|
INTRODUCTION: A. Imagine the beautiful scene which brought forth these words from our Lord. 1. “Early in the morning” - verse 2 - perhaps before sunrise - He had Gone to the temple area. 2. While He waited there and taught, the sun came forth, spreading a Golden glow over earth and sky. 3. Then fell from His lips the wonderful words: “I am the light of the world.” 4. By this statement He did not mean that He gives light in the natural Realm - the sun, moon, and stars are sufficient for that - but in the Moral and spiritual realm. B. Now, let us describe this marvelous light. I. A PROGRESSIVE LIGHT: “He that followeth after me;..” A. He moves onward, as the pillar of fire that guided Israel through the Pathless desert 1. Exodus 13:21 - “And Jehovah went before them by day in a pillar Of cloud, to lead them the way, and by night in a pillar of fire, to Give them light; that they might go by day and by night.” B. We should move with and in the light. 1. I John 1:7 - “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we Have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus his Son Cleanseth us from all sin.” C. Only by so doing can true progress be made. 1. Ephesians 5:8,14 - “For ye were once darkness, but are now light In the Lord: walk as children of light.” verse 14 - “Wherefore he Saith, awake, thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall shine upon thee.” D. Let us not linger behind; let us not go on before. 1. II John 9 - “Whosoever goeth onward and abideth not in the Teaching of Christ, hath not God: he that abideth in the teaching The same hath both the Father and the Son.” II. A LIGHT OF SAFETY: “He that followeth after me shall not walk In darkness.” A. There is danger in the dark. Without the light; the snags, the snares, The pitfalls and the devouring beasts are invisible. 1. II Corinthians 4:4 - “In whom the god of this world hath blinded The minds of the unbelieving, that the light of the gospel of the Glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should not dawn upon Them.” 2. Ephesians 2:1 - “And you did he make alive, when ye were dead Through your trespasses and sins.” B. But there is safety in the light. 1. Psalms 119:105 - “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and light Unto my path.” Psalms 119:130 - “The opening of thy words giveth light; it Giveth understanding unto the simple.” 2. Romans 13:12-14 C. To have fellowship with God, must be in the light. 1. I John 1:5-7 - “And this is the message which we have heard from Him and announce unto you, that God is light, and in him is no Darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him and Walk in the darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: but if we walk In the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with Another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sin.” D. The light does not always reveal the end from the beginning, but Always guidance for one step more. And that is enough. III. A LIFE-GIVING LIGHT: “The light of life.” A. Where there is no light, there is no life. 1. We plant the seed - the germ of life - but it takes the light and Warmth of the sun to cause it to germinate and grow. B. Jesus came to give life. 1. John 1:4,9 - “In him was life; and the life was the light of men.” Verse 9 - “There was the true light, even the light which lighteth Every man, coming into the world.” 2. John 10:10 - “The thief cometh not, but that he may steal, and kill, And destroy: I came that they may have life, and may have it Abundantly.” C. Good ground 1. Luke 8:11-15 a. A place where the seed can germinate. b. A cold heart and indifferent heart and a worldly heart, kills The seed. Hebrews 3:13 - “But exhort one another day by day, so long As it is called today; lest any one of you be hardened by the Deceitfulness of sin.” IV. A HEALTH - GIVING LIGHT. A. What a wholesome thing, what a healing thing is Jesus’ influence! B. Unto people who fear his name “shall the sun of righteousness arise With healing in its wings (beams)” - Malachi 4:2 C. II Corinthians 4:16 - “Wherefore we faint not; but though our Outward man is decaying, yet our inward man is renewed day by Day.” D. I Timothy 4:7,8 - “But refuse profane and old wives fables. And Exercise thyself unto godliness: for bodily exercise is profitable for A little; but having promise of the life which now is, and of that Which is to come.” V. A LIGHT OF HOPE. A. Ever since the fall of man, the future life had been punctuated by an Interrogation point. The question of Job was the question of all Mankind: “If a man die, shall he live again?” - Job 14:14 B. The mystery remained unsolved until Jesus came. By his own Resurrection from Joseph’s new tomb, he gave a powerful Demonstration which answers the question of ages past - C. Romans 15:13 - “Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace In believing, that ye may abound in hope, in the power of the Holy Spirit.” D. II Corinthians 1:10 - “Who delivered us out of so great a death, and Will deliver: on whom we have set our hope that he will also still Deliver us.” E. Colossians 1:27 - “To whom God was pleased to make known what is The riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” F. I Peter 1:3 - “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who according to his great mercy begat us again unto a living hope By the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”
CONCLUSION: A. Consider the tragic plight of those who are not in Christ. B. A warning: Upon all who love the light and walk in the light, loving favors will Fall; but upon men who prefer the darkness and walk in the darkness, Divine judgment will fall. C. The invitation is offered to anyone that has a need for the prayers of the Church or to put Christ on in the watery grave of baptism, that you Would come now as we stand and as we sing. |