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Sermon preached on John 1:5 by Rev. W. Reid Hankins during the Morning Worship Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 12/22/2024 in Petaluma, CA.
Sermon Manuscript
Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div.
As we approach the Christmas holiday, we remember again the birth of Jesus, the Light of the World. This passage speaks of Jesus as such light. But it begins much farther back in time than the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. It brings us back to the beginning of this whole world. Verse 1, “In the beginning.” Genesis began with those words and told us that God created the heavens and the earth. But Genesis then records that the newly created world was full of darkness. In the beginning there was darkness, but then God said, “Let there be light.” And there was light. Long before the incarnation which we celebrate at Christmas, Jesus already existed as the eternal Son of God who was always with God the Father. And this passage tells us that as Son of God, Jesus was the eternal Word which brought light and life into this dark and dead world at creation.
Jesus, as the eternal Word made a good world, creating man in his own divine image, endowing him with life in himself. Sadly, Genesis record how mankind then fell in sin through Adam’s rebellion against God’s Word. In Adam, humanity fell from that place of light and life, into a place of spiritual darkness. When we sinned against God, the light of our spiritual life went dark just as God promised. God warned that eating of the forbidden tree would result in death. That’s what happened, all humanity died spiritually the moment Adam ate that forbidden fruit. This world has been in a place of death and darkness ever since.
In today’s sermon, I want to think then about Jesus as the light that shines into the darkness of this world. I will have us especially consider verse 5 and how it speaks of the light shining in the darkness yet the darkness can neither understand it nor overcome it. Let’s begin by considering the light shining in the darkness.
Verse 5, The light shines in the darkness. This is not specifically about the incarnation. Verse 5 speaks about how the light shines in the darkness in general.
The passage began by revealing that everything in this world was created through the preincarnate Jesus. Verse 4 goes on to say, “In him was life.” In other words, Jesus is the very source of all the life in this world. Surely not just physical life, but even our very souls, find their existence in the Son of God. Then verse 4 says that such life was the light of men. This is the light it’s talking about when you get to verse 5. This light that shines into the darkness is that life for our souls that comes from Jesus.
That light shone brightly into the darkness at the initial creation when God made all things good. Mankind’s fall into sin then brought a great spiritual darkness. Yet, this light still shone into this dark world. That light continued to shine down through the millennia. It came in various ways, over time. Every time God spoke to this world through a prophet or worked powerfully through a miracle, that was the light shining, for example. Yet, the darkness also continued to exist, especially in the heart of fallen man.
But, with the birth of Jesus, the light began to shine into this world in an even greater way. That’s what our passage explains. It turns in verse 7 to talk about how John the Baptist bore witness about the light that came when Jesus was born. Verse 9 speaks of Jesus as the true light that has come into the world at his birth. Verse 14 even describes Christ as the creator becoming man to live among us. The source of all life came to live with us! So, while the light has always been in the world, it all the more shone brightly when Jesus was born in Bethlehem.
Let us recognize how this paints a picture of a new creation. Our fallen, darkened creation needs redemption. Just as Jesus brought life and light at the beginning of creation, he again has come to bring light and life to this world that fell into darkness. Jesus is enlivening dead souls with his light. Jesus shines into the darkness to redeem creation into what God always intended it to be.
Let us turn now to our second point to consider how the darkness has been unable to comprehend this. In verse 5, our ESV pew Bible says that the darkness has not overcome the light. That will be our third point. But if you read this verse in the NKJV you will see it translated as that the darkness did not comprehend the light. The reason behind those two different translations is that the Greek word can mean both. Now, generally when a word has two meanings it only means one of those meanings at any one time. Context will help you understand which is meant. But this is John’s gospel, and he has several passages where he appears to intentionally use words that have dual meanings. So, I believe we are to consider both meanings here. The dark can neither understand the light nor conquer it. In English, we could say, the darkness can’t “grasp” the light.
So then, the darkness cannot understand the light, especially the light of Jesus coming into this world. The Bible speaks of two groups of people, those who are spiritually dead who are in such a darkened state. And those who have been born again by the Holy Spirit, who have had Christ’s light of new life begin to enliven their souls unto salvation. This new birth is described in verse 13. So, the born-again Christian has been saved from such spiritual darkness. But let us understand then what this spiritual darkness looks like for those who have not yet been born again. We can describe this in several ways using scripture.
One way we can describe this spiritual darkness is to say it is a state of ignorance, spiritually speaking. A person in such darkness does know the light and indeed cannot know it (c.f. John 14:17). Verse 9 speaks of the world being made through Jesus but the world not knowing him. The Apostle Paul speaks of this state in Ephesians 4:18, describing such people as, “Darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them.” Romans 1 further explains this dynamic by describing how deep down people do know the truth, but in their sin they have suppressed it so much that they have a functional ignorance to spiritual truth.
Another way we could describe this spiritual darkness is to say it is a blindness, spiritually speaking. In John 9, Jesus speaks in terms of spiritual blindness, saying that he has come to give sight to the spiritually blind. But until that happens, such a person can’t truly see to understand the light that is in the world. It’s like if I cover my eyes, while I might have some theoretical ability to see, I won’t be able to see. Just like how a blind person can’t truly appreciate a painting they haven’t seen, such spiritually blind people will never be able to see the goodness or beauty or value of the spiritual light of life.
Another way we could describe this spiritual darkness is to say that such people reverse folly and wisdom. Yes, they may or may not possess a certain practical wisdom for life, but I’m speaking of spiritual wisdom and folly. Such people look at how God’s wisdom teaches us to live in godliness and they think it foolish. Meanwhile, they live as a fool, morally speaking, before God in their spiritual darkness. Listen to Paul’s description of this in 1 Corinthians 2:14. “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.” Without the light of Christ in your heart, you will confuse wisdom for folly.
Yet another way we can describe such spiritual darkness in someone is that it is a life that walks in sin. Sin is breaking God’s law instead of living in righteousness according to God’s standards. The spiritually darkened does not look to live in the light of God’s laws. This is Paul’s argument in Ephesians 2, that before being born again we were dead in our trespasses and sins and by nature children of God’s wrath. Paul says this is the natural condition of mankind, that they live in the passions of the flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind. In other words, someone who is so spiritually dark doesn’t believe God’s righteous laws to be the good that they are. They tend to consider them as burdensome obstructions to personal liberty. John will explain this in chapter 3. Listen to John 3:19-20. “And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.” Spiritual darkness hates how the light exposes their sinful living as evil.
These are some ways we can describe this spiritual darkness that so many in this world are yet experiencing. Fallen humans are spiritually ignorant, blind, foolish, and immoral. They would surely disagree with all those descriptions, but that shows they don’t see things from the light of God’s perspective. But that is why Jesus came to this world when he was born to Mary more than two thousand years ago. Jesus has come to bring knowledge to the ignorant, sight to the blind, wisdom to the foolish, and righteousness to the wicked. That is the true light that this darkened world hasn’t understood but so desperately needs. We share this light again today that more would have this veil of darkness removed.
Let us turn now in our third point to consider how the darkness has not overcome the light. We shouldn’t be surprised that darkness cannot overcome light. Employing the analogy from nature, we never say that darkness shines into the light. Light can shine into darkness, but not the other way around. That is because darkness is ultimately the absence of light. In nature, darkness is powerless over the light, and in the spiritual realm, it is especially true that the darkness cannot thwart God’s light. But that doesn’t stop the darkness from trying. That quote I mentioned a moment ago from John 3 explained how the darkness hates the light. So, we should not be surprised that the darkness has tried to conquer the light. That means darkness looks to conquer us who are enlightened by Christ. Christians possess and spread Christ’s light to the world, and so the darkness wants to overcome us too. I’d like to use this final point to acknowledge some of the ways that the darkness has tried to stop the light.
One way the darkness tries to conquer the light is through temptation. This is how it all started in the garden. Our first parents were tempted by the devil which led to their sin. They died spiritually that day which brought on the darkness. Still today, the darkness looks to tempt the enlightened of Christ to return to the darkness by holding out various sinful pleasures. But if you have truly been born again, you won’t actually spiritually die again. Christ’s light will guard you and keep you. Let us beware then of the temptations of darkness and see that we are in Christ’s light. Let us pray for Christ’s light to deliver you from all temptation.
Another way the darkness tries to conquer the light is through slander which is inherently an act of deception. Darkness loves to lie and hates the truth. Darkness speaks evil of the light, it lies about the light, it falsely accuses the light. We who are enlightened by Christ may be the object of such slander and it can take an emotional toll on us. It can also injure our relationships with anyone who believes the slander about us. The darkness will especially try to slander the name of Jesus and his Holy Word. But Christ gives Christians the belt of truth and the shield of faith to help us endure such attacks. Truth will ultimately prevail just as darkness can’t overcome the light.
Another way the darkness tries to conquer the light is through fraud. Sometimes darkness’s strategy is to masquerade as an angel of light. It presents itself as light, but it’s a counterfeit light. For example, when a false prophet maneuvers their way into a church and begins to lure people with enticing but false doctrines, that is counterfeit light. The false religions of the world all fall into this category of fraudulent light. Scientific atheism also is a fake light. But God give the truly enlightened of Christ the eyes to recognize the true light in Jesus. Let us recognize Jesus as the true light even as we are on guard against the fraud of darkness.
Yet another way the darkness tries to conquer the light is through persecution. They persecuted the true light, Jesus, even unto death. We are to expect the darkness will continue to persecute Christians today. Darkness may threaten those who spread the light. Darkness may try to ostracize those who spread the light. Darkness may try to abuse and harm those who spread the light. Darkness may even kill those who spread the light. If you experience any of these things as a Christian, it can be really difficult. A fake Christian won’t be able to endure such. But as Paul encourages us in Romans 8, none of those things can defeat those who are truly in the light of Christ. As Paul says there, we are more than conquerors through Christ who loved us. Let us patiently endure in faith any such persecution, for the light shows us the victory that we have in Jesus.
These are some ways we can describe how this spiritual darkness tries to defeat the light. While Christ and his followers are ultimately victorious, the Bible tells us to be on guard against such attacks. As we are vigilant to stay in the way of Christ, that confirms we have truly been born of the light and life of Jesus.
Trinity Presbyterian Church, today we rejoice that the light shines in the darkness, and all the more, with the coming of Jesus Christ into this world. The one who is the Word that spoke the physical light into the world is also the one who came as the spiritual light into this world. He did that by becoming a physical human being. The spiritual light was embodied in the physical person of Jesus. This was so he could all the more effectively bring the true light to this dark world that so desperately needed it.
As we celebrate again today that this light has come into the world, I offer two final applications. First, Christians are to continue spreading the light of Jesus to the world until he returns. You will surely find that many don’t understand you. You will find that many are opposed to you. But trust that God will use your shining of light into the darkness for his redemptive plans for this world.
Second, If you are here today and yet in the darkness, I bring the light to you right now. Has the light of Christ shone into your heart? That light is shining right now during this sermon. Verse 12 speaks of how to respond. We are to believe and receive Jesus. Receive Jesus as your Light and Life. Receive him as your Savior and Lord. We celebrate again the birth of Jesus today. If you today will begin to receive Jesus then we can also rejoice in your new birth too.
Glory to God in the highest for sending Jesus into this world to be light to the darkness and life to the dead!
Amen.
Copyright © 2024 Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div.
All Rights Reserved.
