This week we looked at Jesus’ “I am” statement that he is the  “light of the world” found in John 8:12.

¹² When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Not only is it a statement of his identity but it is also a promise that calls us into worship of thanks.  Not only does faith bring clarity to my life but God is working in the world and those around me.  Jesus not only gave sight to the blind but he also created eyes and sight for a man born blind.  No barrier need stand between us and seeing.  We compared walking in the light and walking in the darkness.  I love evenings but I do not like to stumble and fall or bump into the unseen.  Accepting Christ as the source of light for the dark night of the soul and those horrible days when all seems clouded is a wonderful description of our God.  Please enjoy this worship song.  Blessings.

9 As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. ² His disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’ ³ Jesus answered, ‘Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God’s works might be revealed in him.  (John 9:1-3)

In Chapter 9 of John we hear of Jesus healing a man born blind.  This is a report that confirms Jesus’ statement in Chapter 8 that he is the “light of the world.”  Jesus meets a man born blind, spits in the dirt to make mud, puts the mud on the man’s eye holes and tells him to go and wash.  He went and came back seeing.  The people are confused and debate if it is the same man.  The Pharisees question the man but discount his story for he was born blind, a sure sign that he was a sinner.  They call the parents as a second witness and the parents refuse to stick their neck out.  The man, who of course could not recognize Jesus, then meets Jesus and believes.  “’Lord, I believe.” And he worshipped him.”

Jesus responds, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.’” (John 9:39)  Jesus is talking about spiritual blindness and spiritual light, discernment and wisdom that the Holy Spirit gives us.  I love the explanation of the Third Article of the Apostles’ Creed that talks about the Holy Spirit, “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in JesusChrist my Lord, or come to him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with his gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith.”

The blind man could do nothing to heal himself.  He was born without eyes.  No great confession of faith is recorded.  God reached into his darkness and gave him sight.  The man saw and believed.  Perhaps we don’t have as dramatic a story.  Perhaps ours was a slow recognition or a moment of insight.  Maybe you have grown slowly in your faith.  Relationships take time.   

Think about the changes since you first believed.  Sometimes it helps to draw a line.  Above the line mark the good events and below the line record the tough times.  Do you recognize God working?  Lord, open my eyes that I might see clearly in 2024.

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 came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being ⁴ in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. ⁵ The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. (John 1:1-5)

John introduces us to Jesus at the beginning of his Gospel with those famous words, “in the beginning,” that immediately draws our thinking back to Genesis 1.  Back at the beginning of our known reality Jesus was “Word,” “life,” and “light of all people.”  John opens with hope.  Light defeats darkness.  

In the beginning of 2024 

• what word do you want to hear, 
• what light do you want to see, 
• and where do you need life breathed into your journey?  

Perhaps you would use another noun to describe what you need for 2024.  Perhaps you need strength.  Perhaps you need faith.  Perhaps you need comfort.  Then again you may need clarity on some issue you’ve been grappling with.  When faced with a challenge, it is easy to think of relief and escape.  Let’s identify a gift – a word, a light, or some life – God could give us this year that can only come from him.  We want the darkness defeated so let’s cling to the promise that darkness is overcome by the light of Jesus.  Jesus is the light of the world.  He helps us overcome our challenges from the beginning.  Blessings.

¹ The Lord is my light and my salvation;
    whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
    of whom shall I be afraid?

Psalm 27:1 by KIng David

I am a genuine, 100% certified and credentialed “fearling.”  As a young adult I read the book Hinds Feet in High Places.  It is a moving tale about little shero Much-Afraid and her spiritual journey to the High Places.  It was a modern Pilgrim’s Progress. King David catches this same sense of overcoming fear as we learn to travel in faith, trusting God, following the light. 

Today we perhaps say we have “control issues.”  I like to be able to see what’s coming and know I can cope well enough not to embarrass myself or my family and friends watching.  When I experience darkness like we talked about yesterday, I am an easy target for fear.

  I like that David used the word “and.”  God is not only my light that helps me see and cope but there is also an “and.”  And he is my salvation.  The truth is that I do have tough days and I do make mistakes and I get “my panties all twisted” about something I should be trusting God with.  The verse does not say that because God is our light we must therefore be perfect.  The verse says that even as God leads, we will make mistakes and God will be our salvation.  David loved God but David made mistakes like adultery and murder.  God loved David who was “a man after his own heart.”  God confronted David and punished him for his wrong but God did not abandon David.  The Lord is our light everyday and on those ooops days he is our salvation too.

So let’s take a moment and be honest with ourselves about the fears that linger on the edge of our awareness.  Don’t just think about yourself but let us pray for our country as we enter elections and the arenas of conflict in our world where fear is ever present.  Thank you Lord that you save us.

“¹² Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.’” (John 8:12)

Yesterday we looked at the context Jesus spoke this “I am” into.  Today let’s look at the content.  Jesus juxtaposes light and darkness.  More specifically walking in darkness vs having, walking, in the light of life.  I think of a time when a friend treated our family to Knotts Berry Farm in Los Angeles somewhere.  Because I was pregnant…again…I could not ride the rollar coaster rides but that night I went in the basket that raised the rider up high to over look the LA basin as the lights on the basket went out.  It was like being suspended in a dark void.  I could not appreciate the scenery because I was too terrified, clutching the rails of the basket, and trying to act brave for a child with me.  I could not identify anything.  I was paralyzed.  Being lowered was petrifying.  Perhaps you would find that fun but I did not.  I do not like to walk where I cannot tell up from down, where I am going, or if there are objects in the way.

Jesus says that without “light” life becomes like that.  It is hard to get our berrings.  We do not really know if what we are doing is getting us where we want to go.  We cannot see the sticks and stones on the path.  We cannot see to know which friend to reach out to for orientation.  Jesus claiming to be the light of life sounds to me like orientation, like direction, like fellowship, and like guidance.  Jesus uses the word, “never.”  Walking with Jesus is never walking in total darkness.  In our darkest days, he is our torch, our flashlight, that will lead us to safety.

Let’s take a short time to think how light helps us to navigate our daily lives and pray for that gift in facing the challenges of today.