Dear Christian friends:

Light is certainly one of the symbols of the Advent Christmas season. We have the Advent Wreath with it's five candles. On Christmas Eve we shall, God willing, have our traditional candlelight service. And so, light is symbolic of Jesus Christ and all the blessings to our world. Just as natural light, sun light, gives life to all of nature, so Jesus, gives spiritual life to the world.

In the Gospel lesson which was read before, the apostle John says, "In him was life; and the life was the light of men. (John 1:4) And here in our text Jesus, himself, says, "I am the light of the world."

So this evening, our first of two Advent vespers, allow me to speak to you on the topic:

I. Without Jesus we walk in spiritual darkness.

A. The Bible says that this is true.

1. When He says, "He that follows me shall not walk in darkness, Jesus implies that those who do not follow him do indeed walk in darkness. In the Old Testament lesson which was read before Isaiah says, "Darkness shall cover the earth and gross darkness the people." (Isaiah 60:2) And in another place Isaiah writes, "The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light; they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined." (Isaiah 9:2) So, without Jesus we walk in spiritual darkness.

B. Just what is this darkness? The Bible seems to use darkness to describe man's misunderstanding of what sin is and what its sever consequences are.

1. Deep down in his heart man knows that there is a holy, and just God. The whole creation shows this. Man also knows that he sins against this holy God, for the law of God is written in his heart, but natural man does not know the depth of his sin and the severe consequences, nor the remedy of his sin. This is the darkness.

2. By the light of God's Word Jesus shows man what sin is. In his sermon on the mount Jesus showed that sin was not just the gross, obvious, violation of the law such as murder, divorce, or robbery as many think, but it is rebellion against God of the heart; A failure to love and serve God as the Creator and Preserver and a failure to love and serve our fellow man. Sin is thinking ourselves as living for our own pleasure and glory, putting self in the place of God.

One afternoon riding home from high school on the bus a fellow student sitting next to me said, "I live for sex." I should have said to him, "How about living for God?" but I didn't. Those who live for sexual pleasure exploit women, misuse their mind and body and become prostitutes before God in more ways than one.

God condemns this perversity, saying through his prophet, "Woe to them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness. (Isaiah 5:20)

3. As natural man misunderstands the nature of sin, he also misunderstands the consequences of sin. This, too, is part of the darkness.

Men know the present temporal consequences of sin. We experience it daily in our lives: sickness, such as aids and other venereal diseases; broken homes and ruined lives; overwhelmed medical and prison facilities, economic chaos, war and physical death.

But these are only the temporal consequences of sin. Jesus' tells us that there is an everlasting punishment. (Matthew 25:46) As does all of Scripture.

4. Another darkness is regarding the remedy for sin. Since natural man is in the dark regarding the nature and consequences of sin, he is also in the dark as regards to the remedy for his sin.

a. In pride and arrogance he may deny that he has sinned or if he confesses it he will attempt to justify it by various excuses or rationalizations. When God confronted Adam with his sin, he blamed Eve and even God for it, saying, "The woman you gave me did tempt me, and I did eat." This has been going on for a long, long time, and is still going on as you know only to well. Husbands are still blaming wives and wives are blaming husbands. This is darkness.

b. Some, a great many, want to justify themselves through suffering or various kinds of "meritorious works." They seem to be in a frenzy and beside themselves in praying, Bible reading, attending Bible classes, serving and working at the church and in community projects, neglecting their health, their families and who knows what. They seem to have no real peace and joy in all these good works and services. They complain and become discouraged if other members don't measure up to their "high" standards. At the least little provocation they will quit one congregation and join another or even go to two or three at the same time, always looking, always searching, and hungering never satisfied. They're also usually playing the numbers game, and into the church growth movement. This, too, is darkness.

c. Others, may just give up and despair of getting right with God. They feel that they are so bad that that there is no hope. They try to forget their sin by hard work, hard play or by the use of drugs. Some take the final step and end their unhappy purposeless lives. Thank God for Jesus!

II. With Jesus we have the light of life. Jesus says, "I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."

A. By saying that he is the light of the world Jesus was telling the religious leaders of his day, as well as us, that he is the very Christ, God promised to send to be the Savior of the world.

In Matthew 4:13-17 we read, "And leaving Nazareth, he (Jesus) came to Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast in the borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, "The land of Zabulon and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; the people which sat in darkness saw a great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up. From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, "Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

B. Repent, confess that you are a sinner and that you have sinned a heap. Don't be afraid to tell the truth. God knows anyway! Don't hide; don't make excuses; don't blame others; just fess-up! Why? Because the kingdom of heaven is at hand. God's grace and forgiveness in his Son, Jesus of Nazareth, is here! Jesus has come to fulfill the righteousness of the law and to suffer the curse of the law for you and the whole world! God is now gracious and merciful and forgives sinners.

Jesus, himself, says, "Verily, verily, I say unto you. He that heareth my word and believeth on him that sent me hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. Verily, verily, I say unto you. The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God and they that hear shall live." (John 5:24-26)

St. Paul said to the Ephesians: "For ye were sometimes darkness but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light." Again he said to them, "Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light!" (Eph 5:8,14)

Jesus is indeed the Light of the World. Let us not reject him like most in the world do and like even his own nation Israel did. I close with these words from the New Testament Lesson, read before the Apostle writes:

"That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." (John 1:9-13)

Amen