothing that had ever been seen on earth.
Jesus assured the disciples, “This is how things
are getting restored.” It felt like darkness had no chance.
Soon after, the darkness orchestrated the arrest Jesus in a gloomy
garden. Peter used a weapon
but a sword is worthless in restoring the light. The
brightness of the mountaintop had faded. Jesus
suffered under Pontius Pilate and was crucified. Even mother
nature did not want to see Jesus die.
When he said “It is finished” the sky turn to midnight
though it was noon. The very fabric of this crazy
world seemed to be splitting. Devoted women took down Jesus
and placed him in a tomb where no one
could hurt him anymore. The disciples holed up behind closed
doors, avoiding the authorities.
But after three days the light reappeared stronger than
ever. His resurrection was announced
by two Angels whose clothes were like lightning, white as
snow. Jesus was alive. The light of men could
not be extinguished. His light would forever be with his
people. Jesus passed the light onto his
followers.
One of those followers was Paul. He tells his story in the
book of Acts. His relays the risen Jesus’
words to others. Jesus appeared to him as a beam of light
and then Jesus said, “I am Jesus, whom you
are persecuting. Now get up and stand on your feet. I have
appeared to you to appoint you as a servant
and as a witness of what you have seen and will see of me. I
will rescue you from your own people and
from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them to open their
eyes and turn them from darkness to light,
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and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive
forgiveness of sins and a place among
those who are sanctified by faith in me.’
You and I are part of this story as well. The light that was
in Paul from Jesus is in us too. This
Holiday season let people see the light with in you. When
you see lights around the tree, on the roof
tops and elsewhere remember that we have been called out of
darkness and into His wonderful light. In
fact the book of revelation says one day “There will be no
more night. We will not need the light of a
lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give us
light. And He will reign for ever and ever.”
When God says “Let there be light.” He means it.