I AM The Light Of The World

I AM THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD

 Pastor Chuck Bernal March 26, 2017

 Jesus said, “I am the Light from God that has come into the world, but men did not want light . . .  I am the Light of the world. Whoever follows me will have a life filled with light and will never live in the dark . . .  I am the Light that has come into the world so that all who believe in me won’t have to stay any longer in the dark.”   (John 3:19/8:12/12:46 – ICB/CEV/Msg)

FACT ONE:  God is total and absolute ___________________________

God is light, and there is absolutely no darkness in Him.  (1 John 1:5 – HCSB)

 Only God lives forever! And he lives in light that no one can come near. No human has ever seen God or ever can see him. God will be honored, and his power will last forever. Amen.  (1 Timothy 6:16 – CEV)

 In the Old Testament (Light = OWR) and in the New Testament (Light = PHOS) and the word is always used to symbolize that which is “God” and that which is “GOOD” (love, life, truth and salvation)

 Every good gift and perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there’s no variation or shadow. (James 1:17 – NKJV)

OUR TAKE AWAY: God is only one who can _____________ the darkness

FACT TWO:  The world is __________ & getting ___________________

 They will look around them at their land and see only trouble, darkness, and awful gloom. And they will be forced into the darkness . . . The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine.  (Isaiah 8:22/9:2 – NCV/NLT)

 In the Old Testament (Darkness = HASAK) and in the New Testament (Darkness = SKOTOS) and the word is always used to symbolize that which is “anti-God” (evil, deception, hatred and death)

 Evildoers travel a dark road because they love to hide their deeds in darkness; they can’t see the perils ahead that cause them to stumble. (Proverbs 4:19 – Voice)

 But the way of the wicked is like total darkness. They have no idea what they are stumbling over. (Proverbs 4:19 – NLT)

OUR TAKE AWAY:  The world desperately needs God’s _______________

FACT THREE: Jesus is God and He is the _____________ of the world

 Before the world began, there was the Word.  The Word was with God, and the Word  was God. He was with  God  in the beginning  . . .  In  him  there  was life.

That life was light for the people of the world. The Light shines in the darkness. And the darkness has not overpowered the Light. There was a man named John who was sent by God. He came to tell people about the Light. Through him all people could hear about the Light and believe.  John was not the Light, but he came to tell people about the Light. The true Light was coming into the world. The true Light gives light to all . . . The Word became a man and lived among us. We saw his glory—the glory that belongs to the only Son of the Father . . .  John told about him. He said, “This is the One I was talking about. I said, ‘The One who comes after me is greater than I am. He was living before me . . .  No man has ever seen God. But God the only Son is very close to the Father.  And the Son has shown us what God is like.  (John 1:1-2, 4-9, 14-15, 18 – ICB)

 Satan, who is the god of this evil world, has made them blind, unable to see the glorious light of the Gospel that is shining upon them or to understand the amazing message we preach about the glory of Christ, who is God. (2 Corinthians 4:4 – LB)

OUR TAKE AWAY:  Jesus alone can bring _____________ into our lives

 FACT FOUR: As Christians we are now the ____________ in the world

You are the light that gives light to the world. A city that is built on a hill cannot be hidden.  And people don’t hide a light under a bowl. They put the light on a lampstand. Then the light shines for all the people in the house. In the same way, you should be a light for other people. Live so that they will see the good things you do. Live so that they will praise your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:14-16 - ICB)

 You used to be like people living in the dark, but now you are people of the light because you belong to the Lord. So act like people of the light and make your light shine. Be good and honest and truthful.  (Ephesians 5:8-9 – CEV)

 Jesus said, “For a brief time still, the light is among you. Walk by the light you have so darkness doesn’t destroy you. If you walk in darkness, you don’t know where you’re going. As you have the light, believe in the light. Then the light will be within you, and shining through your lives. You’ll be children of light.”  (Matthew 12:36 – Msg)

We must _____________ the light – We must ____________ in the light

We must ____________ in the light

 God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with God, but we continue living in darkness, then we are liars. God is in the light. We should live in the light, too. If we live in the light, we share fellowship with each other. And when we live in the light, the blood of the death of Jesus, God’s Son, is making us clean from every sin. (1 John 1:5-7 – ICB)

OUR TAKE AWAY:  We must _______________ each day how we will live