Light and life at Christmas

Text John 1:1-9 Time 11 12 13 Place Childs Baptist Church

Let's begin by talking about Christmas trees. The origins of the Christmas tree is lost in antiquity although the connection with Germany is definite. It is from Germany in the nineteenth century that the Christmas tree along with other traditions came thanks to Queen Victoria's husband Prince Albert. It probably goes back to the pagan past there and the winter tradition of bringing evergreens into the home. This tradition continued even after the Germans stopped worshipping trees and began to worship God under the influence of missionaries like Boniface.

It is said that Martin Luther began the tradition of putting lights (candles then) on the tree. One Christmas, it is said, he was walking in snow covered woods and noticed how the snow shimmered in the moonlight. Back at home he put candles on a fir tree and told his children an appropriate story. By the way, it was 1882 before the first electrically lit tree appeared – in New York unsurprisingly. Luther's idea was that the tree stood for darkness and the lights for Jesus the light of the world.

Of course, if you live in the northern hemisphere, the very nature of things means that at this time of year you get long dark nights (December 21 is the shortest day) and this is relieved by increasingly sophisticated and ubiquitous lights. The ideas of darkness and light are not difficult and come this time of year in the UK it is everywhere.

I say all of this because of the verses I want us to focus on tonight. The verses are verses 1-9 of John Chapter 1. They use the word light some seven times and the word darkness comes in verse 5: The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. Now clearly John is using the word light (and darkness) in a symbolic way. He does it all the way through the Gospel (think of Nicodemus coming by night and Judas stepping out into the night). It is well known that John begins his Gospel reflecting the beginning of Genesis – In the beginning was God ... In the beginning was the Word .... Genesis goes on to speak about God saying Let there be light and John says Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. Generally speaking, light is good and darkness bad, light stands for knowledge and goodness, darkness for ignorance and evil. What happens in Genesis 1 has a symbolic as well as a literal meaning.

We want to say four things from these verses.

1. Realise that the Word has life and is the light of men

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

John begins by going right back to the beginning. To speak of the second person of the Trinity, the one we most often refer to as The Son, he uses the word Word. He says several slightly overlapping things about the Word.

1. In the beginning was the Word. If you go right back to the beginning the Word was there. He existed then. He has always existed.

2. And the Word was with God. Being there from the beginning The Word was with God who was also, of course, there from the beginning. He was with or towards God – face to face with him.

3. And the Word was God. Not only is it correct to say that he was with God but he also was God just a she is God now.

4. He was with God in the beginning. Just to re-iterate in part right at the beginning the Word was face to face with God the Father.

5. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. Everything that was created was made through him. Nothing has ever been created without him. He had a hand in it all. One reason we know he is not a creature is because of this statement.

6. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. This follows on from the statement about everything being made through him. He has communicated life to every living creature. Any life it has comes from him. As Hebrews 1:3 puts it, he sustains all things by his powerful word. John reports later how Jesus says (5:21, 24-26) For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it. … I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life. I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. Or what about John 11:25, 26? I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. John adds back here that life was the light of men and that is another I am saying – John 8:12 I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. That phrase light of life comes up many times in the Old Testament and the words light and life are obviously linked. To be alive is to see the light. Once the light goes you are dead.

So to recap, the Word is God and yet there is a sense in which he can be with God. It is as God and with God that he created all things and continues to give life and light to all. This Trinitarian theology is so important to keep to the fore in our thinking. Without that we are left with no incarnation and no gospel to share.

2. Understand that the light shines in the darkness of this world and is not overcome

That brings us to verse 5 a slightly difficult verse to translate The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it or better overcome it. The word used is best understood as referring to the darkness failing to overcome the light. This world is pictured as being in darkness – standing for ignorance and wickedness. Nevertheless the light of life continues to shine in it. The darkness is not able to choke out the light, it cannot extinguish it. When you want to put out the Christmas tree lights you switch off the power. If it is a candle, you can easily snuff it out and there is darkness. The light from God, however, is not anywhere as easily removed. It goes on shining even in the darkness of this world. Think of all the evil there has been in the world. Sometimes it overwhelms us it is so much. But the light goes on shining. Increasingly, day after day the light shines more and more brightly as we approach the perfect day.

There's something to give thanks for! It is there to encourage us. Sometimes it seems as though the night is closing in on us and the light is about to be snuffed out. When we begin to think like that we ought to stop and think again. That is not the reality. What is that verse from Isaiah quoted in Matthew 12:20? A bruised reed he will not break, and a smouldering wick he will not snuff out. Or think of Romans 13:12 The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armour of light.

3. See that John the Baptist was not the light but bore witness to it as we must

Verses 6-8 are helpful in getting the difference between a prophet and the Word of God clear in our minds. There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.

We like to drive down to Oxford Street at some time around this time of year to see the lights. Now if we go down and see the lights and then tell you “They're really great this year. You should go and see them” then it is pretty clear that we are witnessing to the lights. Even if I say something like “I've seen the lights. Hey they're good” my point should be clear. I suppose I could wear a t-shirt with “I've seen the lights” on it or write it up for my blog. I might become such an advocate for the lights that people might even say it's the West End lights man. I suppose there is someone who gets it all organised. Do they ever say “He is the West End lights”? I don't know.

Well, John the Baptist was a man sent by God. Some did think he was Messiah but he wasn't. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe says John. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. Like all the prophets before him he was not the light as such but one who pointed to the light and to the Lamb as he so famously called him, the Lamb of God.

That's our job too as Christians be witnesses to the light, to point people to Jesus Christ.

4. Praise God that the light of men has come into the world

The last verse I want to look at tonight is verse 9 The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world. This is where John has been heading. He is talking about the Word of God and he has said that he is The true light, The true light that gives light to every man

Now he says he was coming into the world. His light was already in the world, nothing could stop it shining. But now the Light himself was coming into the world. He was shining in his own world and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognise him. As John puts it so strikingly in verse 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. As he says elsewhere they preferred darkness to light because their deeds were evil. Nevertheless, just as the darkness could not overcome the light so to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. They were supernaturally born again.

Verse 9 says The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world. Verse 14 says the same thing in a different way - The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. The light idea is not dropped entirely - We have seen his glory, John says the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. Verse 18 sums it up No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known.

What a reason to praise God. God has not left this world in its darkness of ignorance and evil. The light has not only shone but the light itself has come into this world and shone here on earth. How can we picture it? It is one thing for a you to be lost in the dark and for a helicopter to shine down its beam of light to help you see. It is another for the helicopter to land and for the crewmen to get out and take you by the hand and lead you as he shines his powerful torch in front of him. Every illustration breaks down. Here it is that we do not have a man with a torch but one who is light itself, a human torch as it were.

A light can lead a person astray. It can lead nowhere or into danger. It can be as we say a mere flash in the pan. A true light, however, is a guiding light. It leads away from the rocks and safely to harbour. Christ the Light of the world is the one to look to now and always.