1 00:00:00,260 --> 00:00:04,910 Well, it is the last Sunday of Advent, and that means that 2 00:00:04,920 --> 00:00:07,930 Christmas Eve is just around the corner Wednesday night. 3 00:00:08,810 --> 00:00:13,850 You know what, There is in no other season of the year than 4 00:00:13,860 --> 00:00:17,250 Christmas that people are more open to receiving the good news 5 00:00:17,260 --> 00:00:19,890 of Jesus Christ. And so I'd encourage everybody, 6 00:00:19,900 --> 00:00:22,690 if there's somebody in your life, somebody on your on your 7 00:00:22,700 --> 00:00:25,690 block, in your family that isn't attending church or whatever 8 00:00:25,700 --> 00:00:28,310 reason, to invite them to Christmas Eve service. 9 00:00:28,320 --> 00:00:31,550 God can do powerful things. Do that. 10 00:00:31,820 --> 00:00:34,330 Don't assume they're not into it. 11 00:00:34,760 --> 00:00:38,290 The first invitation I handed out last week to a neighbor 12 00:00:39,580 --> 00:00:41,780 hadn't invited them yet. They were fairly new to the 13 00:00:41,790 --> 00:00:45,570 neighborhood, invited them to the Christmas Eve service and 14 00:00:45,580 --> 00:00:48,990 they said I'd love to go and then you kind of waiting. 15 00:00:49,060 --> 00:00:52,810 But she says I'm not doing anything that day. 16 00:00:52,820 --> 00:00:58,250 This is exactly what I need this season, first one and actually 17 00:00:58,260 --> 00:01:00,980 another neighbor with very, very similar response. 18 00:01:00,990 --> 00:01:03,480 Like don't assume that people are going to reject you as I 19 00:01:03,490 --> 00:01:07,400 guess is what I'm trying to say. There is an openness more so now 20 00:01:07,410 --> 00:01:10,250 than ever before I believe in particularly in the Christmas 21 00:01:10,260 --> 00:01:11,980 season. So I encourage you, there are 22 00:01:11,990 --> 00:01:14,300 some invitations still at the back. 23 00:01:14,370 --> 00:01:16,840 You don't need an invitation to invite somebody, but to 24 00:01:16,850 --> 00:01:19,520 sometimes that's helpful to give them the time. 25 00:01:20,990 --> 00:01:26,690 Turn with me, would you, to John's Gospel Chapter 8 New 26 00:01:26,700 --> 00:01:30,450 Testament Matthew, mark, Luke, John it's up there on the screen 27 00:01:30,460 --> 00:01:33,310 to make your way there. Let's get the scriptures open in 28 00:01:33,320 --> 00:01:36,400 front of us. We have been in this series, 29 00:01:36,410 --> 00:01:39,570 name above all names, learning about or learning more about 30 00:01:39,580 --> 00:01:46,330 Jesus through His names. And through His names He's 31 00:01:46,340 --> 00:01:49,990 helping us to relate to Him and to be able to relate to the 32 00:01:50,000 --> 00:01:53,170 world in a much more effective way, especially during this 33 00:01:53,180 --> 00:01:55,340 Christmas season. So we have been looking 34 00:01:55,350 --> 00:01:58,480 particularly at the names that are mentioned in the Christmas 35 00:01:58,490 --> 00:02:02,280 narrative. First week we looked at the name 36 00:02:02,290 --> 00:02:06,480 Jesus in particular, which means the Lord saves and relating to 37 00:02:06,490 --> 00:02:11,540 Jesus, both Lord and Savior. The importance of doing that son 38 00:02:11,550 --> 00:02:15,430 of David was the second week and just looking at the the power 39 00:02:15,440 --> 00:02:19,440 that there is in Jesus name when we ask God in accordance with 40 00:02:19,450 --> 00:02:22,890 his will in the name of Jesus, that is that's the most powerful 41 00:02:22,900 --> 00:02:25,270 name ever. And so we know we're praying to 42 00:02:25,280 --> 00:02:28,010 the King of kings and the Lord of Lords, the promised one to 43 00:02:28,020 --> 00:02:30,040 come. And then last week it looked at 44 00:02:30,050 --> 00:02:35,050 the Prince of Peace and this idea that we can know the peace 45 00:02:35,640 --> 00:02:40,160 of God through just knowing that the favor of God to know that 46 00:02:40,170 --> 00:02:42,240 peace no matter what the circumstances were going 47 00:02:42,250 --> 00:02:45,130 through. Well, this week, today we're 48 00:02:45,140 --> 00:02:48,990 looking at John chapter 8, verse 12 for the name. 49 00:02:49,000 --> 00:02:53,740 And so Lord, as we as we read this verse and meditate on your 50 00:02:53,750 --> 00:02:58,120 word, we pray Lord, that that word, living and active, would 51 00:02:58,170 --> 00:03:01,880 minister to us or that you would speak to us and teach us more 52 00:03:01,890 --> 00:03:07,500 about who you are and your plan for a life in Jesus name, Amen. 53 00:03:08,720 --> 00:03:13,080 Matthew chapter 8, verse 12. Sorry, did I say Matthew? 54 00:03:13,090 --> 00:03:14,260 I think I did. Excuse me. 55 00:03:14,310 --> 00:03:16,620 John say, flipping back and forth. 56 00:03:16,690 --> 00:03:20,110 John's Gospel. John chapter 8 verse 12. 57 00:03:22,350 --> 00:03:27,240 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said I am the light 58 00:03:27,250 --> 00:03:30,640 of the world. Whoever follows me will never 59 00:03:30,650 --> 00:03:34,970 walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. 60 00:03:36,340 --> 00:03:38,990 What's the name that we're going to look at today? 61 00:03:39,850 --> 00:03:42,060 Light of the world, the light of the world. 62 00:03:42,070 --> 00:03:44,160 So you might think, OK, what does this have to do with the 63 00:03:44,170 --> 00:03:46,320 Christmas narrative? This is John chapter 8. 64 00:03:46,330 --> 00:03:49,210 Jesus is a grown adult. He's actually speaking in the 65 00:03:49,220 --> 00:03:51,180 middle of the Feast of Tabernacles. 66 00:03:51,250 --> 00:03:56,020 Well, if you go back to the very first chapter of John, you will 67 00:03:56,030 --> 00:03:59,500 see the connection. You see, John is gone. 68 00:03:59,510 --> 00:04:02,040 John's got this. So unlike all the the other 69 00:04:02,050 --> 00:04:06,060 gospel, the other three gospels, John gives us this cosmic big 70 00:04:06,070 --> 00:04:11,830 picture view of the of Christmas of Christ, the Christ before 71 00:04:11,840 --> 00:04:15,790 Christmas in coming into the world in verse verse four and 72 00:04:15,800 --> 00:04:18,089 five. It says in him Speaking of Jesus 73 00:04:18,100 --> 00:04:23,850 in him was life and that life was the light of all mankind. 74 00:04:23,900 --> 00:04:27,790 The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not 75 00:04:27,800 --> 00:04:30,390 overcome it and it just dropped down to verse 9. 76 00:04:30,400 --> 00:04:33,990 It says the true light. This is the Christmas verse in 77 00:04:34,000 --> 00:04:36,950 John. The true light that gives light 78 00:04:36,960 --> 00:04:44,310 into everyone was coming into the world Christmas. 79 00:04:45,260 --> 00:04:53,160 We can see it as light piercing or darkness, the light of God 80 00:04:53,170 --> 00:04:56,100 coming into the world at Christmas, that very first 81 00:04:56,110 --> 00:04:58,000 Christmas. That's what this is all about. 82 00:04:58,070 --> 00:05:01,070 Now, what is the darkness when we're talking about the 83 00:05:01,080 --> 00:05:03,070 darkness? Because particularly in John's 84 00:05:03,080 --> 00:05:06,120 Gospel uses that. John uses that darkness language 85 00:05:06,130 --> 00:05:10,440 quite a bit, but we're talking about the fallen, the fallen 86 00:05:10,450 --> 00:05:16,080 world, the world that has been corrupted by sin, a world that 87 00:05:16,090 --> 00:05:18,740 is under the domination of the Evil 1. 88 00:05:19,030 --> 00:05:23,260 And because of that, there's a coldness to the world. 89 00:05:23,510 --> 00:05:26,420 There is chaos in the world, there is hopelessness. 90 00:05:26,430 --> 00:05:30,020 That sense of hopelessness and all of that is inherent in this 91 00:05:30,030 --> 00:05:33,920 concept of darkness. I usually use the 3D's when I 92 00:05:33,930 --> 00:05:37,700 think about Darkness 1 is that it disorients us. 93 00:05:38,160 --> 00:05:40,850 Like in the dark we can't really see very clearly and we're sort 94 00:05:40,860 --> 00:05:43,110 of disoriented. That's where that's what it's 95 00:05:43,120 --> 00:05:49,000 like living in the darkness. It also debilitates us in the 96 00:05:49,010 --> 00:05:53,220 midst of the chaos in, in, in, in the darkness, our fears begin 97 00:05:53,230 --> 00:05:55,940 to multiply. You know, if if you're, you're a 98 00:05:55,950 --> 00:05:59,380 child and you're actually, all of us can probably remember this 99 00:05:59,430 --> 00:06:02,560 when it's at night time and the lights go out and it's time for 100 00:06:02,570 --> 00:06:05,590 bed. We want that door opened up just 101 00:06:05,600 --> 00:06:06,860 a little bit to bring some light. 102 00:06:06,870 --> 00:06:09,780 Because when it's pitch black, it's like the fears begin to 103 00:06:09,790 --> 00:06:11,400 multiply. What's under my bed? 104 00:06:11,470 --> 00:06:13,380 What you know, who's going to jump out of the closet, all that 105 00:06:13,390 --> 00:06:15,100 kind of stuff. I don't know if everybody's as 106 00:06:15,110 --> 00:06:19,190 paranoid as I am in that way when I was a kid, but our fears 107 00:06:19,280 --> 00:06:22,540 multiplying the most of of the darkness, it debilitates us and 108 00:06:22,550 --> 00:06:24,620 as well the third is that it destroys. 109 00:06:26,900 --> 00:06:29,900 Without light, nothing can flourish. 110 00:06:30,730 --> 00:06:34,680 Everything that's living and is vibrant requires light. 111 00:06:34,830 --> 00:06:38,120 And in the darkness it just brings a deadness to things. 112 00:06:38,450 --> 00:06:42,560 And so this is this is the nature of the darkness. 113 00:06:42,750 --> 00:06:46,900 Contrast that with the light. The scripture speaks about 114 00:06:46,910 --> 00:06:48,420 light. It's it's speaking about 115 00:06:48,430 --> 00:06:51,840 everything that is pure, everything that is right, 116 00:06:51,950 --> 00:06:55,050 everything that is beautiful, everything that is good. 117 00:06:56,270 --> 00:07:01,100 It's warm, it's clear, it's life giving. 118 00:07:01,550 --> 00:07:03,240 This is what light, light life does. 119 00:07:03,250 --> 00:07:05,200 Everything flourishes in the light. 120 00:07:05,270 --> 00:07:08,450 So we're in darkness where fears multiply. 121 00:07:08,460 --> 00:07:10,960 When there's light that's brought into the darkness, it 122 00:07:10,970 --> 00:07:15,100 kind of dispels those fears and it gives us the proper 123 00:07:15,110 --> 00:07:17,800 perspective. That is what the light is 124 00:07:17,810 --> 00:07:21,730 referring to in Scripture. And all the way through 125 00:07:21,740 --> 00:07:25,440 Scripture, the light is associated with God himself. 126 00:07:25,510 --> 00:07:29,000 Everything is linked to God himself. 127 00:07:29,610 --> 00:07:35,180 You remember the when, when when God led his people out of the 128 00:07:35,190 --> 00:07:40,390 wilderness, he led them out with a pillar of fire at night and a 129 00:07:40,400 --> 00:07:43,010 pillar of smoke during the day as well. 130 00:07:43,020 --> 00:07:45,890 When they set up the Tabernacle, the tent, they would have a 131 00:07:45,900 --> 00:07:48,830 candle in that Tabernacle that represented the physical 132 00:07:48,840 --> 00:07:53,530 manifest presence of God. He's referred to as a consuming 133 00:07:53,540 --> 00:07:56,670 fire in Scripture. And actually John himself in, in 134 00:07:56,680 --> 00:08:00,770 his first letter refers to God as that, that just God is light. 135 00:08:01,000 --> 00:08:03,860 He is light and in him there is no darkness. 136 00:08:03,870 --> 00:08:07,540 He's kind of summarizing all of what Scripture teaches about God 137 00:08:07,610 --> 00:08:11,270 yourself. So here we have. 138 00:08:11,320 --> 00:08:14,600 This is where it gets very significant, the Feast of 139 00:08:14,610 --> 00:08:19,850 Tabernacles, which is where we get in John 8 verse 12, He's 140 00:08:19,860 --> 00:08:21,610 he's in the middle of the Feast of Tabernacles. 141 00:08:21,620 --> 00:08:24,230 You need to understand what the feast is all about. 1 of this is 142 00:08:24,240 --> 00:08:28,190 one of the three annual festivals that the Jewish people 143 00:08:28,200 --> 00:08:30,880 celebrated. And this one in particular was 144 00:08:30,890 --> 00:08:35,070 all about celebrating God's light that he brought his people 145 00:08:35,140 --> 00:08:37,909 through out of darkness, out of the darkness of Egypt, through 146 00:08:37,919 --> 00:08:41,429 the wilderness with that pillar of fire, pillar of smoke. 147 00:08:43,620 --> 00:08:47,730 And where that pillar stopped, that was the, that was the 148 00:08:47,740 --> 00:08:49,310 indicator. They knew they had to set up 149 00:08:49,320 --> 00:08:51,540 camp, set, set up camp. And so they would stop, they 150 00:08:51,550 --> 00:08:54,190 would set up camp. They'd set up the tent with the 151 00:08:54,200 --> 00:08:56,750 candle in there to represent the presence of God. 152 00:08:56,820 --> 00:08:59,730 And then when the pillar moved, it was time to move. 153 00:08:59,820 --> 00:09:03,590 And God brought them out of the darkness into the promise land. 154 00:09:03,600 --> 00:09:11,070 Eventually the feast was all about a celebration of God's 155 00:09:11,080 --> 00:09:13,140 saving His people from the darkness. 156 00:09:14,010 --> 00:09:19,420 In fact, they would have, they had four huge pots, like vats of 157 00:09:19,430 --> 00:09:22,200 oil that they would light. And then the flame, which I 158 00:09:22,210 --> 00:09:25,440 mean, would shoot up past this ceiling, that's how high they 159 00:09:25,450 --> 00:09:28,540 were, and would light up the whole city of Jerusalem, this 160 00:09:28,550 --> 00:09:30,340 celebration. And the, you know, they had the 161 00:09:30,350 --> 00:09:35,070 Levitical orchestra just rocking it, whatever, whatever rocking 162 00:09:35,080 --> 00:09:37,980 it was at that time. And the, the holy man, the pious 163 00:09:37,990 --> 00:09:41,540 man would be dancing to the, to, to the music with torches in 164 00:09:41,550 --> 00:09:42,720 their hands, you know, like this. 165 00:09:42,730 --> 00:09:44,360 And you don't get too close to those guys. 166 00:09:44,430 --> 00:09:47,230 I'm gonna go up and up and smoke yourself. 167 00:09:47,280 --> 00:09:50,450 But it was and it was a seven day party. 168 00:09:51,000 --> 00:09:54,330 There was just an all out celebration of God is like 7 day 169 00:09:54,340 --> 00:09:56,210 party. We don't know how to party guys. 170 00:09:56,460 --> 00:10:02,180 What we need to learn from scripture, how to party now at 171 00:10:02,190 --> 00:10:05,170 the end of the festival on the 7th day. 172 00:10:06,750 --> 00:10:10,420 Just picture the shock that there would be and the people 173 00:10:10,430 --> 00:10:14,700 there when Jesus stands up and begins to teach and he says 174 00:10:14,710 --> 00:10:18,670 this. I am the light of the world, 175 00:10:21,200 --> 00:10:25,580 whoever follows me. We'll never walk in darkness, 176 00:10:25,620 --> 00:10:27,430 but we'll have the light of life. 177 00:10:29,870 --> 00:10:33,060 How would that have gone over? It's like Jesus was saying, you 178 00:10:33,070 --> 00:10:34,940 know what? You guys have been celebrating 179 00:10:34,950 --> 00:10:37,240 who you've been celebrating over these last seven days. 180 00:10:38,490 --> 00:10:42,380 I'm Him. That did not go over well. 181 00:10:42,610 --> 00:10:47,220 OK, if you look at verse 13, then you want says the Pharisees 182 00:10:47,230 --> 00:10:49,960 challenged Him. Here you are appearing as your 183 00:10:49,970 --> 00:10:53,140 own witness. Your testimony is not valid 184 00:10:53,250 --> 00:10:57,560 right now. When you're God, you don't need 185 00:10:57,570 --> 00:11:01,140 a witness, OK. And his life would have been a 186 00:11:01,150 --> 00:11:03,500 witness already. I mean, his life was witness 187 00:11:03,510 --> 00:11:05,440 enough. If you think about it, His 188 00:11:05,450 --> 00:11:09,940 teaching, his compassion, his love, his miracles, his the, the 189 00:11:09,950 --> 00:11:14,020 healing that he did and ultimately his death and his 190 00:11:14,030 --> 00:11:17,200 resurrection from the dead would have been all testimony to who 191 00:11:17,210 --> 00:11:19,750 he was. But there was a resistance in 192 00:11:19,760 --> 00:11:22,060 the people of God to this. And actually in the beginning of 193 00:11:22,110 --> 00:11:25,200 John's Gospel, it speaks about this kind of resistance. 194 00:11:25,210 --> 00:11:28,970 It says in verse in chapter 1, verse 5, it says the light 195 00:11:28,980 --> 00:11:34,140 shines in the darkness and the sorry not 5 paper skin. 196 00:11:36,440 --> 00:11:39,690 Yeah, He was in the world, though the world was made 197 00:11:39,700 --> 00:11:41,430 through him. The world did not recognize him 198 00:11:41,440 --> 00:11:43,470 as his. Verse 11 He came to that which 199 00:11:43,480 --> 00:11:47,210 was his own to his people, but his own did not receive him. 200 00:11:50,860 --> 00:11:54,750 Light comes into the world and there is a resistance. 201 00:11:56,350 --> 00:12:01,500 And we can look at this and say, well, you know, that was them, 202 00:12:01,830 --> 00:12:06,580 but what about us? There is a natural resistance to 203 00:12:06,590 --> 00:12:09,520 light in each one of us. You know, if you're, if you're 204 00:12:09,530 --> 00:12:13,020 sleeping in a dark room, if you're over sleeping in a dark 205 00:12:13,030 --> 00:12:14,440 room, if you're sleeping in a dark. 206 00:12:14,450 --> 00:12:16,500 Actually, how many of our students are back from 207 00:12:16,510 --> 00:12:18,470 university? They're back home and they're 208 00:12:18,480 --> 00:12:20,380 trying to catch up on their sleep after a hard one. 209 00:12:20,390 --> 00:12:22,020 Yeah. Congratulations, guys. 210 00:12:22,030 --> 00:12:23,680 You made it through another semester. 211 00:12:23,830 --> 00:12:28,180 And someone comes in to your room, dark room, and they crack 212 00:12:28,190 --> 00:12:30,280 open the curtains and say, you know, people die in bed, you 213 00:12:30,290 --> 00:12:33,320 know, wake up, right. It's like, what's your response? 214 00:12:33,390 --> 00:12:35,170 Right. Pitch black for now. 215 00:12:35,180 --> 00:12:38,350 The light is beaming in. It's like, go away, head over 216 00:12:38,360 --> 00:12:40,110 the pillow, right? Trying to hide. 217 00:12:40,180 --> 00:12:42,070 Well, there's a natural resistance, especially when 218 00:12:42,080 --> 00:12:44,470 we're used to the dark. There's a natural resistance to 219 00:12:44,480 --> 00:12:46,730 that light. If you come out of a matinee, 220 00:12:46,740 --> 00:12:49,410 you know, so you've gone to a movie or in a dark movie theatre 221 00:12:49,420 --> 00:12:51,550 in the middle of the day, the movie finishes. 222 00:12:51,560 --> 00:12:53,870 You walk out the doors like, whoa, you know, you need to put 223 00:12:53,880 --> 00:12:56,950 on some shades, right? It's just that, that, that, that 224 00:12:56,960 --> 00:13:03,640 initial reaction that we have. It's the same thing when someone 225 00:13:03,650 --> 00:13:08,000 points out a little darkness in you or in me, right? 226 00:13:08,070 --> 00:13:10,870 When someone sees something, there's a little off and they 227 00:13:11,250 --> 00:13:14,580 want to point that out to us. So, for example, you kids, you 228 00:13:14,590 --> 00:13:16,410 have parents. And if you have good parents, 229 00:13:16,420 --> 00:13:19,090 your parents will point out every once in a while something 230 00:13:19,100 --> 00:13:22,660 that's not quite right, right? OK, your, you know, your 231 00:13:22,670 --> 00:13:25,840 attitude stinks a little bit, son, or you know, you're being a 232 00:13:25,850 --> 00:13:29,380 little bit mean to your, your, your brother's daughter or 233 00:13:29,390 --> 00:13:33,600 whatever it might be, right? There's a, there's a reaction 234 00:13:33,610 --> 00:13:37,310 that happens when our parents point out things in us that 235 00:13:37,320 --> 00:13:39,430 aren't quite right, right? We kind of pull away a little 236 00:13:39,440 --> 00:13:41,990 bit. I, I would say, you know, kind 237 00:13:42,000 --> 00:13:44,600 of flip it over. And for us parents, you know, if 238 00:13:44,610 --> 00:13:47,620 our children question us on something that we have done. 239 00:13:47,690 --> 00:13:50,960 And even when we know that, you know what, I really did blow it 240 00:13:50,970 --> 00:13:53,940 in that moment, I'm not going to admit that I did something 241 00:13:53,950 --> 00:13:55,060 wrong. Cause the parents gotta always 242 00:13:55,070 --> 00:13:56,360 be right. I don't want to lose respect, 243 00:13:56,370 --> 00:13:58,640 whatever it might be. There's still a resistance to 244 00:13:58,650 --> 00:14:00,480 that. Or when your spouse, if you're 245 00:14:00,490 --> 00:14:04,230 married, if your spouse points out something to you that isn't 246 00:14:04,240 --> 00:14:07,390 quite right, what's the natural reaction when GAIL points out 247 00:14:07,400 --> 00:14:09,490 something in me that isn't quite right? 248 00:14:09,500 --> 00:14:14,030 You know, my first reaction is not thanks, honey. 249 00:14:14,100 --> 00:14:15,480 I mean, you know, give me a kiss. 250 00:14:15,490 --> 00:14:16,670 Come on. I really needed that. 251 00:14:16,760 --> 00:14:20,730 That is not my initial reaction. It's like, what do you mean? 252 00:14:20,740 --> 00:14:23,980 Like you got to be kidding. And you're not right that, you 253 00:14:23,990 --> 00:14:26,990 know, you know, there's just that immediate reaction that we 254 00:14:27,000 --> 00:14:31,860 have to the light. After a while, when we think 255 00:14:31,870 --> 00:14:34,400 about, it's like, OK, actually there's a little bit of truth 256 00:14:34,410 --> 00:14:37,490 there, right? But there is a reaction to the 257 00:14:37,500 --> 00:14:39,440 light. Now, the air interesting thing 258 00:14:39,450 --> 00:14:43,200 about this is that we're not really reacting to the people 259 00:14:43,310 --> 00:14:44,620 that are pointing these things out. 260 00:14:44,930 --> 00:14:48,420 We actually are reacting to the light that they're bringing into 261 00:14:48,430 --> 00:14:52,460 our darkness. Ultimately, we're reacting. 262 00:14:52,470 --> 00:15:00,780 We're resisting Jesus himself, bringing his light into our 263 00:15:00,790 --> 00:15:05,990 dark, our darkness. Plato once said we can easily 264 00:15:06,000 --> 00:15:08,390 forgive a child who is afraid of the dark. 265 00:15:08,440 --> 00:15:12,640 The real child tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the 266 00:15:12,650 --> 00:15:18,400 light. We're afraid of the light and 267 00:15:18,410 --> 00:15:21,780 John chapter 3, this is this great commentary on this. 268 00:15:21,790 --> 00:15:24,600 John chapter 3 says this. This is the verdict. 269 00:15:24,910 --> 00:15:28,380 Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness 270 00:15:28,390 --> 00:15:30,880 instead of light because their deeds were evil. 271 00:15:31,770 --> 00:15:35,260 Everyone who does evil hates the light and will not come into the 272 00:15:35,270 --> 00:15:38,400 light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 273 00:15:40,340 --> 00:15:45,050 Think about it, who enjoys having their wrongs exposed? 274 00:15:45,320 --> 00:15:48,390 I know I don't. And this is what the light does. 275 00:15:48,400 --> 00:15:51,720 It kind of cleans house. It cleans up and, and, and and. 276 00:15:51,730 --> 00:15:55,710 It shows us things that we do not want to see, but it's always 277 00:15:55,720 --> 00:15:59,460 for our good. Because remember, nothing 278 00:15:59,470 --> 00:16:03,230 flourishes in the darkness, it's only in the light. 279 00:16:03,650 --> 00:16:07,620 That's why Scripture speaks about light is being life. 280 00:16:08,530 --> 00:16:13,040 He follows me, will never walk in darkness, but he will have 281 00:16:13,090 --> 00:16:22,430 the light of life. Here's the gospel. 282 00:16:22,480 --> 00:16:27,310 Here's the good news. It is in love that God himself 283 00:16:27,360 --> 00:16:29,250 shines His light into our darkness. 284 00:16:29,740 --> 00:16:33,620 It's nothing but love and he's going to continue to do that. 285 00:16:33,630 --> 00:16:36,940 In fact, he's been doing that since the beginning of time 286 00:16:37,150 --> 00:16:40,270 where he first said let there be light. 287 00:16:41,230 --> 00:16:45,620 He hasn't stopped saying let there be light anywhere. 288 00:16:45,630 --> 00:16:50,240 With this darkness, I'm bringing my light into this place right 289 00:16:50,250 --> 00:16:52,370 here, and we need to be open to that. 290 00:16:52,380 --> 00:16:53,560 Why does he do it? Because he cares. 291 00:16:53,570 --> 00:16:58,540 He cares too much for us to let darkness wipe us out. 292 00:16:59,310 --> 00:17:03,820 He knows I don't want them, I don't want to disorient it. 293 00:17:04,410 --> 00:17:09,089 I don't want people, you know, destroyed in any way disabled. 294 00:17:10,910 --> 00:17:18,230 I'm bringing my light in to bring life because he knows 295 00:17:18,300 --> 00:17:20,260 that's the only way that we're going to flourish, and he's 296 00:17:20,270 --> 00:17:23,609 continuing to do that. He's liberating us, liberating 297 00:17:23,619 --> 00:17:27,180 me, making me a different kind of person, confronting myself, 298 00:17:27,190 --> 00:17:30,220 centeredness and healing me of that stuff. 299 00:17:30,350 --> 00:17:34,460 I remember when I first acknowledged that I was a people 300 00:17:34,470 --> 00:17:37,530 pleaser, I can't remember who it was that told me you're a 301 00:17:37,540 --> 00:17:39,170 people, please. And I thought, OK, well, you 302 00:17:39,180 --> 00:17:42,850 know, if that's if that's a major fault of mine, that's not 303 00:17:42,860 --> 00:17:44,710 too bad. At least I'm pleasing people in 304 00:17:44,720 --> 00:17:48,090 the midst of my sin, right? And so I kind of took a little 305 00:17:48,100 --> 00:17:50,510 comfort in that, maybe a little pride until I went to a 306 00:17:50,520 --> 00:17:52,640 counseling sessions many years later. 307 00:17:52,720 --> 00:17:57,130 And I wasn't going for that, but the counselor counseling session 308 00:17:57,140 --> 00:18:00,390 ended up being about that. And this counselor was asking me 309 00:18:00,400 --> 00:18:05,550 questions about why I enjoyed pleasing people so much. 310 00:18:05,680 --> 00:18:08,840 And there were a lot of good reasons and positive reasons. 311 00:18:08,850 --> 00:18:11,980 I love, you know, and people, you know, making people happy, 312 00:18:11,990 --> 00:18:14,610 etcetera. But there was also a darker side 313 00:18:14,620 --> 00:18:18,060 to my people pleasing. And that was, is that as long as 314 00:18:18,070 --> 00:18:21,240 I know that this person is happy with me, they're not going to be 315 00:18:21,250 --> 00:18:25,160 upset with me. They're going to, you know, it's 316 00:18:25,170 --> 00:18:28,920 going to be positive. And in fact, if if I know that 317 00:18:28,930 --> 00:18:31,840 I'm, if things are not right with this particular person, 318 00:18:31,890 --> 00:18:36,560 it's going to bother me. And so I ended up realizing 319 00:18:37,050 --> 00:18:41,330 actually much of what I'm doing and people pleasing is actually 320 00:18:41,340 --> 00:18:45,390 to please myself. I can't stand the thought of you 321 00:18:45,400 --> 00:18:50,890 not liking me and so I need to please you for me. 322 00:18:53,230 --> 00:18:55,760 Talk about a light going on in my darkness. 323 00:18:56,070 --> 00:18:58,180 Like see, I didn't know there was darkness there, but there 324 00:18:58,190 --> 00:19:02,640 was a ton of darkness and God just flooded His light into my 325 00:19:02,650 --> 00:19:08,030 soul and exposed myself. Centeredness and has been 326 00:19:08,040 --> 00:19:10,410 healing me ever since and it's been a beautiful thing. 327 00:19:10,420 --> 00:19:14,010 No, some, no, I shouldn't say. Sometimes, very often, that 328 00:19:14,020 --> 00:19:17,090 process of healing is slow and it takes a lot of time. 329 00:19:18,030 --> 00:19:20,300 Sometimes we don't see any movement in our life. 330 00:19:20,350 --> 00:19:23,720 And, you know, sometimes when we're in the midst of a world 331 00:19:23,730 --> 00:19:27,820 that is so consumed with darkness it can feel like a 332 00:19:27,830 --> 00:19:32,870 stranglehold on our neck, we can feel the weight of it on us. 333 00:19:33,280 --> 00:19:37,230 Things look bleak. Things look hopeless, but there 334 00:19:37,240 --> 00:19:40,990 is always hope, of course, and this is what the message of 335 00:19:41,000 --> 00:19:43,710 Christmas is. This is a message of Christmas, 336 00:19:44,760 --> 00:19:49,290 that God has entered the darkness with his light, and 337 00:19:49,300 --> 00:19:52,870 that light will never be overpowered, will never be 338 00:19:52,880 --> 00:19:55,300 overcome. Actually, Rich, I forgot to ask 339 00:19:55,310 --> 00:19:56,610 you, did I dim the lights for us? 340 00:19:56,620 --> 00:19:58,320 Actually, just turn them off for a second. 341 00:19:58,330 --> 00:20:01,910 You mind doing that? Just a I love this little 342 00:20:01,920 --> 00:20:04,270 exercise. Good little reminder. 343 00:20:06,510 --> 00:20:11,940 I know it's not pitch black, but one single match, one single 344 00:20:11,950 --> 00:20:15,230 flame. Whoa. 345 00:20:19,200 --> 00:20:22,450 No matter how much darkness there is, it is not going to 346 00:20:22,460 --> 00:20:27,030 overcome that light. That light, that small little 347 00:20:27,040 --> 00:20:29,290 light is going to Pierce the darkness. 348 00:20:29,360 --> 00:20:32,010 And this is the message of Christmas where there's always 349 00:20:32,020 --> 00:20:34,350 hope. It looks, it can look so, so 350 00:20:34,360 --> 00:20:36,780 bleak. But a light has come. 351 00:20:36,790 --> 00:20:39,330 This is the message. A light has come in the 352 00:20:39,340 --> 00:20:40,870 darkness. You can you can raise those up 353 00:20:40,880 --> 00:20:42,250 again. Rich, thank you. 354 00:20:42,560 --> 00:20:51,250 So we paid the big bucks. Isaiah Chapter 9 verse 2 says 355 00:20:51,260 --> 00:20:56,230 the people walking in darkness have seen a great light on those 356 00:20:56,240 --> 00:20:58,550 living in the land of the shadow of death. 357 00:20:58,780 --> 00:21:03,170 A light has dawned. That is what that's a prophecy 358 00:21:03,240 --> 00:21:06,230 of what is to come. And God is shining his light on 359 00:21:06,240 --> 00:21:07,930 us. This is what this is what the 360 00:21:07,940 --> 00:21:11,450 Advent candles are about. You're picturing how light is 361 00:21:11,460 --> 00:21:14,760 pushing back the darkness. Even a little light is enough. 362 00:21:15,420 --> 00:21:18,810 His latest powerful light is far more powerful than the darkness. 363 00:21:18,900 --> 00:21:21,130 And here is Here's the spoiler alert everybody. 364 00:21:21,180 --> 00:21:26,700 Darkness does not win is oppressive and intimidating that 365 00:21:26,710 --> 00:21:29,410 darkness looks. Sometimes in life we can't see 366 00:21:29,420 --> 00:21:32,400 any light. Everything is coming down. 367 00:21:32,410 --> 00:21:35,190 Some of us, you know, feels like the world is closing in on us, 368 00:21:36,000 --> 00:21:38,990 that there, there, whether we're grieving or, you know, there's, 369 00:21:39,000 --> 00:21:42,430 there's, there's great loss or we're encountering challenges 370 00:21:42,480 --> 00:21:44,870 that we can't seem to find a solution to. 371 00:21:44,970 --> 00:21:49,470 There's no solution, no salvation insight, so to speak. 372 00:21:50,470 --> 00:21:55,070 But there is, there is, and we're called to believe it. 373 00:21:55,820 --> 00:22:00,730 This isn't just a comfortable metaphor, it's true. 374 00:22:02,050 --> 00:22:08,620 Light has come in the in a person in history, and His name 375 00:22:08,630 --> 00:22:12,250 is Jesus Christ. He calls himself the light of 376 00:22:12,260 --> 00:22:16,800 the world and he has come and I just love the way he does come. 377 00:22:16,970 --> 00:22:20,200 You know, light pierces the darkness, but he's so gracious 378 00:22:20,330 --> 00:22:23,580 about it. He comes as a baby, gentle. 379 00:22:23,630 --> 00:22:27,200 I think that's one of the reasons why sunrises happen so 380 00:22:27,210 --> 00:22:31,070 slowly, for for those of us who have just finished a semester 381 00:22:31,080 --> 00:22:34,850 and we can't handle the light breaking in too fast, God's 382 00:22:34,860 --> 00:22:38,230 gracious and kind to us, bringing his light gently to us. 383 00:22:38,300 --> 00:22:42,880 But it's light nonetheless, and He's come to heal us of the 384 00:22:42,890 --> 00:22:47,750 darkness that is with him. And nothing is gonna hold that 385 00:22:47,760 --> 00:22:53,850 love back to the point of his rejection, to the point of his 386 00:22:53,860 --> 00:22:57,990 suffering, his torture, his crucifixion and his death. 387 00:22:58,060 --> 00:23:03,270 All for us. That's how much God is after us. 388 00:23:03,280 --> 00:23:05,710 That's why he's continued to bring his light to us. 389 00:23:05,860 --> 00:23:07,290 It's polling. It's powerful. 390 00:23:07,340 --> 00:23:10,190 And then on the third day after his death, what happens in 391 00:23:10,200 --> 00:23:13,610 blinding light? He is raised from the dead. 392 00:23:15,990 --> 00:23:21,740 This is the God that we served. You know, every world religion 393 00:23:21,830 --> 00:23:27,060 has a founder that claims to be a prophet or a guru or a teacher 394 00:23:27,070 --> 00:23:29,980 of some sort. Jesus never claimed that. 395 00:23:30,860 --> 00:23:35,200 He claimed to be God himself. Now either you are crazy or 396 00:23:35,210 --> 00:23:37,820 that's true. It can't be one or the other. 397 00:23:38,870 --> 00:23:42,520 He is not just a light among many lights. 398 00:23:42,770 --> 00:23:47,830 He is the light of the world, the only light. 399 00:23:49,550 --> 00:23:52,790 He said it in another way. John Chapter 14. 400 00:23:52,800 --> 00:23:57,820 Lot of John going on right now. John's preaching to you says I 401 00:23:57,830 --> 00:24:01,730 am the way and the truth and the life. 402 00:24:03,290 --> 00:24:06,100 That's what it means when he says I am the light of the 403 00:24:06,110 --> 00:24:09,540 world. I am the way, the truth and the 404 00:24:09,550 --> 00:24:14,250 life for all people. And so He asked us to walk with 405 00:24:14,260 --> 00:24:17,520 Him. Whoever follows me will never 406 00:24:17,530 --> 00:24:21,350 walk in darkness, will have the light of life. 407 00:24:22,660 --> 00:24:25,290 He's inviting us to cling to him, who is the light. 408 00:24:25,380 --> 00:24:28,800 He's inviting us to walk with him because when we're doing 409 00:24:28,810 --> 00:24:30,730 that, we're in the light. We're going to stay in the 410 00:24:30,740 --> 00:24:32,210 light. I love the story of a 411 00:24:32,220 --> 00:24:35,290 grandfather who took his little grandson on a walk through the 412 00:24:35,300 --> 00:24:38,400 woods and they were walking along and stopped for a moment. 413 00:24:38,410 --> 00:24:41,850 The grandfather asked, do you know where we are? 414 00:24:42,340 --> 00:24:46,860 And the grandson said no. And then grandfather said, well, 415 00:24:46,870 --> 00:24:50,380 do you know where we're going? He says again, no. 416 00:24:50,920 --> 00:24:55,200 And the grandfather begins to chuckle a bit and said, well, I 417 00:24:55,210 --> 00:24:59,450 guess that you're lost then. And the little boy looks up at 418 00:24:59,460 --> 00:25:03,540 his grandfather and says, no, I'm not lost. 419 00:25:03,790 --> 00:25:09,910 I'm with you when we're with Jesus. 420 00:25:10,000 --> 00:25:14,700 When we're walking with Jesus, we're never lost. 421 00:25:14,790 --> 00:25:17,740 No matter how we might feel, no matter what the circumstances 422 00:25:17,750 --> 00:25:20,260 might look at. Look, look like we are walking 423 00:25:20,270 --> 00:25:26,960 in the light of life. I think that's pretty good news 424 00:25:27,170 --> 00:25:29,700 and it is good news. Just cling to him now. 425 00:25:29,770 --> 00:25:33,060 OK, just just talk about, OK, what do we do with that? 426 00:25:33,070 --> 00:25:34,470 What what, what do we do with that? 427 00:25:35,150 --> 00:25:38,220 I think that the call of Christmas, particularly when we 428 00:25:38,230 --> 00:25:42,300 hear the name Jesus as the light of the world, is to be more and 429 00:25:42,310 --> 00:25:44,840 more open to the light that he brings. 430 00:25:45,410 --> 00:25:50,460 So two things I want to leave with you to do. 1 is to let the 431 00:25:50,470 --> 00:25:55,340 light in more and more. Let the light in the next time 432 00:25:55,350 --> 00:25:57,880 someone points out a fault in you. 433 00:25:58,210 --> 00:26:06,600 OK, Practice your response. Respond something like, Thank 434 00:26:06,610 --> 00:26:13,450 you Jesus, let there be light in my life, but just you respond. 435 00:26:13,460 --> 00:26:16,610 In other words, our initial response is always a reaction, 436 00:26:17,910 --> 00:26:22,260 but see it as no, this is the light of the world, bringing His 437 00:26:22,270 --> 00:26:26,150 light into my darkness. Thank you Jesus, let your light 438 00:26:26,160 --> 00:26:30,930 shine in me. Now not every criticism that we 439 00:26:30,940 --> 00:26:34,300 receive in our life is valid to be sure. 440 00:26:34,310 --> 00:26:38,050 And some of us have been beaten down through our life and, and, 441 00:26:38,060 --> 00:26:41,470 and to such an extent that our it's kind of blown up our self 442 00:26:41,480 --> 00:26:47,090 esteem. But we still need to hear, we 443 00:26:47,100 --> 00:26:50,550 need, still need to allow room for the light to shine. 444 00:26:51,450 --> 00:26:54,660 And so it should be the beginning of a conversation with 445 00:26:54,670 --> 00:26:58,980 Jesus to know what should I receive from this and what 446 00:26:59,050 --> 00:27:02,130 should I lay aside. But there needs to be an 447 00:27:02,140 --> 00:27:06,200 openness, think about it, the light of the world maybe 448 00:27:06,210 --> 00:27:08,340 speaking to me right now, and to receive that. 449 00:27:08,350 --> 00:27:11,990 So letting the light in the second thing and just just to 450 00:27:12,080 --> 00:27:16,770 this next one, is to let the light wind in your life. 451 00:27:17,220 --> 00:27:24,140 Keep letting the light wind. Sometimes our world can look so 452 00:27:24,150 --> 00:27:28,090 dark, can be so cold, can be so helpless. 453 00:27:31,610 --> 00:27:34,320 We don't want to give in. This is the message of 454 00:27:34,330 --> 00:27:36,110 Christmas. Do not give in. 455 00:27:36,180 --> 00:27:41,970 Do not give up. Jesus can light your world. 456 00:27:43,660 --> 00:27:48,710 Darkness does not win. And so we'll take a verse like 457 00:27:48,720 --> 00:27:52,410 this, John chapter 8, verse 12. I just encourage you to memorize 458 00:27:52,420 --> 00:27:56,830 it, particularly remembering it in times when we're grieving or 459 00:27:56,900 --> 00:28:01,090 times of whether it be great loss or confusion, or when the 460 00:28:01,100 --> 00:28:06,260 darkness just feels so weighty. Remember this verse right in our 461 00:28:06,270 --> 00:28:11,770 card reading on a card and put it on your mirror, tack it to 462 00:28:11,780 --> 00:28:14,470 your fridge or keep it in your pocket or put it in your 463 00:28:14,480 --> 00:28:16,610 bedside. Whatever it is, and remember 464 00:28:16,620 --> 00:28:19,410 this first. Memorize it and reflect on it, 465 00:28:20,570 --> 00:28:22,880 Jesus says. I am the light of the world. 466 00:28:22,960 --> 00:28:27,920 I am the light of your world. Whoever follows me will never 467 00:28:27,930 --> 00:28:31,840 walk in darkness. We'll have the light of life. 468 00:28:32,250 --> 00:28:36,640 Embrace it. The light of life in Jesus talk 469 00:28:36,650 --> 00:28:40,160 to your soul, but it speak to your soul and turn that into a 470 00:28:40,170 --> 00:28:45,360 conversation with God and he will minister his light to you. 471 00:28:45,430 --> 00:28:48,360 Keep coming out of the darkness, keep coming out of the dark 472 00:28:48,370 --> 00:28:49,920 Zetas. There's there's so much to be 473 00:28:49,930 --> 00:28:55,360 spoken of in that regard, but we're not just meant to just 474 00:28:55,500 --> 00:28:58,210 bask in the light of God. We're meant to be the light of 475 00:28:58,220 --> 00:29:01,550 God. Because we're connected to 476 00:29:01,560 --> 00:29:04,200 Jesus, who is the source of light, we now can reflect the 477 00:29:04,210 --> 00:29:07,170 light as well. Last Scripture passage, Matthew 478 00:29:07,180 --> 00:29:11,110 5, Jesus says you are the light of the world, speaking to his 479 00:29:11,120 --> 00:29:14,470 followers, to his disciples. Because you're connected with 480 00:29:14,480 --> 00:29:17,610 me, you can reflect my light to the world. 481 00:29:17,620 --> 00:29:20,640 You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be 482 00:29:20,650 --> 00:29:22,700 hidden. Neither do people light a lamp 483 00:29:22,710 --> 00:29:26,060 and put it under a bowl. Instead, they put it on its 484 00:29:26,070 --> 00:29:28,820 stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 485 00:29:29,010 --> 00:29:32,580 In the same way, let your light shine before others that they 486 00:29:32,590 --> 00:29:36,640 may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. 487 00:29:37,940 --> 00:29:40,830 We don't do good deeds so that other people can see us do them. 488 00:29:40,880 --> 00:29:43,880 That that's actually something that Jesus taught us not to be 489 00:29:43,890 --> 00:29:46,710 doing. But we're just called to do them 490 00:29:46,760 --> 00:29:49,510 because in the midst of doing these good deeds, we're actually 491 00:29:49,520 --> 00:29:51,710 bringing his light into the world. 492 00:29:51,780 --> 00:29:53,960 Think about it. I mean, we're, we're giving to 493 00:29:54,100 --> 00:29:57,350 the blessing box and, and well, and that's just one way that we 494 00:29:57,360 --> 00:30:02,050 can bring the light of God into the world, whether it be through 495 00:30:02,060 --> 00:30:04,590 through an invitation to Christmas service or just a 496 00:30:04,600 --> 00:30:08,970 smile, smile. And to who loves going Christmas 497 00:30:08,980 --> 00:30:12,340 shopping on Christmas Eve and seeing the panic on people's 498 00:30:12,350 --> 00:30:15,180 faces. There is a ministry on that day. 499 00:30:15,250 --> 00:30:18,780 Friends like don't miss the Christmas Eve service, but go 500 00:30:18,790 --> 00:30:22,520 and shed the light of Jesus and be a help to people that are 501 00:30:22,590 --> 00:30:26,520 freaking out because they only have so much time to, to get the 502 00:30:26,530 --> 00:30:28,500 present anyway. There's lots of different ways. 503 00:30:28,510 --> 00:30:33,000 Maybe it's someone on your block that you know is alone or down 504 00:30:33,010 --> 00:30:35,860 and just a little gift or a word of encouragement. 505 00:30:35,930 --> 00:30:39,980 What good thing could you do? And this is so important for us, 506 00:30:39,990 --> 00:30:45,000 particularly when it feels like the darkness is so dark, so 507 00:30:45,010 --> 00:30:49,310 oppressive, and I see no light. There is something that happens 508 00:30:49,320 --> 00:30:53,920 to us when we think outside of ourselves and believe the truth 509 00:30:53,930 --> 00:30:56,750 even though we can't see it, even though we can't feel it. 510 00:30:57,040 --> 00:31:01,480 And we start bringing light to other people based on what we 511 00:31:01,490 --> 00:31:04,130 know to be true, even though our senses tell us something 512 00:31:04,140 --> 00:31:10,100 different. Few things lift the human spirit 513 00:31:10,110 --> 00:31:14,410 more than being used by God to brighten someone's day. 514 00:31:15,400 --> 00:31:20,210 I would just encourage us to be be the light, enjoy the light 515 00:31:20,280 --> 00:31:23,080 and be the light. Yeah. 516 00:31:23,350 --> 00:31:25,640 Anyway, so much to be said on that. 517 00:31:25,690 --> 00:31:28,050 It revealed the light. You know, when we're, when we're 518 00:31:28,060 --> 00:31:30,880 sharing the light of Christ, it's revealing who God is. 519 00:31:30,940 --> 00:31:34,660 And we are participating in this work of defeating the darkness. 520 00:31:35,990 --> 00:31:40,100 May that light be a bonfire among us, say among God's 521 00:31:40,110 --> 00:31:42,300 people. Let's shine his light to the 522 00:31:42,310 --> 00:31:49,820 world. Let's pray, Lord Jesus, we 523 00:31:49,830 --> 00:31:54,390 declare the truth that you are the light of the world, and we 524 00:31:54,400 --> 00:31:57,760 thank you that you are. Lord, forgive us where we have 525 00:31:57,770 --> 00:32:02,680 resisted the brightness of that light in our lives. 526 00:32:03,420 --> 00:32:06,140 We ask, Lord, that you would humble us. 527 00:32:06,210 --> 00:32:10,060 We ask that you give us a willingness to receive from you. 528 00:32:10,110 --> 00:32:14,820 And we say to you, God, let there be light in me. 529 00:32:15,030 --> 00:32:20,900 Let there be light in my world. Lord, I pray for each one of us 530 00:32:20,910 --> 00:32:24,390 here today, for those of us who are walking strong in the light. 531 00:32:24,400 --> 00:32:27,020 Lord, may you and continue to encourage. 532 00:32:27,930 --> 00:32:31,840 Father, I pray for those who are just hanging on for dear life to 533 00:32:31,850 --> 00:32:34,640 your light. And I pray, Lord, that you would 534 00:32:34,690 --> 00:32:39,760 draw very near and bring great comfort and shine your light, 535 00:32:40,070 --> 00:32:43,860 the warmth of your light in the midst of darkness. 536 00:32:44,890 --> 00:32:49,400 Lord, I pray for those who even just this year have just stepped 537 00:32:49,410 --> 00:32:51,620 into the light for the first time, just getting into the 538 00:32:51,630 --> 00:32:56,480 Bible, starting to get regular at attending worship and 539 00:32:56,490 --> 00:32:59,400 adjoining life groups in the very new to this. 540 00:32:59,410 --> 00:33:02,560 Lord, I pray that that light will continue to grow more and 541 00:33:02,570 --> 00:33:09,590 more and more, deepen, strengthen, bless all those who 542 00:33:09,600 --> 00:33:16,640 are new to the faith. And we're 2 pray for us in the 543 00:33:16,650 --> 00:33:22,610 midst of our resistance that you would show yourself as the God 544 00:33:22,620 --> 00:33:24,480 that you are through this Christmas. 545 00:33:25,090 --> 00:33:31,260 Incredibly powerful, absolutely sovereign, and yet so gentle, so 546 00:33:31,270 --> 00:33:37,200 compassionate, so kind to us. Reveal yourself to us, light of 547 00:33:37,210 --> 00:33:41,130 the world the way that you want to reveal. 548 00:33:41,900 --> 00:33:44,070 Thank you for your great love for us. 549 00:33:44,400 --> 00:33:47,530 We pray it all in Jesus name, Amen.