It’s Christmas: Now What?
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John 12:35-36
Matthew 5:14-16
The New Testament in a Year sermon series
Rev. Brian North, Westminster Presbyterian, Chehalis, WA
December 25th, 2011
Depending on which service you came to last night, somewhere between about 10 and 14 hours ago you were here listening to John 1:1-14, listening to a message about the Light of the World, then we lit the Christ candle on the Advent wreath, then we held candles to symbolize the light of Christ that shines brightly in and through us to the world. And then this morning, we’ve heard a number of passages from various Old and New Testament books that help us to see that from the very dawn of creation right up until this moment, God and light go together. Jesus is the light of the world, but he didn’t begin shining on that first Christmas 2,000 years ago. His light has been shining since the beginning of time and still does today. With that in mind, I want to read one more passage that continues this theme, and urges his followers to walk in the light.
Listen to God’s Word to you and me today, John 12:35-36: “Jesus said to them, ‘The light is with you for a little longer. Walk while you have the light, so that the darkness may not overtake you. If you walk in the darkness, you do not know where you are going. While you have the light, believe in the light, so that you may become children of light.’”
Now, considering that God’s light has been shining in Creation since the beginning of time, we shouldn’t read Jesus’ statement about the light being with them only a little longer as a kind of permanent power outage, as though the light of Christ stopped shining a few days later with his death, and has never shone again since. It was simply his way of saying that he wouldn’t be physically with them much longer. Clearly, based on the passages we’ve heard this morning, the light of Christ shone before Jesus came into the world at the first Christmas, and has continued to shine even up until now. And yet, His statement reminds us that we only have so long to walk in the light here on earth. The urgency in His message to the crowd around him right then was because of His impending death; he wasn’t going to physically be with them much longer. But that urgency is still there for us, too, though because of a different death: ours. There’s a limited time that we have to walk in the light of Christ, and to shine the light of Christ in this world like lamps on a lamp stand. And there is a limited time for people to let the light shine into their lives, to trust in the light, as Jesus puts it here in verse 36. That’s the urgency.
And so, now that we are here at Christmas Day, after a month of Advent and of waiting, watching, preparing, and praising, it makes me wonder, “Now what?” What have we been waiting for? What are we watching for? What are we preparing for? Why are we praising? If the answer to those questions is to eat, drink, be merry, and enjoy the gifts…then that seems to fall a little short. I mean, how many of the gifts you got last year can you even remember? How many are you still using? As I wrote those two questions, I reflected on what I got for Christmas in 2010. And I could not remember a single thing. Either I have a really bad memory, or I got some really bad gifts! And I’m not sure which answer I want to admit is the right one – I don’t like either of them. But it helps me remember something I know, and probably all of us here this morning know: Christmas is about the Light of the World, Jesus Christ, coming into our midst, and we have a limited time in which to shine the light as brightly as we can.
It’s not that we shouldn’t give gifts…it’s not that gifts aren’t important…they are certainly an expression of love and gratitude, which is needed in our relationships. I probably felt loved last Christmas when I opened my gifts. But like the gifts, I really can’t remember. Maybe I felt loved, maybe I didn’t! But feeling loved is important, and gifts can do that. So I hope each of us goes home today, opens up all our gifts and has an overwhelming sense of being loved by our family and friends.
But God’s love, expressed in Jesus Christ, the Light of the World, is a gift that demonstrates we are loved beyond any gift we’re going to unwrap today. The gift of Jesus Christ – His life, His death, and His resurrection – is more sacrificial, more giving, more thoughtful, more extravagant, more costly, more personal, and more loving than any other gift any of us will receive today. And we can receive that gift, the light of the world, walk in that light, follow it, and shine it for others to do the same.
So, now that we’ve waited, watched, prepared, and praised for Advent, it’s time to walk in the light. It’s time to let an increased amount of His light shine into our lives. It’s time to shine like a lamp set on a table. It’s time to shine brighter than ever before. It’s time to shine in more places than ever before. It’s time to be God’s hands and feet in the world, to be a good and perfect gift to the people who walk in darkness. It’s time to let every day be Christmas day, and announce the Good News: That Jesus Christ, the Light of the World was, and is, and is to come….
So, I want to close with a challenge to each and every one of us. One year from now, next Christmas, I will to ask you, “How have you walked in the Light, and how have you shone the light of Christ in 2012?” I’ve already got it on my calendar to follow up with you in a year. The opportunity to walk in the light and share it with others is important. This gift of light that God gives is the gift that trumps all other gifts. It’s a gift for us, and it’s a gift for us to give to others, too. Let’s let it shine for the world to see today, and every day, in 2012, whether it’s Christmas or not. Let’s pray…Amen.
