#2613: The Light That Has Come

(upbeat music) (upbeat music) - All right, so good to share this time with all of you. If you're joining us for the first time, I'm Pastor Terry, Lee Pastor here, Cornerstone Church in San Francisco, and I'm glad you're a part of what we're doing right now. When I pray that every one of us would be blessed, strength and encouraged and drawn towards the cross, as we make our way into this Easter series, we're spending a lot of time in the 12th chapter of John, that's been our focus point. It's called the cost of love, and really it has everything to do with Jesus and what he was willing to pay on our behalf, and the love that motivated it. And at least in part, we are just trying to consider the sacrifice that was made by our Lord to obtain for us so great a salvation. And part of our privilege then is to approach this moment with sacred gratitude and to ponder, refresh the cross. Like the great Saint Augustine wrote, "All those who belong to Jesus Christ are fastened with him to the cross. All those who belong to Jesus Christ are fastened with him to the cross." So love what? Are you leaning into the cross? What does that even mean? How open is our heart to the invitation of Jesus to be with him in the cross, to understand his love for us and the sacrifice that he paid, the sinless blood that was spilled. And in what sense might the Lord wanna say, something to us uniquely, yes, we make our way into this Easter season, what is it that we are to surrender, what is it that we are to yield, what is it that we are to embrace, a fresh and in new ways. So yeah, Lord, with that in mind, let's go to John 12. We'll kick back into verse 35. Jesus said to them, the them was the people, the disciples and the gathered crowd, he said these words, "The light is among you for a little while longer." He can see the cross coming. Walk while you have the light, let's darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe in the light that you may become sons of light. Jesus again, knows the cross is near, is on his mind. He knows that the hour that he has spoken of is at hand, is near, right there, is happening. And if we can use the metaphor that he employed, he knows that the light that he is is about to be extinguished from the earth, that he is going to die, the light is going to be covered in darkness. But he also knows that in the end, the light will overwhelm the darkness. So there is a sense that we are, by the way, in this life never invulnerable to the darkness. For it is always lurking. We understand that, right? There is darkness. There's things lurking without, there's things lurking within. Sometimes we're our own worst enemy. Sometimes it's the pressures around us at both literal and physical and spiritual levels. Which is, by the way, that was why we are reminded to walk. Those of us who would follow Jesus, we are told, walk in the light. I mean, think about that. Think about the metaphor of Jesus and how we are reminded to walk in the light. For Paul writes, "Oh, one time you are in darkness, "but now you are light in the Lord. "Walk as children of the light." That was an exhortation. Now, practically speaking, what does that mean? What does that even look like? What does it involve? How do we do it? How do we walk in the light? Well, in the verses that follow, Paul actually describes what it means to walk in the light. And he says some very specific things. Verse 15, he says, "Look carefully than how you walk, "not as unwise but as wise." In other words, make wisdom a friend. So that's one thing, self-examined in a live with discerning eyes. Think, reflect, pray, ponder, churn, meditate on the ways of the Lord that our wisdom may grow. And we may walk as children of light, sons and daughters of the king. He goes on to say, "Make the best use of the time, "the older version says, "Redeen the time "because the days are evil." Again, we live in dark times. It's true. I'm not trying to be paranoid, but evil is everywhere. It is increasing on all sides. And we would do well to use our time better, to watch out for not just the trivial. That's something to be careful about, right, getting stuck there, but also the unhealthy and the dark, especially in light of the time wasters, but really the negative addictions that are connected to technology. And we have to really, like I say at this way, fight for light, fight for the light. We need to exercise restraint with God's help, seek as will, and that which brings true joy, but is not harmful, make sure that we're actually challenging our recreational choices and what's consuming our intake at a mental level and emotional level. Again, because they're toxic times, and these times require us then to have a degree of intentionality and proactivity when it comes to good things. Otherwise, the light's gonna get swallowed up, right? What's more, there's a tendency to drift. We just want we need to stay tethered. That is connected to the light in at least two primary ways, one of which I already alluded to, tethered to the Lord devotionaly, talking about our private life with God, or our time with him, spending time with his word, prayer, songs, and our heart, right? Just stuff like that. Good things coming in, and then also tethered to one another in Christian community, because it's not a solo journey, it involves others who are also, logs burn better together. And therefore, we're told, do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And that it means that we are a seed to live in this will, seek the assignment of the season, remembering that the safest place in all the world is the center of this will. So one of the ways we live in the light is by contending for clarity, and that's not always easy. Sometimes we need to reason together with others whom we trust, who are also seeking to follow Jesus to get a better understanding of that. How are you doing? Do we have people we can reason with, and then Paul writes, do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the spirit. You know, drunkiness is when people do foolish things. So it's when foolish things are done. They're not thinking, moreover, we're, you know, again, but the principle is this, largely avoid, avoid addictions and foolish things, and instead be filled with more of the Lord. Let his spirit be the center of our lives. Addressing one another, we're told in verse 19 in songs and hymns, spiritual songs singing and making melody to the Lord with our heart, may his words, loved ones be on our lips, may his songs be in our hearts, 'cause we're called to be joyful artists, happy and free, and that really is how we wanna live our life. That's to be our relational priority. Again, how do we live in the light? Well, Paul says, "Giving thanks always, and for everything to God the Father, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, spiritually is clear that the way of Jesus is meant to be a way of gratitude and thanksgiving." As the phrase says, "A person who is truly thankful has a feast every day." I love that phrase. A person who's truly thankful has a feast every day. Lord help us to have thankfulness in our hearts. And then we are told another way we live in the light is by submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ. That's verse 21. Our relationships are affected and impacted by our life in Christ. In other words, as I live in humility before Jesus, I can walk in humility with Jesus and bring that reality into my relationships and the result of that will be better relationships. They'll get will because wherever Jesus is, light comes and light brings life and yeah, that's how it works. With the how to live in the light in mind, let's then return back to what Jesus said in John 12 and just sit with his words once more as we prepare ourselves for this Easter week that's ahead of us. Jesus said to them, again, the people, the disciples and the gathered crowd, that the light is among you for a little while longer. So walk while you have light, less darkness overtake you. So when Jesus is reminding us of, and if you've ever been in a pitch black room, you know exactly what Jesus is saying. When it's totally dark and there's no light source at all, you can't barely see anything. You can easily lose your way and you can easily get yourself in trouble. But Jesus says, "Why you have light, believe in light, that you may become sons of light." When Jesus has said these things, we're told that He departed and then He hid Himself from them. And so we see Jesus pulling away from the crowds in this moment. Jesus, the solitary figure reminding us that there is a time to engage and there is a time to pull away. There is a time to disengage. We all need that. There's a time when we need to engage more and there's a time we need to pull away more. And just be with the Lord. But I think even more it symbolizes that the end of the Lord's ministry was at hand. He was, this was the full disengagement. Hitting into the cross to a degree the die was cast. The unbelief of the leaders was as predicted and prophesied entrenched their desire for Jesus's elimination had now been completely consolidated. We're told in verse 37, though, "He had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in Him." So that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be filled, which is a curious reference. The Lord who has believed what He heard from us and of whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed. Therefore, they could not believe, we're told in John, for again, Isaiah said, so that he's looking back to the older testament from the book of Isaiah and he's talking about how they were rejecting Jesus. He says, "He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart. "They see what their eyes and understand with their heart "and turn, and I would heal them." It's not saying that He forced them to disbelieve, but rather like Pharaoh at the time of Moses, He gave them over to what they already wanted and had decided. In other words, cemented their choice, if you will. There are times. And this is going to sound like a paradox, but there are times when, how can I say it when the judgment of the Lord is to give us what we want? There are times when the judgment of the Lord is to give us what we want. Now, back to John 12, Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of them. Now, this really is a remarkable scripture that is often run past, I think too quickly, because what it's saying is, just stick with me here, okay? That what it's saying is that the Old Testament book of Isaiah in particular contains a road map to Jesus the Messiah. And certainly, Isaiah's prophecies, especially those found in chapter 52 and 53 of Isaiah, have direct references to Jesus, the anointed one, Jesus the Messiah, the promised one. And they refer to the suffering servant of the Lord. In fact, we actually, as a church, use them as a blueprint of source on our good Friday service. We sit with Isaiah 53 and just ponder the significance that's a relates to Jesus and how so much of that was fulfilled in his death. And it's just a great reminder that though the Old Testament contains things that were cultural and distinctly for Israel and an earlier time before Christ, when God dealt actually differently with humanity because there was no Jesus, there was no sacrifice given. It none the less, even though there are differences from the new, of course, which builds off of Christ, it's none the less the word of God, for at least three reasons. And I'll just point them out real quickly. One, the Old Testament was the scripture of Jesus and the early church. We need to remember that the New Testament hadn't even been written. The time of Christ is, the scriptures he refers to are what we call the Old Testament. So there's definitely life in them. And he says, they speak of me too, in order to appreciate the nuance and depth of the New Testament, a work in understanding of the Old Testament is needed. And I think that's super important for people who are sincere about following the Lord. Remember, the Bible has an older and new New Testament. It's not just the new. And then, you know, books like Romans, and especially Hebrews, not to mention the gospels and the epistles like, we just read from the gospels, are intertwined with Old Testament truth. I mean, that's what John is referring to, directly connecting to. He's saying these prophecies from Isaiah testify of Jesus. And also, we're kind of being told here that the prophecies themselves have double meanings that they applied to both a historical reality and to Jesus. Isn't that fascinating? Right? They're intertwined. They have dual meaning, two sides of a coin. And of course, the cross, the cost of love, it has been said like a scarlet thread, the cross is woven through the Bible from Genesis to revelations. And it's true. I mean, that's why Jesus was say, after his resurrection to a few of his disciples on the road to Emmaus, Luke 24. Again, after the resurrection, he would say these words. He said to them, "O foolish ones, so of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken." There it is. Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory? And then beginning with Moses, look at this and all the prophets, he interpreted to them, you know, all the scriptures, the things concerning himself. And then later in the chapter, look at what Jesus says to his disciples. Then he said to them, "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the law of Moses." There it is. And the prophets, we just read from John 12, and the songs must be fulfilled. And then in this marvelous verse, verse 45, and then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, hollord, that you would open up our minds to understand the scriptures. Yeah, more so. And said to them, "Thus it is written that Christ, the Christ should suffer on the third day rise from the dead." There's Easter. And that repentance for the forgiveness of sin should be proclaimed in his name to all nations beginning from Jerusalem. You, he says, are witnesses of these things. How good is that? We are witnesses of these things. We're part of the rescue team. We've been rescued to be part of the rescue team. This Easter season made the Lord open up our minds, a fresh to understand and appreciate and love the scriptures to see how they all connect and point to him, to his coming, to his suffering, to his death, and to his resurrection. Okay. Back to the passage in John 12, as we make our final turn and land this plane, verse 42, "Nevertheless," and again, this is John, back to John 12, after Jesus connected to the prophecies, and Isaiah, "Nevertheless, many even of the authorities did believe in him. They believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees, they did not confess it. They didn't publicly confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue for they loved." We're told this. Oh, the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God. That's pretty intense. Who are we more concerned about impressing loved ones? And Jesus cried out and he said, "Whoever believes in me believes not in me, but in him who sent me." Is it you believe in God? And whoever sees me sees him, him who sent me. And I have come into the world as light so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness. And if anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. There's that theme again. The one who rejects me and does not receive my words as a judge, that's God. And that word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day. We all, to some degree, judge ourselves by what we choose to do with Jesus. And I pray that we will choose to accept him and not reject him and choose to live for him and let his light, light our lives. Where I have not spoken, Jesus says, on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has Himself given me a commandment, what to say and what to speak. And I know that His commandment is eternal life. And what I say, therefore, I say, as the Father has told me, His are the words of life. That's what Jesus said. I am speaking the words of God directly to you because I am His Son. Two quotes to finish with, one from Billy Graham, who I loved. God undertook the most dramatic rescue operation in cosmic history. He determined to save the human race from self-destruction. And He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to salvage and redeem them. Again, we were rescued. And now we've been assigned to the rescue team. And then, see us Lewis and Mulan with this. It costs God nothing so far as we know to create nice things. But to convert rebellious wills will cost Him crucifixion. Lord, you died for us, the willful us. Thank you for having me. us Lord, how can we thank you enough for so great a salvation? How can we thank you enough for your goodness? Help us to live in the light as you are in the light, to walk as one of yours. We love you. We embrace the cross and we want you to do new things in us through us and around us. That's our prayer. I have a couple more things to close us with, but first let's share our song for a ship and then we'll come back around. I tried to run, but still you came and you stepped into the dark, because that's just the kind of God you are. When heaven seems beyond my reach, you still see eternity in me. You're turning ashes into art, because that's just the kind of God you are. And in the empty time, it's on the rugged cross, you're dead to find one. It's written in your stars, you'll never quit away. You'll always hold my hand, because that's the kind of God you are. You gave me freedom from my sin. You told me I could start again. All the hurt is dead and gone. Now where you're done is near me, sons. A blazing grace that sweetly sails out. We must were lost, but now we're found. Forever you hold us in your arms, because that's just the kind of God you are. It's in the empty time, it's on the rugged cross, you're dead to find one. Holy, holy, holy, high and said apart. Holy, holy, holy, God, that's who you are. You are holy, holy, holy, God, that's who you are. And I was young, you call my name. Try to run, but still you came. And you stepped into the dark, because that's just the kind of God you are. Once again, we are reminded that the Lord loves us, that He died for us. For God's the love of this world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever would believe in Him would not perish, but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn it, but that the world through Him might have life. Lord, help us to keep the cross before us, especially this week. Let it be on our mind, on good Friday, as we remember you, and all that you gave for us. Then, on Easter, as we remember all you won for us, the life that we could never earn, a gift, because of you, we live. Thank you, Jesus, for loving us enough to die for us, forgiving your life away so that we might have life. And rising again, that we may never, ever be overcome by death and darkness, but live in the light and life of all that you have for us. Thank you.