Our Father, we come to Your Word. Just help me, help me to explain it clearly, passionately. and humbly, Lord, knowing that it is Your Spirit that does the work. It is Your Holy Spirit that applies the Word to us so that we may be like Christ our Savior. Help us also, Lord, to enjoy the truth that we take in this morning and marvel at its transforming work. This we pray in Christ's name. Alright, Word. Here we go. Open up your Bibles to John 1. Our text this morning, verses 1-5. Let's jump into it. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him and apart from Him. Nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. May God be blessed by the reading of His Word. So here we are, Part 3, really in the introductory text of the Gospel according to John. And so we are coming to a passage that really has the theological depth of the oceans of this world. For those of you who are students of history, you might be familiar with the explorer Juan Sebastián Elcano. He was the man who first circumnavigated the globe in a boat. He was part of Magellan's crew, and of course, Ferdinand Magellan perished during the journey, and Elcano is the one who finished the journey. Now, this took almost three years to go around the oceans of this world back to the starting point. And it's kind of similar in the Gospel of John, not that it's going to take us three years to get through verses 1 through 5, but yes, trying to Navigate the oceans of John is somewhat of a feat. It takes a while for us to really grasp the depths of what John is presenting here, and yet the language he uses is so simple. There's a depth, there's a mystery, and yet there are immeasurable riches to studying this gospel, and we will all benefit from it. And so how John opens this passage, how he opens his gospel, starts in eternity. Really, if you want to call it eternity past, And tells us to come and behold your Christ. Behold your Savior. Behold your Lord. And that is really what we are looking at here. We are standing on the shore. And it's like, yep, the Lord is beckoning us to come in. And to explore salvation. Explore the living Word of God. We began this study with a very important passage from Isaiah 40, and I'll read it again here. It says this, get yourself up on a high mountain, O Zion, bearer of good news. Lift up your voice mightily, O Jerusalem, bearer of good news. Lift it up, do not fear. Say to the cities of Judah, here is your God. Behold, the Lord God will come with might, with His arm ruling for Him. Behold, His reward is with Him, and His recompense before him. So the Lord is coming and I think this is really what John has in view. He is telling us, behold your God. And that is what I want the application in this opening passage simply to be. As I mentioned to you last Lord's Day, I'm not really up here, at least in the beginning, to tell you to do a whole lot. I know we love our application and it's very important. But we want to apply Christ rightly, and if we're going to do that, we have to know Him rightly. And so John says this, behold your God, and he presents Christ in His fullness. And we kind of partition this out. Well, how is John, initially in these opening verses, proclaiming the Lord Jesus Christ? And we find this in five particular categories. Of course, we find that Jesus Christ is the Word. He is the Son of God. He is God in the flesh. He is the living Word of God. And so here's the first one. Jesus Christ is the eternal Word, right? We're simply making statements. Propositional statements about the truth of who Jesus is. Because that is what John is primarily about. Who Jesus is. That's the emphasis. So in the beginning was the Word. So before there was time, creation, before light, matter, oxygen, before krill, there was the Word. Uncreated and eternal and everlasting. presented as one that did not come into existence, has no beginning or ending, but always was. And in that simple truth, we do find our initial bedrock, a rock of assurance, that the Savior we trust is not merely a passing figure in history. I mean, you compare the claims of Jesus and what was written about Him to any other false or counterfeit or wannabe Messiah or prophet or Savior. And they pale in comparison to Christ. There is none other. Because He is the Eternal One who transcends time-space. That is our starting point. In the beginning was the Word. Secondly, and attached to this eternal Word is the divine Word. If Christ is eternal, having no beginning or ending, it follows then that He must be divine. Because only God can claim to be eternal. So Jesus Christ is the divine Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And so last week we presented all of the fancy Greek grammar and construction so that we understood in very clear terms of what John is saying. He is meaning to present Christ as none other than Yahweh. Then the God of the Bible come in the flesh. He was there with God, and the Word was God. Distinct from the Father, yet fully God. Not a lesser being, not a created agent, but the second person of the Trinity. That is the teaching that is bound up in the Word was with God and the Word was God. What we call co-equal, co-eternal, consubstantial with the Father. So when we behold Jesus, we behold God Himself. Thirdly, Jesus Christ is the creative word. So going from who Christ is to his activity, the things that he has done that once again point to his divine nature and fullness. Jesus Christ is the creative word. All things were made through him and without him, nothing was made that was made. Nothing has come into being that has come into being. So we consider the universe, all of its complexity, all of its intricate design, from the greatest galaxy and nebula to the Lego you stepped on this morning because your kids left it out. All of those things, all the materials, are created by the Lord Jesus and held together by the Word of His power. And it points to His wisdom in creation and His creative genius. He is the source, the origin of creation, and once again, not a created being. And so that's just the beginning. That covers verses 1-3, but John has only yet begun. He doesn't just want us to see Jesus Christ as eternal, divine, and creative, even though He is all that. He wants to point us to what Christ offers. And those two themes are life and light. That Christ has entered creation with a particular purpose, and He brings His saving grace to bear in a most mighty way. So here we see what we would call points four and five. Again, these five crucial statements about Jesus Christ. You got these down, you trust in this Christ, you are believing in the true Christ as the scripture teaches. This is a Christ who is mighty to save. This is a Christ who is able to bear our sins upon the cross and rise triumphantly from the dead on the third day, never to die again. That is a Christ worthy of our worship and adoration and our trust. So the fourth one is this. Jesus Christ is the living word. Jesus Christ is the living word. So we're starting to see a slight transition here in this opening text. We are moving from eternity to time, from the creation of things, then to their restoration. We have creation, but we have redemption. And the primary redemptive activity that is in Christ was shown toward men. Even though we would recognize and teach that all of creation is going to be restored and eventually exalted and glorified, The centerpiece of this seems to be the redemption of God's image bearers. And so this marks the transition from verse 3 to verse 4. We find that Christ, in all of His eternal and divine majesty, in all of His creative power, He is going to restore creation and He's going to do it by saving the souls of men. He is going to bring His grace to bear through the expressions of life and light. And so we find here our greatest need. We need salvation. We need grace. We need the life and light that is only found in Christ. You see this, if Christ is life, then there is hope for the dead. We see death all around us on a daily basis. We see the elements of death, the spillover of death. We see the curse upon creation, and then in this text we see the promise in Christ that that curse will be reversed. And if He is the light, and He is, there is hope for the blind. And if he conquers darkness, there is hope for every sinner gripped by sin and fear and despair. And so that is what we will witness this morning. To behold Jesus Christ, both the living and the conquering Word. So let's open up number four and the first in our study today. The statement that Jesus Christ is the living Word. So He is the creator and sustainer of all that exists, and on top of this, He is the very fountain and wellspring of life itself. We do not know life apart from Jesus Christ. And it says here, but this life that is in Him and only Him, sourced in Him, that this life has a particular effect. This life is, or was, the light of men. So in the same way that God is not only truthful, but also truth itself, not only alive, but life, so too Jesus does not merely give light, He is light. And His life is that light to men. We'll explain why that is significant, why we need to know that, and then we'll make the transition to verse 5. So once again, in Him was life. Here we are called once again to understand standards, starting points, where we find particular concepts and truths in Scripture in terms of origin. Where do these things begin? How do we know anything that we know? We find that when Christ says in John 14, I am the way, the truth, and the life, we are not looking at the way, the truth, and the life as something that are near Christ. or above Him, or below Him, or beside Him. We find them in Him. And that we find truth and life, and in this case, light, we find in Christ, light's very starting point, very origin. And of course, what does that mean? That if there is no Christ, there is no light. If there is no Christ, there is no life. If you want to eradicate Any hope that mankind would have, you take away Christ. Because what mankind needs is life, because we're dead. What mankind needs is light, because we're in darkness. We're blinded. We're blinded by sin. And so we must trace these things, the only hope for man, to its very starting point, and its only point of origin. We only find these things in Christ. So Christ doesn't merely give life, he is life itself. See, we understand part of the human condition is that we are always dependent upon something or someone. I know in our own age, we love and we fancy the life, the concept of independence, that we don't need nobody else in life. We just depend upon ourselves. And this kind of text confronts that rubbish. You're always going to be dependent upon something. You are. That's life. We're never going to be truly independent. We are never going to be truly self-alive, self-existent. We always depend on something for life. Now in the case of our relationship with God, and our spiritual need, and in our spiritual poverty, we look to Christ for life. One in whom life is not developed, Christ does not rely on anything. Life is not given to Him. It is not borrowed. In Christ, life is inherent. We don't know life inherent. We are dependent upon the living God for life, to continue breathing. Think about your birth. Did you have any say in your birth? None whatsoever. It took some collaboration from your parents, and then boom, you were born. You were dependent upon them for life. Many of you still might be. The point is that we only know dependence, but we must depend upon the right thing, the right source. And our greatest need is life, because our greatest enemy is death. And so we need a life that conquers, that defeats, that overcomes death. We need a life that sustains. And we don't know life without Christ, just as we do not know truth, beauty, or goodness. All of those things are inherently found in God. And so we look to Him as the true source. In Psalm 36 9 we read this, For with you is the fountain of life, in your light we see light. Also in John 5.26, just as the Father has life in Himself, so He gave the Son also to have life in Himself. And this theme continues in John's subsequent letters, 1 John, the very opening, if you want to turn there very quickly. John introduces his letter with this concept of life and light. And it is a prevailing theme throughout the letter. What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands concerning the Word of life. And the life was manifested and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us. And then John writes on. In verse 5, this is the message we have heard from Him and announced to you that God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all. And this is going to be a very comforting truth, though we do not think about it often, is that God's light is in no way compromised by outside forces. The light that God gives through His life will never be tainted. It will never be fallible. We never have to sit around worrying about whether or not it will be snuffed out. So He is life itself. He is the source of life that we always look to, that we call upon by faith. A life that He gives that restores the soul and raises dead hearts. And so what does this life do? It says this, in Him was life, and the life was the light of men. So John makes that connection here between life and light. Life was the light of men. So this divine life becomes manifest in Christ, visible, revelatory. It shines. That's what life does. It gives light. Now, think about this. We normally see the opposite of this in nature. When we think about plants, if you successfully planted some tomatoes or some flowers this summer, walk around your garden, you enjoy it, you enjoy the scent, you enjoy the colors, you maybe just enjoy the fact that it survived all the bad weather these last few months. But normally, we look to the sun, right? The sun gives light. This cool thing called photosynthesis takes place, and then our plants grow. So typically, we see it opposite in nature. Light begets life. Plants can't do without it. But John reverses that. Life gives light instead. So he's teaching us a very fundamental spiritual truth. If there is no life, there will only ever be darkness. But we also know that if God has given us life, then we will shine forth the light, right? There will be signs of life. That is, we walk in the light, we speak the light, we obey the light. We don't walk in darkness. We don't obey the darkness. So in this case, life is the essence and light is the expression. Life is the power and light is the proclamation. If you have the life of Christ in you, if you've been united with him in his death, burial, and resurrection, you will be a light bearer. Now again, this is not a light that you can conjure up. This is not a light that you can invent. It certainly is a light that you can counterfeit. You can remain in the darkness and still fake it, but you will not make it, rest assured. That is the call to every sinner. Cling to the true light. Submit yourself to the true life that only Christ offers. And if He gives it, we shine that light in a dark world. In John 8.12 we read this, I am the light of the world. He who follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. Now, 2 Corinthians. God is the one who is shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. So wherever life appears, we know that light will follow. And these two are inseparably joined in Christ. So it's a pretty simple concept, but we have to grasp it. And of course, we have ways of knowing whether or not we truly have the light. If you read the book of 1 John, it gives that connection between life and light. If you truly have the life of Christ within you, you will listen to the Word. You will walk in the light. You will not hate your brother. You will not live in continual disobedience. You will not love the things of this world. See, a lifeless object may reflect light, but it cannot shine. And that's the thing I want to encourage you guys today by this reality. As God's people, as light bearers, we do not merely reflect light. Because the light that God has given us, or the life that God has given us in Christ, radiates from us. Think of a light bulb. Think of those little LEDs we now put in our houses so that we save the environment, so that we mitigate CO2 emissions. Those lights actually shine. They are radiating a light that is within. But those light bulbs depend upon what? Power! Electricity! A source outside themselves, and yet that very power is flowing through them. So it's not reflecting light, and it's not conjuring forth the light, but based on a power that is flowing within them, they cannot help but radiate light, they cannot help but shine. That is how you know a light bulb has power, unless it's malfunctioning. It does what it's designed to do. It shines. And as Christians, we are new creations in Christ, and that is what we do. We shine. Now, fundamentally, what does that shining light look like? Well, John would characterize that as love. We love God. We love one another. We love our brothers and sisters in Christ. We pursue the highest good of another, even at our own expense and sometimes sacrifice. But that is how the life of God and the light of God radiates from a Christian. And once again, you may fake it for a while, but again, the trials of this world will cause whatever counterfeit light was there to be snuffed out. We radiate light and we walk in the light. And of course, we rejoice in what the light does. We don't curse the light. We don't fear the light. Because we know that a light by nature shines, and a shining light reveals truth. It exposes and chases away the darkness. It illumines the path to God and illumines the path of God. The Word of God is a lamp to our feet, a light to our path. And we take comfort in that reality. The life and light of Christ awakens the soul to see what we could never see before. There is something very profound about having walked in darkness, being alienated from Christ for perhaps years and years and years, and then you finally, we call it, we saw the light. Oh, you did much more than see the light. The light found you, right? The life of God found you and gave you the light. God made you a new creation, and now you cannot help but see. We not only see Christ, but by Christ, we see everything else. You notice how we see things differently. And we experience this exercise. We were preaching at Acacia Park yesterday, and it's the same thing. There are people who walk by, and we just seem so weird. We seem so weird. I even saw a person I knew, and I'm not really sure of their faith convictions, but I saw them and I made eye contact with them, and I kind of waved at them, and she just kind of, I don't know this guy. There is a weirdness to preaching the life. There is a weirdness to seeing the light, receiving the light, walking in the light, radiating the light. That seems peculiar to a generation who just loves the darkness. and yet does not know that they are groping around, hearing the Word of God, but never receiving it in faith. And what seems weird to an unbelieving world is completely normal to us. This is how the Christian functions. And we step into the light as well, so that our deeds may be exposed for what they are, so that the light of God's Word is able to expose any wayward attitude, any need for sanctification, to snuff out any sin, ongoing sin. And so that's what our Lord does. He brings life into hearts that are merely tombs. And as He unites Himself with us, we have light. And of course, we take that light to other men. And we know that the Living Word still shines. He gives light to the heart, the conscience, the mind, and of course, the very path we walk. My friends, we're not in darkness. We can see. I think sometimes we just have to acknowledge that truth and trust the truth of God's Word that you are not blind. We may be unaware of certain things that are going on in this world. Yeah, we're never going to be able to read the news enough, right? If you read the news, you are misinformed. If you don't read the news, you're uninformed. So what do we do? Well, first we anchor our time and our study in God's Word. That is something which we cannot be ignorant. We must know Christ as the Word of God reveals Him, and that is the life and light of God. And if you are here today and you continue to walk in darkness, that's because you don't have the life. And the Gospel is very clear. Hear the Word of life, repent, humble yourself, and trust in Christ. And He will give you both life and light. And so the light of Christ is but the shining of His life, and where that life burns, darkness must break. It must break. Because that light chases the darkness away. And so we find, fourthly, that Christ is the living Word. Now again, application. You're preaching the Gospel, right? You're preaching the living Word that is Jesus Christ. Again, don't worry so much about techniques and eloquence and having an answer to every question that may be asked. You are preaching the living Word. You are preaching a Word that gives life. So even in our preaching of Christ, we are submitting to His power. Just trust the Lord to do His work. And don't worry about the rest. That is one of the simplest applications we can take from this text. The Lord tells us, carry forth the light of truth. Okay, do that. Preach Christ. And let the Holy Spirit do His work. He doesn't need your help. He just tells you, preach the truth. Preach the living Word. And if the Lord calls that person, the Lord will not fail in giving life and light to that individual. So fifthly, Jesus Christ is the conquering Word. We find he comes in salvation, but he also comes in judgment. He will judge and continues to judge this old creation, reversing the curse. But this is the great hope for us, is that Jesus Christ wins. He is the conquering word. John 1, 5, the light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not comprehend it. So there's quite a bit to say on this. Now, something about this verse should really resonate with us. I think about how this verse takes me into my love of story. Oddly, into my love of fiction. And this is the greatest true story ever told and ever heard. And that ever will be. How many stories begin this way? For you fellow nerds out there, you know who you are. I won't make you stand up and be counted. But you love yourself a good story. And how many good stories start out this way? There's a little light. There's a little light, okay? And yet, there comes up a darkness unknown that we weren't really aware of. It was so far off, and then was revealed. You know, the druid or the wizard walks in, let me tell you about a danger that threatens the four lands. Let me tell you about this presence, this malevolent darkness in the southeast. this weird glowing eyeball on top of a tower. He must be destroyed, he must be defeated. Oh no, what am I going to do? I thought there was a little light here, but this darkness threatens whatever light is left. And suddenly we're taken into this story, and yet the difference is that here John tells us what happens. The light shines in the darkness. The light is introduced first. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not comprehend it. So automatically we know the light wins. The light shines in the darkness. Again, you walk in a dark room, one of the simplest illustrations, you walk into a dark room and you light a match or some kind of torch, flashlight, and what happens? Wherever that light is, the darkness flees. The darkness can simply not stand before the light. And how often are these opponents synonymous with darkness? Oh, yeah, by the way, there's this Dark Lord, and he's trying to take over the world. Oh, there's this guy, his nickname is the Shepherd of the Night, and he's trying to take over the world. He's trying to snuff out the light, snuff out all of the hopes and freedom that humanity may enjoy right now. Oh, but it's going to come upon them like a storm. I mean, you think of the various stories, the most famousest of stories, all deal with some kind of dark lord who wants to impose his will upon people, and oppress, and enslave, and kill, and rob. And just empty humanity in the world of any light, of any hope, of any joy. And will that darkness prevail, or will the light win? That's where all the good stories leave us hanging. What is gonna happen? And yet scripture tells us what is going to happen. John tells us in the beginning what is gonna happen and actually what is happening right now. And so it's very important that we grasp what is going on, grasping the substance and character of darkness. Sometimes we define darkness as the absence of what? Darkness is merely the absence of light. And I think scripture characterizes it, and any good literature characterizes it, as much more than just the absence of something. Darkness is seen as a threat. It almost takes on a character in life and even personhood of its own. Darkness, think about the plague of darkness in Exodus. How is it described? A darkness that can be felt. There's something palpable and pervasive, something that connects with the senses, something that is threatening and induces fear and uncertainty and hopelessness, and yet you're powerless against it. The darkness is not merely the absence of light. It is that which seeks to seize, suppress, and conquer. It's a term of darkness and light here, are being used in terms of conflict. It's as if darkness, having beheld the light, seeing the light, lunges to snuff it out and fails. We know what's going to happen. We're not hanging in suspense. We know that the light wins. Very important we understand our terms here. Now look at verse 5 again. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not comprehend it. That's a key word there. The word comprehend. So if you're not scared of putting ink on your Bible, underline or circle that word. That's an important word. Because when we use the word comprehend, typically we think of understand or make sense of something. The word here is katalambano. And it's not just, it doesn't just point to just an intellectual failure to understand something or perceive something, but more of a violent effort, right? We talked about seizing, suppressing, conquering. Right? So the darkness is resisting the light. The light shines and the darkness responds. And so what's going to happen? And the darkness did not comprehend it. It did not seize. It did not suppress. It did not conquer or extinguish the light. It did not overtake it. Jesus uses the same words in John 12, 35. For a little longer the light is among you. Walk while you have the light so that darkness will not overtake you. He who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes. So he says, walk while you have the light so that darkness will not overtake you. Same word. But we have this promise here. The darkness did not overtake it. It did not conquer it. And look at this. This is a present reality. The light shines in the darkness. It's shown then, it shines now, and it will keep shining. John presents this as a present abiding reality. The light shines in the darkness. Now, we understand that this begins with the incarnation. That Jesus, the origin of that light, He pierces the darkness. He shines in the darkness. But we have to understand that now, in Christ, we also bear the light of the gospel. We also shine in the darkness. And as the gospel continues to sweep across the nations despite all opposition, despite all resistance from the darkness, we do know that the world will continue to get lighter and lighter because there will be more light bearers having been brought to life in the Lord Jesus Christ. So the darkness will not ultimately overtake us. So let's talk about this light. I love light. Some of us in here, we actually took a poll if you were at Wednesday night, who in here has ever been afraid of the dark? You know, we have various phobias. And one of them is fear of the dark, fear of snakes, fear of public speaking. Terrified right now, but here we go. But what do we need to know about the light? If you're in the light, you don't have to be afraid. So, I want to focus on four things. We could exhaust the truth of the light here, but let's talk about this in a few categories. First of all is this. The light in question here is uninvited. The light is unwelcome. It is an unwelcome guest. but it comes in and pierces the darkness. People walking around in darkness do not fancy the light, right? Men love darkness instead of light, right? The light exposes their deeds. The light testifies that men do what is evil and what is godless. That's what the light reveals. So as inconvenient, as oppressive, and as dangerous the conditions as darkness provides for mankind, And of course, this is more of a spiritual darkness than anything. They still hate the light. This light, make no mistake, is an uninvited light. And yet God in His grace gives it. So the light enters here. No one called for it. Think about darkness being a normal thing. We love our electricity. We love our bulbs. We love the sun shining in the daytime. Then we can get work done. And we're not stumbling around wondering whether or not we're going to fall into a pit or get hit by a car. And this light comes in uninvited. In Isaiah 9, which is a Messianic prophecy, we read about those who are walking in darkness. And what have they done? They've seen a great light. It's like sudden, unanticipated, unexpected, even though the scripture foretells that this light will be here, it is not expected. No one called for the light, right? They're walking around in light. What this means is that darkness was sort of normal. Darkness is sort of, it's our normal setting, and we're just walking around in it, and suddenly we see this unmistakable light, this unmistakable dawning of salvation for not only the Jews, but also for the Gentile, the entire world. That is Christ. The light does not merely shine near the darkness or around the darkness. The darkness in its full force cannot be penetrated. But no, the light shines in the darkness. This, my friends, is a word of invasion. Uninvited. Unwelcome. And yet, The light shines in the darkness and pierces it. Again, this is no passive flicker, right? A flicker of light. You know, you get those Bic clickers and you notice how they never really work and you shake them hoping that the butane will get in there and it'll click to life and you can light your fire and they never seem to work. And yet we keep buying them. We keep buying light that doesn't work, but this is the true light in Christ. An invasive light, sovereignly pressing the light of Christ in the very heart of this world's midnight. And this is our Lord Jesus Christ, the Word. Not waiting for darkness to diminish. Not waiting for a weak moment. Not bargaining with the night, but piercing it. Isn't it amazing that our conquering Lord did not have to come and negotiate with the darkness. He just pierces it. He just shines. We're so used to all these negotiations going on. All these negotiations, all these deals, trying to stop wars. Now we would have plenty of reason and room to despair if that was the case with our spiritual life. When our eternal destiny hangs in the balance, did Christ go forth and tell the darkness, okay darkness, you've been behaving very naughty lately and I'm here, I'm letting you know, this can't go on anymore. And so we're going to negotiate, we're going to sit down at the table and we're going to work through this, we're going to talk it through, and we're going to come to terms. And we don't see that at all. We see this wave of triumphant piercing light coming and pushing back the darkness and ultimately defeating it. We see Christ like a captain of war coming into a rebel city, like dawn breaking over the cold, The cold, cursed fields of death, and He shines in. He doesn't ask for permission. Darkness doesn't offer permission. And so Christ, as a conquering King, comes in and takes over. You notice He doesn't ask for permission either. He just wins. And that's why we can say that darkness simply shines. And that is the ongoing mission of Christ's light. Still pressing into hearts, right? This is why we preach the gospel. We are pressing light into the hearts of men. Still chasing shadows. Still overturning and undermining the dominion of death with the dominion of divine life. That is what the gospel does. This light knows no retreat either. This light is unafraid. We don't need to fear anymore. Such is this light. That is the boldness of the gospel that we understand, is that Christ, the Word, has no fear of the dark. You might be afraid of the dark, but not our Lord. He's not repelled or startled by it or dimmed by it. That's why the language here is we have to understand the violence here of the gospel. I know we look back in these pictures of Christ and He looks like a consumptive girl. He's skinny, he's pale, he's not mighty or strong. That kind of Christ that we often see in art books, that Jesus is a gentleman. That Jesus sits around waiting patiently. That Jesus knocks on your door waiting for you to politely grant him entry rather than the conquering hero who comes, kicks down your door and says, I'm taking over. That Jesus has been lost in the church. And it's such a tragedy. Here we are given a great vision of victory. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it, and yet daily we teach, seems like every Sunday in many pulpits, we teach that, yeah, that's going to happen later. But it says the light shines in the darkness now, and the darkness did not overcome it. And the darkness is not overcoming the light, and the darkness will not overcome the light. And I wonder how much differently we would behave in society if we stopped thinking that the purpose of the church was to end up being a bunch of losers. but rather looking afresh to our victorious, triumphant Lord in His death and resurrection, and walking in light of that victory, regardless of persecution. We understand it, but that is how we overcome. We overcome through persecution. But victory is inevitable. Because this light is undimmed, it is unwelcome, yet it is unafraid. So this is violent, militant language that we are beholding here. As a brave king goes into battle, unflinching, undeterred, armed to the teeth with the unquenchable glory of God. That is how Christ invades. He steps into flesh, sympathizes with our weaknesses. We don't see this manger in Bethlehem as some cute kid's story. We would call it the beachhead of heaven on earth's cursed soil. This is the Normandy. This is the invasion accomplished by one man. And on the cross, rather than being defeated, even though He looked so, that was actually the crushing of the serpent's skull by the heel of eternal life and light. Unwanted, but given freely. Uninvited, Undiminished. That's the gospel we preach, and that's the gospel we best start embracing again. A gospel that is unafraid. A gospel that is unbeatable. See, even though the darkness gathers, it rages, we use that visual a lot, right? From Psalms 2. Why do the nations rage? That's what they do. They rage. Does it say the nations win? Does it say the nations conquer? Yeah, the nations resist, but they rage. And the rage is meant to be the comfort of the loser. Because that is all he can do is rage. But it cannot conquer. It cannot stand ultimately before the light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It cannot be snuffed out by the breath of hell and the shadows of Calvary. It's why we sing, and you think of that song in Christ Alone, I was thinking about that this morning. What's that verse? Then bursting forth in glorious day, up from the grave he rose again. That's biblical. That is the vision we have of Christ's victory. Bursting forth in glorious day. That is what the light does to the darkness. and even go back to that word comprehend, right? There is something about this that is really, the darkness can't comprehend it. The darkness doesn't know why it's losing. It tries and tries and tries and tries and yet cannot win. It cannot understand how this once baby, this lowly infant in a manger, could rise again as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. The world does not understand that, so all it can do is mock and curse and resist. Because it cannot understand. And yet we preach knowing that the Holy Spirit in His work will give wisdom and understanding as He sees fit. So don't be deterred. Don't be afraid of the darkness. The darkness and its defeat has been announced on the cross. And even though, yes, we see echoes of that, we understand the valley of the shadow of death, I don't want us to walk in naive triumphalism, but I do want us to understand the depth of the victory that Christ has achieved for us. And yet, even in those shadows, the light shines all the brighter. Great song by Petra called the road to Zionist. He says that the the singer sings this sometimes a shadow dark and cold Lays like a mist across the road, but be encouraged by the sight where there's a shadow. There's a light So even when there are shadows we understand that's because there's light present and that light will overcome and shine through those shadows hence the perseverance and preservation of the Saints We know that it is never going to be pitch black, no matter how dark the various trials and temptations of life, because God is faithful and the light's not going anywhere. This light is unquenchable. What a comfort we have in that. The light is undefeated. It is unafraid, it's undiminished, it's uninvited. But let's think about this light being undefeated. I think we've got a little bit of time, but I want to do a brief survey here. Think about all that has gone before this. That even in the very life of Christ, we see the darkness conquered. From the very beginning, We see Satan trying to destroy the promised seed. That is the darkness making its assault. That is the darkness resisting the light of the promises of God. We read about Herod's slaughter of babies in Matthew 2.16. And what happened? Christ lived. He came, He shined His light, He fulfilled every promise. Then what happened? Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man. And then he went into the wilderness. And what did he do there? He did what we could not do. He did what Adam could not do in the garden, was resist temptation. So he goes, so Jesus goes into a desert. and conquers temptation there, in the wilderness with the wild beasts where the darkness tried to seduce the light. And Christ, armed with the Word of God, resisted every advance of the tempter of the darkness. Tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. We see him conquer in his ministry. That is the light invading the darkness. See, Jesus is showing us by his very life, by his very ministry, yes, the light is shining, the light is conquering, the light is driving out the darkness. And we do the same thing through preaching the gospel. It's not as if this ever stopped when Jesus ascended to heaven. We still clothe ourselves in the armor of light, and we wield the sword of the Spirit, bringing the light and life of Christ to bear to a dark world wherever that darkness lurks. He conquers in His ministry demons shrieked at His presence when they were cast out. That is the light piercing the darkness. Whether disease, demon possession, or even death itself, with Lazarus, none could withstand his word. And he says this, if I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. And then, of course, he conquers in his cross and in his resurrection. Death, ironically, was a victory. So when the hour of darkness had come, that became the death of death. So even on the cross, whereas the light seemed to be finally extinguished, God had other plans. That's where it was actually shining the brightest. Because that was the death knell of death itself. That was God's triumph over the enemy. Procuring a victory that we could never ever possess or conjure ourselves. A victory we could never win. And yes, darkness is still trying to win. We acknowledge that. That's why we continue to preach the Gospel. That's why we continue to walk in the Spirit. Because death still wins. It is a stubborn foe. Darkness is a stubborn enemy. I mean, that's what we get when people won't listen to the Gospel. That is the darkness recoiling in defiance. It will not bow to the light. It does not want to give way to the light. And yet, the light will always prevail. We see that resistance in the ministry of Jesus, right? The Pharisees conspire. Judas kisses. The soldiers mock the Son of God. Nails pierce His hand and feet. The tomb seals shut. And by all accounts, the darkness is won. Until He rose again. And the darkness, though bold, though assertive, though defiant, cannot stop it. And that is what the empty tomb tells us. Darkness has lost. Colossians 2.15, this happened when he had disarmed the rulers and authorities and made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through him. And so the last point on that, of course, is that Christ still conquers in the gospel today. This common thread I've been repeating throughout this morning's message. The gospel still conquers. The gospel, the word of Christ, is that light that continues to shine in the darkness. It still shines through the preached word. We're not merely biding our time until the Lord comes and takes us away. We continue to live as salt and light, preaching the gospel as that darkness conquering light. Even though men love darkness, they are pierced by the light when the Holy Spirit does His work. So don't be afraid. Don't be deterred. And certainly, don't be shy. Take the gospel forth with boldness, knowing that Christ has already won. So as we bring this introduction to a close, again, we're kind of on the mountaintop right now. We have, from beginning to end, the full scope, really. Christ created the world. He is the eternal Son of God, all the way to His victorious work in His death and resurrection, piercing the darkness, with this marvelous light. And so, again, as we go through John, there's a warning against descending too quickly. We want to understand what He is saying, what He is teaching us, where He is guiding us, and just to kind of let our souls drink in the majesty of Jesus, the Son of God. So to wrap it up, We have beheld him. That is our instruction, right? Behold your God, as John presents him. The eternal word before time began, unmade, unmeasured, unchanging, dwelling in perfect fellowship with the Father. That's one. Two, the divine word. Jesus is God, a very God, not merely clothed with divine power, but divine himself. The creative word, by whom the worlds were made and continue to be sustained, The oceans poured, the galaxies hung, and atoms shaped from big to small. The living word, the very origin of life, not borrowed, not received, but inherent and abundant, and a life that gives light to men. And finally, The conquering Word, shining in the darkness, unafraid, undimmed, undefeated, driving back the blackness of sin and death with every step of grace. This is our Savior. And this is the gospel we preach. The Word became flesh. That's the marvel of this. This Word became flesh. He became one of us. Stepped into time. The infinite becomes an infant, the Creator takes on clay, the light stepped into our night, not to scorn us, but to save. Keep that in mind. There are so many things that a holy God, you think, could have done. He can do whatever He wants. Yes, He's a God of justice, but He is a God of grace, and He takes on human flesh, not to condemn the world, but to save it. That is the Savior. And so, if you are here today, whether you are saint or sinner, the call is the same. Come. Come to Him. Humble your hearts and come to Him. Don't wait to clean your act up. You can't do that. You notice you've been trying to do that for years, and it's hopeless. Let that hopelessness drive you to the cross, the only place where you will find hope. Because the light has invaded you. The light invades you as you are. So bow before the Word and live. That is John 1, 1-5. Behold your God. Behold the Word. Let's pray. Our Lord, we thank You again for Your love and faithfulness. We thank You for the Word. Thank You for our Savior. There are so many applications, so many ways we can view this text, Lord, and realize how short we fall of the majesty and beauty and goodness of Christ. And yet, You are a God who gives us grace. You are a God who gives us mercy. That though You are holy, though You are righteous, You have sent Your Son to save sinners. to undo the curse, to restore creation, to bring Your holy presence to bear, so that we could be Your people and You could be our God. Lord, help us to trust in the Word. Not a word of our own making, not a word of our own imagination, but the living Word of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, who is real, who is trustworthy, and who was sent to reconcile us with You. Give us joy, Lord, as we behold Him, as we behold our God, worthy of worship, worthy of our honor and our love and our trust. Lord, if there are any in here who are lacking faith today, please give us faith. Help our unbelief. Give us the light that we may see Him, that we may behold His glory. Give us life that will resurrect us from our deadness. Lord, we are incapable of all of these things, and we can admit that together. But turn our grief over these things into joy. Because where we are unable, You are able, Lord, and have given us everything that we need and more. So restore unto us the joy of our salvation. To enjoy Christ in His fullness. Help us to repent from anything that we have invented about Him that is not revealed in Scripture. from trying to take control to trying to make a Christ in our own image rather than the one that You have sent to us. That can do exceedingly and abundantly above all that we can ask or think. Help us, God, we pray. And help us to follow You and to love You because You have first loved us. In Christ's name we pray, Amen.