For Those Walking In Darkness |12.01.24| Shadows And Light pt.1

For Those Walking In Darkness

Genesis 1:1-5 & John 1:1-14 

Pastor Drew Williams

A few weeks ago, Megan and I got to go on vacation with no kids. My mom gifted us three nights away for our anniversary (thanks mom), and so Megan and I went to a little cabin on a little lake.

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And the biggest pull for us with this cabin was that it didn’t have wi-fi, and the cell service was moderate at best. And the first night we got there, I was pretty beat from the travel day. And there wasn’t enough cell service to do anything on my phone, so I grabbed one of the books I had brought to read a bit to wind down.

And after a few minutes of reading, I just felt so exhausted and it was really dark outside and I looked at the clock…and it was 7:18pm! But, since we didn’t have the kids, Megan and I decided to go to bed.

And when I woke up (ten hours later!) the sun still wasn’t up, so I got dressed and went down to the dock on the lake.

It was that moment just as the faintest parts of dawn are starting to show in the sky. So now the stars aren’t shining as bright any more, and all you can see is the faintest outline of the tree-tops lining the lake.

But everything else is dark. And even though I KNOW there is a lake right in front of me, I can’t see it. I could be standing in front of a cliff for all I know.

It’s cold. It’s dark. There’s no color. No shapes except for the faintest outlines of the trees against the sky. Only the wind gently whistling by to remind me that I’m not asleep and I’m not floating aimlessly through the black of space.

And it reminded me of how the very first pages of the Bible describe the moments at the beginning of creation. If you take out your Bibles, you can flip there with me. And then keep your Bibles open, because we’re going to connect this with another passage later on.

[SLIDE 3] Gen 1:1-2
“In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth…” (which means everything there is), “the earth was a formless void…”

And if you’re looking at the black seat-back Bibles we have here, you’ll notice a little note right next to the word “created”, and the bottom of the page will tell you that another way to render this phrase is:

“When God BEGAN to create the heavens and the earth…” which I just love, because it shows that creation wasn’t a one-time thing that happened a long time ago, and then God walked away like a watchmaker and is just letting it run.

No, creation was begun by God and is still being done by God, as he creates each and every new moment and invites us to participate in his work.

“When God began to create the heavens and the earth, the earth was formless and void…” The Hebrew words behind “formless and void” are meant to describe numbness, wasteland, emptiness. In the darkness, there was no shape, no color. Just the chaotic unknown.

[SLIDE 4] Gen 1:3
“Then God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” Such a simple act, speaking. I just did it. There, I did it again. But when God does it, the thoughts don’t JUST become words, they create worlds.

“Let there be…and there was.” Before, there was nothingness, formlessness, void. Then God spoke, and at his word there was light, and with light comes color, and shape, and depth, and definition.

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Just like that morning I was sitting by the lake. Without the light, the whole earth was formless and void. And in the dark, all there was was uncertainty, the unknown, cold. Was the lake right in front of me, or ten yards out? Was it deep? Were there monsters? Would I be safe, or would I drown if I were to go too close?

And then the sun appeared, slowly and then all at once, and the light burst over the tops of the trees, and there was color, and shapes, and depth. The trees and the dock and the shoreline stood out against the lake, and the ripples in the water reflected the million variations of color that the sun was painting on the sky.

And I stood and breathed in the crisp air, and I watched as a flock of geese swooped low over the lake, and the wind brought the sounds of life from the other shore to my ears.

And it was all a gift. When was the last time you received the morning as a gift?

Because, most mornings for me involve one or three little humans having need or being hungry before the sun comes up. And I stumble into the morning wanting nothing other than coffee. And I can’t forget to let the dogs out.

And as I check the weather for the day, then I check my email, or the news, or social media. I flit back and forth between fun little jokes or pictures of people I know to advertisements for things I don’t have but now I want, or reminders of heavy stressors in the world or in my life.

And the kids need to get dressed for the day, and I’ve got to brush my teeth, but don’t forget to reply to that one person who reached out, and all of a sudden, I’m standing by the kitchen window and I notice that the sun is fully up.

When did that happen? I didn’t even notice!

The world started formless and void, full of uncertainty and possibility, and I kept my eyes shut, and got sucked in to all the other tasks and have-tos in life, and I didn’t get to experience the light overcoming the darkness and bringing light and life.

Maybe you’re in a similar lifestage to me and you have been smiling and nodding your head. Maybe your mornings look different, but you also experience the feelings of rush and expectation and the pull of stress and uncertainty that is everywhere in our world.

And now we’re in December! And the rush isn’t going to LESSEN! The stress isn’t going to go down! The constant barrage of advertisers telling you that you don’t have something you “NEED” in order to be happy, the extra reminders of what a “perfect” Christmas season should look like will keep pointing an accusing finger at your life and make you wonder why you don’t experience that picture-perfect holiday gathering.

It’s a season of Light and Joy, but some of us aren’t experiencing very much light right now. Some of us are stuck in the shadows. Sometimes, all of us are experiencing the opposite of Joy, we’re NOT experiencing peace, or hope.

Why don’t we feel that? Why aren’t we automatically happier at this time of year? Why isn’t our family like the perfect Normal Rockwell painting of everyone enjoying gathering together and singing and sharing love?

Why don’t I feel God? Why is my stress climbing with every day we celebrate getting closer to Christmas?

You’re not alone for feeling that way. And this season of Advent we are in, when we are practicing again the waiting and the expectation, this is a time when we get to remind ourselves and those we love that God is ALWAYS in the business of shining his light in the darkness.

We get to remind each other that when you’re experiencing darkness in your life, it’s probably an invitation from God to step into his light.

[SLIDE 6]
And in our Gospel reading today, which can be found on page ???? of the New Testament in the black, seat-back Bibles, we’re going to look at how Jesus’ arrival is a mirror to creation, and that God’s ability to bring light and life to where there used to be uncertainty and chaos has not changed since the beginning of time.

So let’s read John 1:1-14 together…

[JOHN 1:1-14]

[SLIDE 7] John 1:1
Since we just read the beginning of Genesis a few minutes ago, there should be a lot of this that seems familiar. “In the beginning was…God? Well, John says, in the beginning was the Word. And the Word was with God, or we could also read it as the Word was FROM God, and the Word WAS God.”

If we keep reading the whole book of John, we see that he’s referring to Jesus as the Word of God.

[SLIDE 8] John 1:3-4
So, right here from the beginning of his book, he’s connecting Jesus to Creation and to being God. He’s the Word of God, the very creative force that brought everything into being.

And when the Word of God spoke and said Let there be light, it was more than even the type of light we’ve talked about that brings color and depth. This light is LIFE. The life of all humanity.

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And so we see that Genesis 1 sets up this picture: In the beginning, when God began to create, the world was chaos and deserted (formless and void), and the darkness was WITH the desolation, and the breath of God (Spirit of God) hovered over the deep. Hovered ABOVE the deep.

And then we look at John 1: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word WAS God, and he was with/from God. And he sat in authority ABOVE all creation because nothing came into being without him. And the LIGHT that shone into the darkness was LIFE.

[SLIDE 10] John 1:5
And the light is so incredibly more powerful than the darkness. Because darkness can’t overcome light. Darkness runs from light. Shadows don’t exist in light, they exist around the corner and behind the door. But as soon as the light shines, darkness is gone!

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And while darkness allows fear, the unknown, secrecy… Light brings confidence, certainty, it reveals.

Darkness is where cold is, where death is, where ALONE is…
Light brings warmth, life, connection.

And the darkness can’t overcome the light. The darkness can’t overcome Jesus. Jesus is the light that brings life to all people.

And so, when we’re experiencing darkness in our life…when we’re experiencing fear and uncertainty…when we’re experiencing death or isolation in our life…

THAT’S an invitation to step into the light. Because the darkness can’t overcome the light.

But I can keep myself back in the darkness. I can allow myself to be so busied and so distracted that I don’t even notice the sun coming up in the morning.

Even on the lakeshore, waiting for the sunrise, I could still choose to close my eyes out of fear, and keep them shut, and I’ll stay in darkness.

[SLIDE 12] John 1:10-11
That’s what John is talking about when he says that the world did not “know” Jesus, did not comprehend or understand him. He came even to his people, the people of God who had been told that a savior was coming, and they didn’t accept him. They didn’t receive him. They didn’t open their eyes to receive his light.

[SLIDE 13] “Where do you need more light?”
And so, I’m wondering, for YOU, in your life, where do you need light? Where do you feel darkness? Where do you feel disconnection? Where do you feel isolation?

Maybe you’re experiencing relational conflict. This time of year brings people together, and that can open up old wounds. Or the people DON’T come together BECAUSE of ongoing disagreements, and it feels like one more cut to the heart.

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The darkness is where those old wounds and disagreements thrive. They cut people off from each other. They keep people separated, both feeling the darkness, both feeling isolated, both staying back, unsure where the next attack or wound might come from.

If you feel like you’re in a season of darkness like that, you need light. You need the light that is the life of all mankind. You need Jesus.

Jesus can shine his light into every area of your life if you let him. And instead of staying in the darkness and tripping over each other and hurting each other, we need to turn on the lights to reveal what it is that we’re tripping over. We need to turn on the light to see where the other person is so we don’t accidentally hurt them again.

We need Jesus to shine his light to REVEAL what secret disagreements, what old jealousies, what hidden wounds have been festering, maybe for years.

Because when we SEE better, we can SERVE better. When the light of Jesus shines into our life and into the circumstance, we can see better how to join him in his work of healing and restoration.

“But I’m afraid, Pastor Drew. I’m not sure what’s out there in the darkness. I’m not sure what’s IN HERE in the darkness.”

Maybe that’s where you feel darkness. It’s fear, because of the unknown. What if my kids or my grandkids experience something I can’t help them with? What if they experience tragedy? What if they make dumb decisions?

In other words, “What if I’M not able to protect them? Or Help them?”
What if…NO ONE protects them?
What if…God abandons them?

And I’m stuck in the darkness of the “what if.” I’m stuck in the shadow of fear and uncertainty. Well, I need light. I need Jesus. I need to ask him to shine a light into all the ways that he already HAS protected the people I love. All the ways he already has helped them. All the ways he already has proven that he loves them even more than I could.

“Well, that sounds nice, Pastor Drew, but I still have fear. There is still so much uncertainty around us. There is still so much that is in shadow, and I can’t be sure what’s coming next.”

I have fear around our current political and social environment. And what if society continues down a path that I don’t agree with?

In other words, I can’t be SURE how things are going to continue, and so my ANXIETY is the only thing that is giving me a sense of control…it’s the only thing preventing…social collapse!

Okay, maybe I don’t really believe that. But what if God lets our society collapse? What if God doesn’t care? What if God isn’t there?

Or maybe the fears are closer to home. We watch the ups and downs of the economy, and we think about all the extra expenses this month, and we feel fear and uncertainty and isolation when it comes to our financial situation.

What if we never get out of this debt and the bank forecloses? What if they repo the car?

What if we can’t make ends meet and we have to give up the way of life we’re used to? What if we have to give up the way of life that we deserve after working so hard?

What if God lets me fall?

Wow, do we see how powerful fear and uncertainty can feel? Fear leaves us clutching at anything, trying to control what we can. Fear leaves us unable to rest. Fear leaves us unable to enjoy or receive the gifts of each day.

And that’s why, when we’re feeling fear, uncertainty…when we’re feeling darkness…it’s an invitation to step into the light.

[SLIDE 15] Isaiah 9:2
That’s why the Old Testament prophet Isaiah, who lived 800 years before Jesus pointed forward to an arrival of light. Because even back then, they knew what it was like to live in darkness. They knew what it was like to feel fear and uncertainty and doubt and isolation.

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness—on them light has shined.”

[SLIDE 16] Isaiah 9:6
“For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders, and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

[SLIDE 17] John 1:14
“And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.”

Because God said, “Let there be light, and it was GOOD.” The light was the life of all people.

When we’re feeling darkness, it’s an invitation to step into his light. Where do you need more light in your life? That’s where you need more Jesus in your life.

Because Jesus shines his light, and the darkness flees. It REMOVES the unknown. It REVEALS what you couldn’t see before. It RENEWS your hope and peace as we follow the Prince of Peace.

[SLIDE 18] “Bring more Light into your life”
That’s why, this season, we all need a little more light in our life. I want each of us to bring more light into our lives. Because fear lives in the shadows, but we don’t have to stay there.

Because we KNOW that Jesus is on the throne.
Because we KNOW that God is a loving Father who provides abundantly for his kids.
Because we KNOW that he has a plan and a mission that he hasn’t given up on.
Because we KNOW that he has pursued us all the way into the GRAVE to bring us out.

So I want us to bring more light into our lives this month. Because Jesus stepped into our world to bring light, and we are created to reflect that light as image bearers of God.

So let’s bring more light into our lives. Let’s get more light in our lives.

[SLIDE 19] 14 Days
One way to do that is to sign up for the 14 Days of Light challenge this month. It’s going to be two weeks of short devotionals and simple actions to take to bring light TO you as well as bring light THROUGH you to others.

Sign up today, and it’ll officially start two weeks before Christmas, but it’s a simple way to practice some spiritual habits that help us spend time with Jesus. But it’s not something we do alone either. It’s something we GET to do together as a whole church family.

Because we were created to reflect Jesus’s light into the world. And we were created to do that as a community, as a whole family, brought together by this incredible God who adopts us all into his new family, given a new life, invited into a new mission.

And as we step into his light, we reflect his light into the people around us, helping them overcome the darkness. Helping our community step into the light. Helping to bring healing and wholeness to the families and individuals around us.

Because that’s always been the plan of God. To bring light. To bring life. Isn’t that good news?