Jesus Our Promised Life

As we continue in our Advent series in John 1, the call and burden of the text this morning is this. Believe in the true light who has come to overcome darkness. Believe in the true light who has come to overcome darkness.

We'll look at our text in three points this morning. First, light shines. Second, light confirmed. And third, light given. So light shines, verses four to five, light confirmed, six to eight, and light given, verse nine.

Light shines

So our first point, light shines. Just as he began in verse one of this prologue, John continues with the emphasis where the whole Bible begins, with life. In verse four he says,

in him was life.

This is in the context of the first few verses of this introduction, and John has already clearly emphasized the word, the second person of the Trinity, Jesus Christ's central role in creation with God the Father in the beginning. The Father, through Christ the Word, created all that is. So life that is found in Christ is not borrowed, it's not gifted, it's not derived life, nor does the word that John uses here refer to biological existence. It's fullness of life. Life as God has it. Life that is self-existent, underived, and unconditioned. Theologians call this the aseity of God. Truth that God does not merely possess life, that he is life within himself without any dependence on anyone or anything else. Christ shares in this divine attribute. Everything else lives by dependent, is dependent on some kind of outside sustenance, but he lives by his very essence. This is why the early church fathers in the Nicene Creed spoke of Christ as

light from light, true God from true God.

The light of the sun doesn't imitate brightness, it radiates it as a part of the essence eternally in the Godhead. And so the Son, eternally begotten from the Father, is eternally radiant with divine life.

The text continues,

in him was life, and the life was the light of men.

Meaning that the life that exists in Christ is the light that defines, shapes, and reveals what it means to be human. To say it another way, where light is rejected, mankind withers. Where light is embraced, mankind flourishes. Christ the light is not a helpful moral coach or companion. He is the very radiant atmosphere in which human life can be what it was made to be. Take this picture. If you put a basil plant that's sitting on your kitchen windowsill and throw it into a dark closet, what do you expect the result to be? Yellow leaves, wilted, and ultimately, death. The basil's life is directly tied to the sunlight. And so it is with human life. Apart from the source of life, which is the light of men, Jesus Christ, death will reign in mankind.

Some of you have been trying to survive in a spiritually dark closet, convinced if you just water your spiritual plant enough or sprinkle on enough synthetic fertilizer, do enough outwardly Christian things that you can keep yourself alive. But the issue is not your watering schedule or whether you use Miracle-Gro. The issue is exposure to the light. We don't grow because of sheer effort. We grow because we turn our face toward Christ, who is the light.

There are at least three different ways that light does this. First, light reveals. Light makes the path clear. It illuminates what is true. It unveils what actually is. Of course, this is one of the very things that Christ came to do. Christ reveals sin. Christ reveals God. Christ reveals the very kingdom of God. So light reveals.

Second, light exposes. This is in part why so many resist him. Light exposes motives. It reveals hypocrisy. It strips away pretense. Later in John's gospel, in chapter three, verse 19, Jesus says,

people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.

When light shines, the shadows in us are exposed, and we're left to grapple with what we love more. the light or the darkness. Yet exposure is actually one of the greatest gifts that God can give us, though in the moment it might feel like judgment. In reality, exposure is mercy. Darkness conceals wounds that fester and rot. where light reveals wounds that Christ is eager to mend.

Third, the light enlightens or brightens. He not only reveals and exposes, he gives sight. He awakens the conscience. He softens the heart. He grants spiritual perception. This is not primarily an intellectual illumination, it is a heart illumination. The kind of enlightenment that makes a dead soul live again.

And if this is what the light does, revealing, exposing, enlivening, John now shows us in verse five the stage on which the light performs this work. Not in a neutral space, but in the thick, suffocating darkness of our world. Verse five says,

the light shines in the darkness.

Shines. Notice the present tense. Not shown as in only at creation, not will shine as in only someday in the future. No, the light shines right now. continually, actively, relentlessly. From the dawn of creation until this very moment, Christ has never ceased shining and he never will.

Yet Christ's shining here is not removed, shining in the heavens among the angels and cherubim and seraphim only. The bright shining light of Christ described here pierces into the darkness. Biblically, darkness is not a competing equal force with light. Darkness is the absence of light. The fourth century church father Augustine said that

darkness is the privation of good.

So when John speaks of darkness, he's not describing an equal force. He's describing what happens wherever the presence of God's truth, life, and holiness is withdrawn or rejected. Darkness throughout the scriptures often is associated with the presence of falsehood, of delusion, of twisting of the truth. Darkness lies, it deceives, and it convinces us that we can see, when in reality we're actually blind. In John 3.20, Jesus said,

for everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come into the light, lest his works should be exposed.

This is because the light unmasks the illusions that we hide behind. Light doesn't create guilt. It reveals what's already there. And that's why there's this temptation to avoid the presence of Christ.

The darkness has not overcome it

and yet the light shines. John continues,

the light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.

It's a strange way of saying it. John could have said the light has overcome the darkness, but instead he says it negatively here. The darkness has not overcome the light. Why? Well, look around at our world. Darkness often looks like it's winning. We might, apart from the light, be convinced that every funeral looks like darkness has won. That every moment of depression feels like darkness has won. Every act of violence. Every moment you give in and you touch that sin that you swore that you would never touch again. Darkness seems powerful, like a stronghold. Look at our world, wars, exploitation, moral confusion and chaos, and you might think darkness is winning. Closer to home, look at your own heart. Patterns of sin, apathy, drifting. And you might think darkness has overtaken me.

But John declares with certainty the absolute negation of the lie that grips our world.

The darkness has not overcome it.

Not now, not then, and not ever. Darkness is loud, but it is not sovereign. Darkness is aggressive, but it is not ultimate. Darkness is real, but it is not victorious. And the greatest proof of that? At Calvary, darkness gathered every weapon that it had. Betrayal, injustice, violence, mockery, thorns, nails, grave. The light of the world was assaulted by darkness. The sun itself refused to shine. The sky turned black and hell seemed to roar. It was the most intense, horrifying display of darkness in the history of creation. And don't miss this. The darkness that surrounded Calvary was not merely circumstantial. It was judicial. Christ was not simply a victim of darkness. He was willingly standing in our place, bearing our darkness. The wrath that should have fallen on us and our sin fell upon him instead. This is the heart of the gospel. The bright shining light of the world absorbed the full weight of our guilt so that we might stand without fear. On the cross, he became our substitute. He took our curse so that we could receive his blessing. He entered our darkness so that we could enter his life. The light was overwhelmed with the judgment that we deserve. But hear this, the darkness did not overcome him.

After his perfect, sufficient sacrifice, the light of the world rose triumphantly from the grave. Darkness did its absolute worst, and it lost. It did not overcome him. And perhaps in this way more than any other, the life that is in Christ is the light of men. Death and darkness have been defeated and are being undone around us and in the world by the light of the world. When we are united to Christ by faith, his victory becomes our victory. His resurrection guarantees ours. His triumph over darkness defines our future. The light's triumph is not merely a past event to admire, it is a present power to live in. This isn't just some hypothetical thing or just to inform our theology. It actually meaningfully changes the way that Christians live every single day. Because darkness did not overcome the light in Christ, every funeral for those who believe becomes a celebration that the deceased is not dead. for they share in the resurrection of their savior. Every moment of depression for a believer becomes an opportunity to long for the certain hope that every tear will be wiped away from every weary eye. No, darkness did not overcome the light of the world, and it shall not.

I'll say to you today, if these truths feel foreign from your lived experience, meditate upon Christ, specifically his victory in the resurrection, where darkness seems strongest. This is, I think, where some Christians, they quietly despair. They think, if darkness exists in me, maybe I'm not truly saved. But John doesn't say that the darkness is gone. He says that it cannot ultimately win. The presence of ongoing struggle, it may not be evidence that the light of Christ is absent. It may actually be evidence to the contrary.

Because before Christ saved you, you had no choice but to surrender to the power of sin and darkness. But now in Christ, the war itself is evidence of his life in you. Your spirit-empowered struggle for holiness testifies to the light of Christ within you. So I invite you to ask yourself honestly today, where am I still living as though the darkness is stronger than Christ? Or maybe for you a more relevant question would be, where am I excusing sin, fearing death, or resigning myself to despair? The light shines, present tense, and no part of your life is too dark for him to reach. Friends, do not stay in the shadows. Come to him.

Through the incarnation, the light of the world is undoing darkness. He shines and gives light. Believe in the light. But if the light is this radiant, this unstoppable, and this life-giving, how was the world supposed to recognize him when he came? John answers this question by turning our attention not to another divine figure, but to a man appointed to point us to the light.

Light affirmed

Our second point is light affirmed, verses five to eight. There's a shift in subject that takes place here that's puzzling at first. Verse five says,

there was a man sent from God whose name was John.

Suddenly we're not talking about the word, but instead a man named John. Not John the author of this gospel, the disciple of Jesus, this was John the Baptist, a prophet sent from God. And the most striking observations to make here are in terms of contrast. The word has been described with sweeping language of divinity. John is a man. While Christ the word participated in creation itself as a member of the Godhead, John was finite. Further contrast between the word who was God and John who was sent from God. And this distinction between creator and creature is among, if not the single most important distinction that the scriptures offer us.

From the very beginning in the garden, the core temptation that the serpent enticed Adam and Eve with was the promise to be like God if they ate this forbidden fruit. The sent from God language also echoes the prophets of the Old Testament. John stands in a long line of men who spoke for God and pointed toward the coming salvation of the Lord. Prophets in the Old Testament like Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and on and on. But John comes as the final prophet, the final Old Testament prophet, if you will. John isn't just merely another prophet. He's the hinge between the old age and the new. Our text that was read for us earlier from Malachi 4 promised that Elijah would come before the great and final day of the Lord. And Jesus, in Matthew's gospel, both in chapter 11 and 17, identifies John as the fulfillment of that promise. In other words, John doesn't just announce Christ, John closes the era of anticipation. When he steps onto the stage, the final countdown begins, and the next voice after John's is the voice of the light himself.

So what was John the Baptist's mission as he was sent from God? The first half of verse seven and the second half of verse eight give us the same repeated answer. Verse seven begins,

he came as a witness to bear witness about the light.

Verse eight ends,

he came to bear witness about the light.

John the Baptist enters like a witness taking the stand. This is legal courtroom language. This is verification. Witnesses' job isn't to draw attention to themselves. they testify to the fact of the matter that is in question. And the court case of public opinion to which John bore witness was the matter of the identity and the mission of the light. John is the divinely appointed witness whose testimony affirms the authenticity of Christ.

If you're here today and skeptical about the claims of the divinity of Christ, I invite you to honestly and openly dig into the data of the Bible for yourself. Evaluate its claims about Jesus, which were prophesied centuries before this moment, down to the smallest detail. Prophecy after prophecy in the Old Testament scriptures would find their exact fulfillment in Jesus. And John the Baptist's testimony, it joined a chorus of prophets before him, all who pointed toward the light who had now come. Every prophet before him had said, he is coming, he is coming. And now John stood and said, he is here. His ministry called people to repentance in anticipation of the one, the light who had come. The waiting was over. The promised light had arrived in flesh and in blood.

So John wasn't testifying to a distant hope but to an immediate reality. And that testimony rings true today. Christian, be encouraged. Our hope in Christ is well-founded according to the testimony of the prophets. Be encouraged. Skeptics, Your questions are welcome. False religions and cults may discourage question-asking out of fear of being exposed for what they are, a lie and a deceit. The God of the Bible, on the other hand, invites us to bring our doubts and our questions and our objections into the courtroom, to voice them. and then to hear the testimony of the prophets throughout the Bible, the testimony of Jesus himself and his life, to hear the testimony of Christians in this room and throughout history who can testify to the transforming power of the light. Christianity does not fear scrutiny because truth does not fear the light. Bring your doubts. Bring your questions, bring the places where you struggle to believe. Please, seek answers that satisfy your mind, but don't stop there.

Right in the middle of these repeated lines of John's bearing witness about the light, the reason for him bearing witness is given. The second half of verse seven says,

that all might believe through him. That all might believe through him.

So yes, prophecy affirms the validity of the light, but intellectual assent alone cannot push back the darkness in your hearts. You can affirm the historicity of Jesus, even admire his teaching, and still live in unbelief. Many do. Noticing the light is not the same thing as stepping into it. Respecting Christianity is not the same thing as repentance. You must believe in the light.

Others of you here have grown up hearing Christian truths your whole life. You nod along. You like the familiarity of Jesus. But liking what is comfortable and normal is not the same thing as coming to him.

The witness of scripture does not stand before you today to entertain our curiosity until we feast on a potluck meal in the new fellowship hall, as great as that's gonna be. The witness of scripture stands before you today to summon your faith. The question is not whether Christ has been sufficiently testified to. He has. The question is whether you will respond to that witness. whether you will step out of admiration and into allegiance, out of curiosity and into surrender, out of vague spirituality and tradition and into saving faith. Believe in the light.

Light given

Third and final point is light given in verse nine. And here in verse nine, we reach what I think is the climax of this light-centered portion of the prologue. Verse nine says,

the true light which gives light to everyone was coming into the world.

Again, we notice this repetition that's driving home this central theme. Jesus is the light. But one word is added here in this iteration, the true light. Not a light, not one of many lights, not your truth and my truth, but the true light. The light by which all other lights are measured. The light that defines reality. The light that can't be imitated or replaced.

Calling Jesus the true light carries two implications. First, he is the original. Every other good light that you see in this world is derived and finds its source in him. He is the original. Second, he is the authentic. Every other competing light vying for our attention and our affections, they're counterfeits. Tim Keller often said that

most idols in our lives are not bad things, but good things made ultimate.

Not bad things, but good things made ultimate. But these lights, these false lights, they demand more than they can give, and they wound more than they can heal. Christ alone is the true light that gives life rather than draining it.

John continues,

the true light which gives light to everyone.

Despite the word everyone here, this does not teach universal salvation, but it does teach universal revelation, meaning the light shines on everyone. Every human being is confronted by the light of Christ. His coming mandates a decision as the light reveals, exposes, and illuminates. And for some, as this light shines, it awakens faith unto salvation. For others, it hardens resistance unto judgment. We've already quoted Jesus in John 3 where he said,

whoever does what is true comes to the light. Whoever does wicked things hates the light.

As we heard read from us from Zechariah's prophecy earlier, Christ's coming into the world is like the sun rising. Some rejoice in its warmth, others hide from its brightness, but none can escape its rays, none. Preaching on this verse in the fourth century, the church father Chrysostom said, he, Christ, lights all as far as in him lies.

He lights all as far as in him lies.

Meaning, for those who do not believe in the light, or sorry, for those who do believe in the light through faith, the curse is being undone. Darkness is unraveling and the old age is passing away. The new creation has already begun in us through the transforming work of the gospel. Yet for those upon whom the light shines and they flee back into the darkness, hating the light, you will be accountable on the last day for your rejection of the light. Only through faith in Christ, the light himself, can you be rescued from the darkness to which you cling. To reject him is to embrace the shadows forever.

Verse nine ends.

The true light, which gives life to everyone, was coming into the world.

It was coming into the world.

Friends, this is the incarnation. God took on flesh. The creator stepped into his creation. The eternal entered time. The word became touchable, visible, and the light that hovered over the waters in Genesis 1 emerged into Bethlehem's silence. The glory that Moses could not behold without a veil wrapped itself in infant skin. The fire that led Israel became a man who would lead a new exodus from sin into life.

Yet he did not merely enter this world, he shared its weakness. He took on lungs that could empty, a heart that could break, a body that could bleed. The light did not stay distant. He stepped into the very darkness that he came to destroy. He is the fulfillment of Numbers 24, 17, this light, this star that shall come out of Jacob. He's the light that Zechariah foresaw in Zechariah 9, 9, this king riding into Jerusalem to bring salvation. All of Scripture bends toward him. All of the prophets were just signposts. John was a witness all to the reality that the light has come.

Believe in the light

This is the message of the Advent season. The light of the world has come. The whole passage, the whole prologue drives toward one response. Believe. Believe in the light who has come to overcome darkness and to give light and life.

And so to you who are here this morning who do believe, Stop living as though you're still in the darkness. Stop hiding old sins in the shadows or dabbling in the half-truth, half-light of compromise. Step into the light and walk as children of the day.

On the other hand, to those of you who see the light but have not yet believed, come If Christ has come into the world, and he has, then he's come into your world, your suffering, your story, your shame. The question is not whether Christ is near, the question is whether you will open your life to the light. So set aside the synthetic substitutes, and through faith, through believing, step into the true light who gives life.

And the moment that you do, the light that shone over creation, the light that shattered the tomb, the light that exposes your sin and still willingly, joyfully embraces you in grace, that life becomes your life. Believe in the true light who has come to overcome the darkness.

Would you pray with me? Father in heaven, we turn our eyes toward you. Holy Spirit, fix our eyes upon Christ who is the true life, who has been testified to, and who has come to overcome the darkness. Transform our lives by the power of the light. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.