Scripture referenced
The passage this message was preached from, in full, with every other passage it reached for.
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Isaiah 9:1-2 central text read aloud and discussed as a prophecy of Jesus as light in darkness
1 But there shall be no more gloom for her who was in anguish. In the former time, he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali; but in the latter time he has made it glorious, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.
2 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. Those who lived in the land of the shadow of death, on them the light has shined.
World English Bible · Read it in another translation
Keep this verse
Exodus 10:21-23
read to illustrate a prior time of thick darkness that caused people to become immobilized
21 Yahweh said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the sky, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt.”
22 Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky, and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt for three days.
23 They didn’t see one another, and nobody rose from his place for three days; but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.
World English Bible · Read it in another translation
Romans 8:18
shared from the congregation as a connection to the idea of light coming after darkness
18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which will be revealed toward us.
World English Bible · Read it in another translation
Luke 1:79
shared from the congregation as a footnote connecting light shining on those in darkness
79 to shine on those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death; to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
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John 8:12
Jesus declares himself the light of the world and promises his followers will not walk in darkness
12 Again, therefore, Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life.”
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Matthew 5:14-16
read twice to show that believers are called to be the light of the world
14 You are the light of the world. A city located on a hill can’t be hidden.
15 Neither do you light a lamp, and put it under a measuring basket, but on a stand; and it shines to all who are in the house.
16 Even so, let your light shine before men; that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
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Isaiah 60:1-3
shared from the congregation calling people to arise and shine as nations come to their light
1 “Arise, shine; for your light has come, and Yahweh’s glory has risen on you.
2 For, behold, darkness will cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but Yahweh will arise on you, and his glory shall be seen on you.
3 Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.
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Romans 15:13
read during the offering as a promise that God fills believers with joy and peace as the source of hope
13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope, in the power of the Holy Spirit.
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Recap
The message in order, in a few minutes of reading.
Brian preached from Isaiah 9:1-2 on Christmas Sunday, tracing the image of a great light breaking into deep darkness from Isaiah's prophecy through to Jesus' own words in John 8 and the church's call in Matthew 5. The conversation was wide open, with the congregation contributing connections, questions, and scripture throughout. The whole message landed on a single practical challenge: be the light to someone around you this week, starting with a Christmas Eve invite.
What was said
Brian opened with two verses from Isaiah 9, where the prophet, writing hundreds of years before Jesus arrived, described a great light coming to a region of deep darkness. He let the congregation sit with the text first, drawing out observations, and a handful of threads emerged: the paradox of people who walk in darkness being the very ones who see the light, the specificity of the geography Isaiah named, and the question of whether the light Isaiah described was physical, spiritual, or both. Brian held those threads loosely and let the wonder stay in the room.
He then pulled the image of darkness backward in the biblical story to the plague of Exodus 10, where a darkness so thick it could be felt settled over Egypt for three days. The result in that story was not conflict or uprising but paralysis. People stopped moving. They withdrew and stayed where they were. Brian suggested that is what deep darkness does to people, and that it is what is happening now, in the broader culture and quietly in individual hearts, as trust in institutions erodes, wars sit on a hair trigger, and confusion over what to believe makes it easier to disengage than to act.
He was straightforward that this is not a new sermon point. Preachers have been saying the world is getting darker for a long time, and they have not been wrong. His point was that the current moment, with its particular combination of geopolitical pressure, information collapse, and cultural confusion, is a genuine intensification of that darkness, and the response Brian described from Isaiah's day applies directly now.
Then he moved to John 8:12, where Jesus said plainly, "I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won't have to walk in darkness because you will have the light that leads to life." Brian noted the quiet detail in that verse: even when the light is present, walking in darkness remains an option. He used the analogy of a jeweler laying a black cloth under a diamond before placing it in the light. The darker the background, the more clearly the diamond shines. The increasing darkness of the age, he said, does the same thing for the person of Jesus.
Matthew 5:14-16 brought the turn. Jesus does not just call himself the light of the world. He calls his people that too. Brian made the connection plain: Jesus is not physically walking around. Right now, he works through the people who carry his light. That is not a metaphor to sit with comfortably. It is a role to step into, and Brian said Nancy was right when she said it takes courage, a courage he thinks many of God's people are currently lacking.
Brian closed by naming Christmas as one of those moments when hearts that are normally closed crack open a little, the way a tired, fed, bathed child becomes tender just before sleep. He called it an open-heart window, and he said the church has a specific opportunity to use it. The practical step was simple: take the Christmas Eve invite in hand, and instead of asking someone what they are doing that night, ask where they are going, then hand it to them. The Christmas Eve service is Sunday, December 24, at 6:30 PM on the town square.
Before the service ended, Brian stopped to pray over Clay and Nancy. Clay is halfway through a cancer treatment program in Salt Lake City and had shared with the room that the experience has opened doors to sit with and pray for men who are much further along in serious illness than he is. Brian prayed for continued healing, for Nancy's endurance, and for Clay to finish the second half of treatment the same way he has run the first.
Touch points
Things you could actually do this week.
- Take a Christmas Eve invite card and put it in the hands of one or two specific people this week, asking them 'Where are you going for Christmas Eve service?' rather than 'What are you doing?'
- Close your eyes at some point this day and ask the Holy Spirit to put one or two people on your heart who need to hear about Jesus this Christmas season.
- When darkness, confusion, or the temptation to withdraw and check out creeps in this week, remind yourself of Isaiah 9 and that the tendency to retreat is exactly what the darkness wants from you.
- Let the contrast of the season work for you: look for that open-heart window in the people around you at work, in the locker room, at a restaurant, or at home, and let your words and actions be the light Brian talked about from Matthew 5.
- Pray specifically for Clay and Nancy as they finish the back half of his cancer treatment in Salt Lake City.
Doing a Bible study?
Here is a guide we have prepared for you: the passages in order, questions for the group, and room to write.
- Brian talked about the tendency, seen in the Exodus plague of darkness, for people to become immobilized and withdraw when darkness rolls over the land. Have you felt that pull in your own life, and what did it look like for you?
- Several people noticed different things in Isaiah 9:1-2, from the paradox of light appearing in deep darkness to the specificity of the geography. What is it about reading scripture together as a group that surfaces things you might miss on your own?
and 3 more questions in the guide
Resumen en español
El mensaje resumido, en español.
El sermon de Brian giró en torno a una sola idea: Jesús es la luz del mundo, y esa luz brilla con más fuerza precisamente cuando la oscuridad es mayor. Partiendo de Isaías 9:1-2, Brian trazó una línea que va desde las plagas de Egipto, pasando por la profecía de Isaías, hasta llegar a nuestros días. Así como los egipcios quedaron paralizados en la oscuridad durante tres días y no se movieron de sus casas, la oscuridad espiritual de hoy, la desconfianza, la confusión, el miedo, tiende a inmovilizar a las personas y hacerlas retirarse. Pero esa misma oscuridad es el telón negro sobre el que brilla con más claridad el diamante que es Cristo.
La segunda parte del mensaje fue más directa: los que siguen a Jesús somos llamados a ser esa luz en el mundo que nos rodea. Brian usó Mateo 5:14-16 para recordarnos que la luz no se esconde, sino que se coloca donde todos puedan verla. Con la Navidad como una ventana de corazón abierto, invitó a la congregación a pensar en una o dos personas a quienes podrían invitar al servicio de Nochebuena en la plaza del pueblo, como una manera concreta de llevar esa luz a alguien que quizás anda perdido en la oscuridad.
La reunión fue participativa desde el principio. Varios miembros de la congregación compartieron visiones, conexiones con otros pasajes y reflexiones personales. Clay, quien está a mitad de su tratamiento de cancer en Salt Lake City, compartió brevemente cómo ha podido ser una luz para otros pacientes en ese proceso. Brian terminó orando por él y Nancy ante toda la congregación.
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Pasajes bíblicos usados
- Isaías 9:1-2
- Éxodo 10:21-23
- Lucas 1:79
- Isaías 60:1-3
- Juan 8:12
- Mateo 5:14-16
- Romanos 8:18
- Romanos 15:13
Read the full transcript 9,455 words
Just take a minute and just thank him for how worthy he is this morning. No matter what you came in here with today,
he is worthy. He is worthy to lay
it down today. Give it to him today just tell him he's worthy just thank him I feel so worthy worthy Jesus Come here today to meet with you, not to check off some box of what church should look like, but we came to meet with you corporately together to lift our voices, to dig into your word today. We give you all the glory in here today. Let us get our eyes off of ourselves, our problems, the situations, the excitement of the holiday, and we just fix our eyes on you. Tell you that you are worthy.
Would you just out of your own mouth this morning just say, Lord, you are worthy. Worthy of everything that I am and everything that I have. Teach you a new chorus, a new song today. It's just about his glory, the light of the world. You've probably heard this song.
We're just gonna teach you the chorus. It goes like this. Let's start from the top. Just listen to the words of this. Just thank him that he is Emmanuel, God with us.
Yes, Lord. We just praise you today.
You got it. Sing it out.
To anyone who feels alone, just remind yourself this morning, encourage yourself. He's here. He has not forgotten you.
We're here right now.
If while we're singing and worshiping to this last song, if the Lord put something on your heart, if you feel like it's for this time, for this group, we have a handheld microphone for our livestream family and so people in the room can hear you, but we all come together. Right? The Lord speaks to all of us, just those up on a stage, but we're all his his bride, his church. So maybe the Lord would put something on your heart today, a picture, a word. Gretchen's back there, just kinda slip your hand up if feel like the Lord put something on your heart.
We are so blessed all the time
when people share what the Lord puts on their heart.
We need the body. We need the body. So just pray about that as we just continue to sing and Gretchen will see you put your hand up. Here to worship him.
So
I had a vision few weeks back, I guess it's been now, but there's a picture of someone picking apples and putting the apples into the basket. And they were picking the good apples and the bad apples and putting them into the same basket. And that's all the vision was. So I was just praying about that and just really felt like God's saying, you know, I want the best for you and you don't deserve the bad apples. So the bad apples could be negative thoughts, things you've done in the past, things you're doing physically, spiritually, emotionally.
God doesn't want the bad apples in your basket. He only wants the best for us, so I just thought I'd share that.
Colin, will you pray that over anybody for that to be broken off if that's them today? What do they do with that? How do they get the bad apples out?
Lord, thank you for just your goodness. You're a good good father, you want the best for us. And I just break off any chains of bondage, any negative thoughts from the enemy that would be hindering people here. I just release release those thoughts and emotions in the name of Jesus. Break those chains off.
Thank you, Jesus.
Don't tell just me.
Oh, yeah. She's quicker than I thought. This week, I've been listening to several things, and I hope I I can get this out the way it was presented. But this guy was preaching on lack and things we lack. And he was saying that God put that tree in the middle of the garden for a reason that they had to walk through all their abundance and everything they had but they didn't think it was enough and they still were seeking what they lacked.
Adam and Eve that is. And I thought about that and it's so much about us. And we're all we seem to be striving to get that thing we don't have instead of looking around at the blessings and everything we have in our life. That we think we're lacking something, but we're not lacking. And it just made me wanna just stop and just say, you know, God, thank you.
If I never purchase another thing from TJ Maxx or anything else, I don't lack.
Let's be real.
Let's be real. It's my only shopping place.
Clay says, amen.
But we we don't lack but we seem to focus on that thing.
That's
right. And he just wants to remind us.
So, Imma give you an update. Tribe, Salt Lake City is thriving and doing well. I I don't I don't want to necessarily be in Salt Lake City taking cancer treatment but god's got me there for a reason and I've been with so many men that are terminally ill and I am so blessed to be what I'm going through is nothing compared to some of these men that I have I've seen and met that have six months to live or an 82 year old that can't eat right now and I was talking to him about his faith, about praying for him in tears, rolling down his face. I've been bringing goodies to the to the nurses and technicians. I've been coming in with smile on my face and I'm truly blessed to have your prayers lifted up.
I just want you to know that they are not going without reaching out even further in Salt Lake City. So, thank you so much. Looking forward. I'm I'm over halfway now. So, I'm on the downhill side.
So, be back in January and looking forward to it. Yay, Clay.
That's a great word.
Your word says, Jesus, that we don't have because we don't ask. And today, we are not just asking for favor with man but we are asking for favor with god and for man. And we're asking for the anointing that comes with that favor, favor with god, and favor with man. Release to us, to everyone of us, lord That special anointing of favor. And then spirit of the living God revealed to us individually how to release that to those that we come in contact contact with even if we don't talk with them.
But in the spirit, in the spirit, we release favor and strength and encouragement to those that need it. Thank you. We speak this. We declare this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Amen.
Receive that. Just take a minute and just receive We thank you and we praise you. We honor you today by lifting your name, by singing to you, to reminding ourselves that it's to you be the glory, to you and you alone. We put you in your right place today in our hearts and in our minds, on the throne, king of kings, lord of lords, all powerful, almighty over everything today. Prepare our hearts for your word today as we dig in.
We ask for the spirit of revelation in this place today. Change us. Yes, We tell you we love you in Jesus name. Everybody said, amen. Alright.
Well, greet somebody. There's some new faces in here today. We're almost at Christmas. Get fill up your coffee, get some goodies, and get your Bible out.
Crisscross. Let's get her a chair. Oh, boy. This this is great. There's so much to see from my perspective this morning.
Wow. A fresh, clean, crisp Braden Olsen. I know you've been like that for a while, but, yeah, looks looks really good. You're so studious and trim. Looks good.
I see two of the three best looking Summers family that are here. I see two of the three best looking Summers that are here. Mhmm. Uh-huh. That's fun to see.
Also, I see a lot of moms that got to open up an early Christmas present with their their little little coming home from school. So moms, if you're sitting next to an early Christmas present that's home on break, make sure to give it point to it, and make sure you give it a lot of squeezes and kisses and hugs. Or dad, if you're next to your early Christmas present. Yep. Yep.
You've missed those kisses from daddy, haven't you? So great to see all of these faces and folks coming here for back home for Christmas break. I see a lot of new faces. Maybe you're here just for this season, or maybe you're here just for Christmas break. Welcome to Church in a Saloon.
And one other thing about the service here that might be a little bit unfamiliar to you is Lissa mentioned this already during worship, but we really want this not to be so much a monologue, but really a dialogue. And so I greatly value your input. I want to hear from you. Instead of just me doing this all alone and, like like, getting the text and chewing it and then, like, baby birding it into your little spiritual mouth so you can be fat and sassy. I want you to put to have some skin in the game.
I want you I invite you to engage in the conversation. And instead of just me doing this, why don't we make this a team effort? And what that looks like is I really love and welcome your questions, your comments, your connections. And what I mean by connection, if there's something that we're talking about or a bible verse that we're reading and it reminds you there's just a a hyperlink that goes off in your brain and it reminds you of another bible verse and you're like, oh, man, that's so good. Well, if it's good for you, it's probably gonna be great for us and we want to hear that.
And so Gretchen has the mic just like we did in worship. And the reason why we have you speak into the mic is for two reasons. Number one, it helps us so that you can we can all hear you in this room and all of our families that are participating from home or on the road. They get that tune in to the livestream every week. They get to hear your voice as well.
So got it?
Got it. Got it.
If you have your Bible with you, would you turn to the book of Isaiah? I know. I know. I know. I know.
I know. Been there for a while. But we're not going to Isaiah 62. And everybody said Alright. I'm going write your name down.
Cole, in your stocking. We've been in Isaiah 62 for several weeks, but we are going to Isaiah chapter nine, and we're only gonna read two verses this morning as we get started with our discussion. Click on Isaiah chapter nine, and would somebody in the mic Zoe, thank you. Would you read verses one and two? That's what you get for making eye contact with the teacher.
Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever. The land of Zebulun Zebulun and Naphtali will be humbled, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles, which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be filled with glory. 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.
Great. This verse was written by a man named Isaiah. He was a prophet or a spokesman for the lord to the nation of Israel and the rest of the world. God would share things with him and then he would share those with the nation of Israel. Those things were written down And even though it was written to Israel, it is for us today.
Hundreds of years before Jesus arrived on planet Earth through Mary by way of a little baby wrapped in swaddling clothing and laid in a feed trough, Isaiah saw a picture. But what's interesting is the picture that God showed Isaiah was not of a little baby, not of a man, but either we we don't quite know from the text itself, but either god gave Isaiah an impression that he could only describe as a great light or maybe, maybe, he saw a man because there are many prophecies in the book of Isaiah about the first advent, the first coming of Jesus. And many times in the book of Isaiah, Isaiah sees him as a man. And so this passage, we get to use our imagination and wonder a little bit as communicated from the lord to Isaiah's heart that he wrote down. Jesus is described as a great light in the land of darkness.
Now this is my first opportunity to check-in with you, and I always do this, and I love to do this because you have things that you see that that that I just don't see even though the same words are right here in front of me. But I would love to hear from you. What is it? Maybe some aspect or detail about just these two verses that you see. What what stands out to you?
And you don't have to go for, like, a a connection of a deep, a deep, super spiritual meaning, but a detail that stands out to you. What do you see in this text? What stands out to me is the people who walk in darkness will see a great light. Oh. Okay.
Tell me more about that. Like, what is it about that detail that you find interesting? Just the way it's, like, phrased, it's, like, it's kinda ironic, I guess. Oh. Okay.
Say more. Oh, you're really putting me on the spot. Maybe maybe is the word you're looking for, instead of ironic, is it maybe paradoxical that in the midst of the great darkness, there appears a great light? Yes. You're welcome.
Thank you. Yeah. Great insight, Joe. Lanisha's got it. What do you what do you what do you see?
And then Sarah's. Sarah. That's Sarah. I wanna hear from you. But I'm giving you, like, a long runway.
I love how she shook her head.
In verse 22, I know we read not verse 22 in chapter eight, but in verse 22 it says, they shall look unto the earth and behold trouble and darkness, dimness of anguish, and they shall be driven to darkness. And then in these two verses, it talks about how they're going to walk in darkness, but they're going to see a great light. And my question is, is this light a physical light, an emotional light? You may all know that.
I love that the question that you just asked sparks wonder in our hearts. And I understand that that some of you, maybe many of you in here, you like to be literal and, like, just know things. And what does it what does it say? What does it mean? And when you hold on to that approach to scripture rigidly, dogmatically, it tends to squeeze childlike wonder out of the picture.
But your question just invited us into a place of wonder. It's good.
I think it's amazing how it says, like, those who walk in darkness see the the great light, but even those who are stagnant and in the darkness, a light is still shining on them. And I think that shows, like, even when we're walking with God and we see the light, and when we're turned away from God, he's still shining that light on us even though we're turned away from him.
He is relentless. Yeah. When we don't deserve it, when we're not asking for it, when we're trying to run away from it, his light is relentless. Man, that's good. Was that were you testing it?
Yeah. Alright.
Go for it. So it's
kind of like what Joe said, but it reminded me of the verse, Romans eight eighteen. Yeah. What we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory you will reveal us reveal to us later. So it's kind of like like people who walk in the darkness will see light. Like, there is a light, like, at the end of the tunnel.
Like, that's what that reminded me of. Hold on the mic.
That was really great. Would you read that verse one more time?
Okay.
And and, like, read it nice and slow as if you're eating a juicy steak.
Okay.
Because because we want to we wanna, like, savor every meal. So that's so that's such a great connection.
Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. What question
is that? Romans eight eighteen.
Romans eight eighteen. So good. So good.
What stands out to me right away is that it's a specific area that it's a road that runs between the Jordan and the sea so that you can look at a map and still see that today. Like, it's a specific stretch of land.
That's great. Oh, I like it. We'll bring it into the practical. Some more. I enjoy these these connections, things that you're see details that you're seeing.
I like the Roman verse because that's actually speaking to what's still coming, and this verse has a bit of a a first and second advent tone about it. That there because because in that physical area, if we read correctly, the new Jerusalem will come down. It will there will be no need for sun or moon because the light will shine forth from there. There will be no shadow, and people will and are walking in deep darkness in that part of our world right now.
Wow. That's so good. And right there. And then to you, Colleen.
I I found the like, verse the same verse, but then from a different version of the bible. So the New International Version, and it says, you know, the verse differently. And I just think that's interesting that, you know, there's some words that are changed around.
Mhmm. Do you wanna read it for us? What do you got?
Okay. Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past, he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Natale, but in the future, he will honor Galilee of the nations by the way of the sea beyond the Jordan. The people walking in darkness have seen a great light. And on those living in the land of deep darkness, a light is dawned.
Of those living in deep darkness. Woah. Colleen?
My thought was that nevertheless, how many times has Israel gone through war, been sent out of their land only to recapture it? And it's still happening today. They're being trying to be forced out of their land that god gave them. And that is darkness.
Darkness.
Okay. So I was looking since I'm on my phone today, I can look up the word, light. And Matthew five came up, and it says teaching about salt and light. And it says, you are the salt of the earth, but what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again?
It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. You are the light of the world like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp that puts it that then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see so that everyone will praise your heavenly father.
Interesting. Tell me what tell me about that connection that you're making.
So when I was looking at the same verse, like, people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine. It's like if we're walking in a dark world, but the Lord's light shines so evidently in some of us around us or, even, like, ourselves if we're a Christian, we're believers, and we're trying to share the light of the world with other people?
Great connection, and keep your finger in that bible verse. Darkness, deep darkness. There's an interesting parallel or hyperlink that was collectively in the minds of all those living in Israel when they heard those words of Isaiah. Isaiah pinned, inspired by the Holy Spirit, those words, and then when it was read or when that prophetic word was given, it triggered a hyperlink in the minds of all of those in Israel. And their minds jumped all the way back to a different time of darkness, specifically three days of darkness.
Who knows where I'm going? Three days of darkness. What do you think? Tell me. Crucifixion.
So that that would be a jump forward. In the mind of Israel's, when Isaiah said those words, their mind jumped backwards. There was a hyperlink. But, okay, three days. Yeah.
Alright. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. We're gonna go this way, though.
But that's really good. Three days. Oh, Joe. Oh my gosh. Wow.
You guys are like, freaking freaking there's there's another three days that I was thinking about, but wow, that's really good too. So in the exodus, one of the final plagues was what? Let me read it for you. If you can quickly flip there, you can turn to Exodus chapter 10. Verse 21, this is not on the screen.
Then the lord because it's just coming to me. The lord said this to Moses, lift your hand towards heaven and the land of Egypt will be covered with the darkness so thick that you can feel it. So, Moses lifted his hand to the sky and deep darkness covered the entire land of Egypt for three days. Now, there's an interesting detail that follows in the immediate verse. Verse 23.
During that time, the people could not see each other. What happened to their little lamps? Would they maybe just not stay lit or like,
what was that?
They could not see each other, and then the result was no one moved. It kind of makes sense. Right? We're so we take in we have five senses. We take in so much information about the world around us through our lookers.
That's how we take in the majority of our information. And when that is taken away from us, it we slow down. We gotta rely on other senses. So there's there's, of course, some natural explanation. But I believe that there is also something spiritual that is happening in this story here in Exodus, that is happening in in Israel when Isaiah was writing that jumps all the way forward to our world today and even this city.
Moses stretched out his hand in darkness so black and so thick that it's described as you could feel it. And the results were all of the Egyptians just hunkered down and stayed in one spot. When it says they didn't move, let's use our imaginations for a second, where do you think they were that they didn't move from?
Bed.
In in bed, in home, at their house. That would that would make a lot that would make a lot of maybe hiding under the covers. That would make a lot of sense that they would that they would retreat back to home looking for safety, solace, refuge, camaraderie with family, but they they just went back they just went back home. They withdrew. They did not rise.
Maybe they stayed in bed. That that that is what the text is inviting us to uncover and explore. You are right.
So one of my footnotes is Luke one seventy nine, and it says, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace. Hello.
You get a extra Christmas cookie for that contribution.
And
in the land of Goshen, there was light There was light in the land of Goshen where Israel was. What was that like? We see Egypt. We see Israel in the day that this prophecy was spoken hundreds of years before the arrival of the light of the world, Jesus, the Messiah. And this verse is quoted in the New Testament because that's where Jesus grew up and had his earthly ministry based out of, the region of Galilee.
And it's Matthew that is like it was Matthew that made the hyperlink. Oh my gosh. What I'm seeing Jesus doing and where he is geographically, there was a hyperlink that went off in his brain about the prophecy hundreds of years ago by the prophet Isaiah, and then he quotes this verse. Jesus, the light of the world, walking around in Israel. Today, he does the same thing in the midst of a world of increasing darkness.
Now to be fair, the person that gets to sit up here and has this and has this, they they they preach all the time. The world is getting darker, and and it preaches really well. And, historically, whenever the preacher up here says that the world is being filled with increasing darkness, They weren't wrong. But I would suggest to you that as this preacher says it with this mic up here today, when you look at events either currently unfolding or on the brink of unfolding, waiting on on a hair's trigger to spill over into mainstream news headlines and causing ripple effects around the world that would even affect us here in our little Jackson Hole bubble. We are in days of increasing darkness.
When in the history of the world have we seen events like events that are unfolding around the world and here in America? For the most part, The United States many people in The United States have either lost or are losing their confidence in what's known as the the the what is it? The fourth branch of government, which is something that was established when our country was established called freedom of the press. And the press has historically been trustworthy and verifiable whether you listen to ABC or NBC or, you know, whatever wherever you get your news from. But according to recent surveys, more and more people are losing distrust.
We're just pick whatever three initials you want or four or five initials. And and people are losing trust in print and in online news and media. Can we trust them? Probably in no other time in the history of our nation have more people been distrustful of their government, those in leadership and in authority. And when you lose trust, like, things begin to get shaky.
There are there are multiple wars being waged right now in different parts of the world, and many of those players have the ability to push a button and send nuclear missiles to their enemies that would affect all of us. And I could go on and on about this darkness. I don't need to tell you much more about the darkness because you see it around you in the world. It creeps in into this valley, confusion over what to believe, where to stand on various issues that admittedly are complex and nuanced. And when that that confusion is like a deep darkness that rolls over the land, and it rolls over the human heart.
And so what is the result when darkness rolls over the human heart? What is that result? Fear? Yes. Fear.
And hopelessness, what are you gonna say? Mhmm. Over each other? That's mainly what I was gonna say that I think you were saying that. Man.
Yeah. Imagine. Just because of something that somebody posts on their social media feed that you would that you would have judgment in their heart towards them, and you might not even know them, creating enmity between people, division, fear. What is the result when deep darkness rolls over the land and encounters the human heart? Hint the answer we just talked about in the in the story of the exodus with the plagues.
What is the what is the result when that darkness rolls over? What? What? Conflict. Conflict.
So, yes. Things can boil over into conflict. Yes. Yes. You're exactly right.
But let's look back at the story of Exodus really quickly. Use your eyeballs. Look to me with your eyeballs. Lube it. Verse 23.
There you go. That's it. People shut down, and they withdraw. So years ago, I was climbing the I was climbing the Grand, and we were climbing the East Ridge Of The Grand. And it was recently after you and I were just married and before cell phones.
After? Maybe two days after. But it was a good it was a good weather window. Now keep your minds focused on the text. They're turning against me.
So, I was climbing the Grand after I was recently married and where I was climbing the East Ridge Of The Grand and the route took us longer than expected. We we got we topped out just at dusk, and there was this beautiful, like like kind of, like, post sunset Alpen glow on the mountains and like all of the Gros Ventre Range was like this beautiful purple. And we did the the two rappels from the upper saddle down to the lower saddle. But the lower saddle is a really tricky route finding. And we had lost pretty much all of our light.
We had headlamps, but your headlamp beams don't project that far, and you really need to see a good ways unless you're like like you got super spidey senses to navigate from the upper saddle down to the lower saddle in the dark. And so we had an unplanned bivvy at the upper saddle, and it was that darkness that caused us to be immobilized. And we just hunkered down. And yes, that was a long, cold night. That is not the lesson or the takeaway.
And no, you don't get the mic to say anything.
The comment was, You should have been with your wife.
Heidi, do you get this at your church where they turn on you so quickly? My goodness. Heidi loves me. I approve of it. I know.
But here's the tendency. When darkness rolls over the land, when darkness rolls over the human heart, just like we saw in Exodus and just like Isaiah prophesied before the arrival of a great light, The tendency when darkness rolls over the land is to cause people to become immobilized. They retreat. They withdraw. They disengage.
Maybe even harbor a false sense of of hope. I would modify that and say wishful thinking. Oh, it'll it'll it'll roll over. It'll it'll be fine. It'll the darkness will pass any any second.
In the meantime, people have huddled, withdrawn. Now this is a raise your hand question that I'm asking you. For how many of you, you would say, yes, that makes sense that when darkness rolls over, either physical darkness or like this spiritual darkness that rolls over the land, yes, the common tendency is to retreat, withdraw, and become immobilized. Yes. Yes.
Many of you have personally experienced that that immobilization that comes from, and somebody said it earlier, just confusion. Like, I don't know what to believe. Are these people right, or is this person right, or is is this news source trustworthy? I I don't know. And then you just kinda check out.
How many of you have felt that propensity, that that that that temptation to fall into that? I certainly have. In the midst of that situation in Israel in Isaiah's day and for us today, this verse rings out like a clarion call. Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever. The land of Zebulon and Naphtali will be humbled, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles, which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be filled with glory.
And the people, this is interesting, who walk in darkness how well do you walk in darkness? Not very well. That's when when your kids were little and you step on the Legos on the rug at night, and you would have thought you stepped on a bear trap. We'll see a great light. For those who live in the land of deep deep darkness, a light will shine.
Well, let's skip ahead and read about the self proclamation of that deep darkness. Turn in your Bibles to John chapter eight. Yes, Nancy. In
order to survive in darkness, there's got to be a courage. And I think that's where God's people is lacking in the courage to stand up in faith and not be afraid to speak up or go forward.
Okay. You are exactly right, and I'm gonna ask you to put your put your finger in that comment where Sarah has her finger in that bible verse. Okay? Keep your keep keep your finger there to mark that place.
Okay. Fine. Mhmm.
John chapter eight verse 12. Jesus spoke to the people once more and he said, I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won't have to walk in darkness because you will have the light that leads to life. Another time about being in the mountains in the dark. A buddy of mine, we call him climber Steven, and I went to go climb Mount Owen.
And you have to start really early when you go if you're going to try to climb Mount Owen in a day. It's a long day. And you go up to Amphitheater in Surprise Lake. If you're just visiting and you don't know these places that I'm talking about, come visit us in the summer. You can go do these hikes, and you'll love it.
And go in the daylight. You'll see a lot better. The views are much better in the daylight, and you're less likely to get lost. So we were going up towards Owen. We went past Surprise in Amphitheater Lake, and there's this little traverse that you can take.
I call it the Tolkien Traverse because it's kind of like this little secret pathway that will drop you into Glacier Gulch where you can head on back over to Owen. And and it was in the dark. We had our head headlamps on, and I had my nose down kind of following the trail. But after you get past Amphitheater Lake, it's it's it's not leave it to me to get lost in a really, like, fairly easy place, but I did. The idea is you have to get up to this little this little saddle.
It's a little the technical term is tall called a coal. You get up to this coal, and then you do this traverse around and down in there. It's like a little scramble. And I was like, the trail had petered out. Yep.
Yep. Yep. I know where I'm going. I'm looking for this little traverse. And I get up over this little rise or ridge.
I'm if you can picture this, I'm looking to the west, like, in the the the the cirque where, like, there's Tewanaut and the East Prong and Owen, the Gunsite Notch, the Grandstand, the Grand Teton. You're me. Right? So I'm looking up in that way. I get up to the top, and I see all kinds of little lights of, like, homes and towns.
And I was like, there's supposed to be just black darkness back in there of these peaks. Why am I looking that direction and I see lights? And there's a car driving. My brain was scrambled. I had climbed up a wrong way.
I thought I was looking west, but I climbed up to this thing. I was looking east out across the valley. And you see Highway 89 and and Moose And Morand and, you know, whatever. I was so completely turned around. I was walking around in darkness and got completely turned around and confused.
You don't need to raise your hand, but anybody else ever gotten turned around, like, in the dark? I I I, like, I even had, like, thing with me, and I was like let's see. Oh, yep. Yep. I'm definitely looking the wrong way.
I was with Climber Steven. But look at this verse in John chapter eight verse 12. You won't have to walk in the darkness. Isn't it interesting that even though the light is here, it's still an option for people to walk in the darkness? Because you'll have the light that leads you to life.
That Greek word for life is zoe, and it means the kind of god life that the kind of life that only god can impart into the human heart. Jesus himself said, I am that light. He is the way, the truth, and the life. In a world and in a time period, in an age where there is great darkness covering the land, and especially our university campuses here across America. Such backwards, weird darkness that's causing people to, like, chase their tail in futility and foolishness.
Jesus stands as the light of the world. You can dismiss him. You can ignore him. You can try to discredit him. You can reject him.
You can ignore him. But none of those change the immutable truth that he is the way, the truth, and the life to every person on planet Earth. He stands infinitely taller than any pop icon. He stands in stark contrast to anyone else that would claim to be a great philosopher, a figure from from history, an important voice. It doesn't matter how many people subscribe to their channel.
Jesus stands alone and different as the light of the world. I wanna share quick analogy that one of my great mentors shared with me long ago. But whenever a person goes in for, like, their let's say the young man is ring shopping because he's gonna propose to his girlfriend to get Maui ed, he goes into the jewelry store, and and the jeweler, oh, he's seen it many times,
kind of
like the glazed over look in the young man's eyes. And he's like, what am I doing in here? And he's trying to pick out an engagement ring because he's gonna propose soon. And he walks up to the counter and the jeweler says, well, how can I help you, son? And he's like, I'm ready.
I need to look at rings. I'm gonna get engaged. Oh my gosh. That is great. And then when the jeweler shows the young man some choices of rings, when he takes those rings out of the glass display case, what does he lay down on the glass cabinet before he puts the rings on there?
What does he put? A black cloth. Now, what color are diamonds? White. Clear.
Oh, man. Look at this. Sparkly. Why in the world would you lay a black cloth down when you're going to show a white, clear, sparkly diamond? The contrast.
In the same way, as this present age gets darker and darker and darker, all it does is cause the illumination of the beauty of the cloud writer. Emmanuel, god with us, the Messiah, to shine all the brighter, to cut through the confusion, to to to to boldly take a stand and to speak the truth as Jesus. But here's the catch, Sarah. Now you can read that verse one more time. You
want me to read all of it?
Like, the whole Yeah. It was so good. Why don't you start Matthew chapter five, go to verse 14, and read through 16. K.
You are the light of the world like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see so that everyone will praise your heavenly father.
How interesting is that? We know that Jesus himself isn't walking around on planet Earth. It's not like like you could open up your maps on Snapchat and be like, oh, there he is. He's in Toledo or, oh, what's he doing in Fiji? Lucky guy.
He's he's he's he's not here physically present. He will return, and he will have a physical presence once again on Earth. However, right now, he's doing something very clever. And Jesus says, you are the light of the world. Are you amening me, or do you have something?
Okay. I thought I just thought that preaching was so good. You are the light of
the world. Amen, PB. This is a scripture that came to my mind, and it's very reminiscent of the same idea. It's in Isaiah it starts in Isaiah 60 verse one, and I think the pinnacle of that is verse two. But Isaiah 60 verse one says, arise.
So wake up, y'all. Shine for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you. He rises upon the glory of the Lord rises upon you guys. And speaking the name of Jesus in mixed groups is not contentious. It's a sparkling diamond on a black cloth, and the world needs Jesus to snap it out of its darkness.
See? Darkness covers the earth, and thick darkness is over the peoples. It's over the peoples, you guys. But the Lord wait. Let's say that again.
But the Lord rises upon you, and his glory appears over you. Nations will come to your light. This is verse three. Nations will come to your light and kings to the brightness of your dawn. And it may be out of context, maybe not out of context.
I think we're in a time we need to shine our light. Yes. We need the world needs us to shine our light.
That was that was a a great contribution and a beautiful softball that you just lobbed me. Because every year, in the midst of the great darkness that is rolling over the world, this nation, this and this city, and that would try to encroach upon our hearts, God creates a koinonia moment of the opportunity for light. I was just at a at a Christmas program for school, for a school, and it's it's like a it's like a it's not a Christian school, but they have biblical principles and values. But they were, like, singing about Hanukkah. They were singing about Messiah.
They were saying and there are tons of people that would reject the light of the world as their savior, but they got no problem singing about Jesus and the first advent of the coming of messiah and Emmanuel. And so in the midst of the dark season of Christmas, allowing the light to shine as you just read, as you said, and as you are reiterating that we have an opportunity to be the light of Jesus into we might not be able to reach the ends of the earth right now in this moment, but we can reach the people that are around us. And God has created this, I call it a little open heart window. If you're a parent, remember when your kids were little and maybe they're being fussy, grouchy, complainy, or just, you know, being pills. But then after you, like, feed them and then you, like, let them have their bath time and you get them in their Jamie's and you're tucking them into bed, and what was like a little monster, like, an hour ago, they just kinda settle down and they get sweet and tender for, like, just a moment.
Right? That's just that little open heart window. And God still creates these open heart windows around the world and here in this city right at Christmas time. The question becomes, who will be that Jesus light for those people? And a great way, just one little practical way that you can shine the light of Jesus is by inviting them to Christmas Eve.
And hopefully, conversations, but there is something about people's hearts that are just naturally open to Christmas Eve service. And I've taught you guys this for years and years. You don't whether it's Christmas or Easter or Mother's Day, don't know, like the big three. You don't say, hey, what are you doing for Christmas Eve? You ask, where are you going to Christmas Eve service?
And they're like, And then that's when we have equipped you with a tool that's in your hands right now that you can then put in their hands. I would love to invite you to come to Christmas Eve service with me. It's next week on Sunday at 06:30PM on the town square. And then you give them that invite, and it's either on your seat or under your seat. Hold on to that.
This is a tool that we are equipping you with. Because this city lives in great dark. Will you take just a moment, close your eyes, and let's invite the Holy Spirit to lay just one or two people on our hearts that we could this week put that invite in their hands to invite them to Christmas Eve service so that they can hear about and even better encounter the light of the world, Jesus. Holy Spirit, who would you put on my heart to invite next week to Christmas service? And
shines in the darkness. That shines in the darkness and his name is Jesus. His name is Jesus.
We're so mindful of how you found us in the midst of our darkness either wallowing around trying to fool everyone that we had it figured out, but stumbling around in darkness or that we had just kind of frozen, withdrawn, and were hidden in the light of your love and your truth, your forgiveness, your healing, your hope, your freedom, your liberty, your joy burst in upon the darkness of our heart. Jesus, you are the light of my life. Thank you for shining your light in my heart. I know it's hard to expose the darkness. We try to protect it and hide it and hide in it and hide from it, but nothing can hide from your light.
Jesus, thank you. Thank you for allowing me to walk in the truth of your life. And God, we turn our hearts and our prayers to those people that are around us in the locker room, up at the mob, or in the restaurants, or in our place of businesses, or in our classrooms, in our schools, at home. Lord, would the truth and the glory and the beauty of your light shine on their hearts and maybe just maybe you would use that invite and invitation to Christmas Eve service as a catalyst for that moment of encounter. Jesus, this valley needs your glory and your light to shine.
Take just a moment more because that song is so good. And you stand in the gap for and pray for that person or that family. We'll do the heavy lifting of praying in the spirit for them now so that the invite is easy and they go, yeah. Sure.
Light and shines in the darkness. His name is Jesus. His name is Jesus. There is a light that shines in the
stay in this tender atmosphere, this tender moment of just the Lord's holy spirit just kinda resting in this place and lives within us. But, yeah, it's just a real tender moment. We're just going to worship him in one more way corporately before we go. We've worshiped him through the reading of his word, through our discussion, through song, and we worship him every time we're together corporately, bringing our tithes and our offering to him, to say I love and I trust you, and just kinda what we were talking about today, Jesus being the light of the world. He's also the hope of the world.
And I just want to, as we prepare to give today, I just wanna read this scripture to kinda tie it together. And it's in Romans fifteen thirteen, and Paul says, I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. So especially this time of year, you know, Christmas season brings about all kinds of feelings, negative and positive, but sometimes it can just feel stressful or tight. You know, living in Jackson can feel tight.
A lot of things that aren't financial can just be hard. Life is just hard. Right? Sometimes, and it has all highs and lows, but as we bring our tithe and our offering to him, I just want you to remember that Jesus is the light of the world. Jesus is the hope that we hang on to like this verse says.
Our hope is not in a job. Our hope is not in a friend group or a community. Our hope is not in one particular client or anything like that. Our hope is in Jesus alone. He's enough.
We're gonna pray as we give. Practically speaking, we don't pass buckets here, but there's if you have cash or check or something tangible, there's a tribe box in the back as you leave the swinging saloon doors. It's fun to say all all the time. And and then also you could give online, tribejh.com, or just on your phone as if you're texting a friend. You can see those instructions on the screen.
You text 84321, and then just type in the amount. Alright. Let's bow our heads whether you're giving now or another time. Let's just be in agreement as a tribe family. Heavenly father, we come to you and say thank you.
Thank you that you are the light and the hope of the world. It's not lost on us how powerful that is. Let that just sink in our hearts and our spirits this week. You, Jesus, are the light of the world. We bring these tithes and then above and beyond that offering to you.
We say thank you. We ask that you'll help us to be good stewards of what you put in our lives, finances, relationships, jobs, everything. Help us to be a good steward what you bring our way. I just pray over these gifts and all of the families that are here today giving, father, that you will just do what only you can do, that this money will just go to meet practical needs of people so they can meet you and come into your kingdom. That's why we're here.
That's what we get to do. It's such a privilege to be your hands and your feet and do the work of the ministry. We love and trust you in these things. In Jesus' Jesus' name, amen. Speaking of finances, look in the mail for a letter from tribe, kind of a year in giving opportunity for you to kinda see what we're up to and what we're doing in that realm.
Also, you heard Brian say it just a minute ago, but please take as many of
these as you need.
Get the one on your seat and just bring this to somebody. Remember, the varsity level question is where are you going? JV is what are you doing? It's my varsity. Where are you going and hand this to them?
And we'll just be believing all of us will be believing together that who you put this, whose hands you put this in will just have a tender heart and be ready to hear the gospel that night and just turn their heart towards him. The other thing is this, the tribe. Lee and Colleen, you look so great in your tribe sweatshirts. Thank you for being a walking advertisement for us today. Aren't they cozy and fashionable?
So buy some sweatshirts on your way out, a hoodie. You can just scan the QR code or put cash or check-in the box is fine. But Brian, will you please pray us out?
Okay. One more thing. Could I have that mic? Okay. Just before you're dismissed and you head on about the rest of your holidays, Clay let us know about what's going on with him.
If you if you've been following their journey, he's been going over to Idaho Falls.
Salt Lake.
Salt Lake. That's it's the details. Going through cancer treatment, but this I don't know if it's this day specifically or right about this time period. It marks the halfway period for you. Right?
Just barely over halfway. So would that be alright if I prayed for you two just before we got out of here? Why don't you guys stand up? Just face me so I can pray for you. You two hold hands.
Okay. And before I pray, I'm Lord God, we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you are not the author of evil or harm or sickness. We also know that in your wisdom and in your infinitude that you got plans and you're up to something so far beyond just what we see in our finite experience. That right here and now, we tell you, number one, that we love you. Number two, that we trust you.
God, thank you for using the wisdom of doctors and and technicians in modern medicine to bring about healing. God, we hold you to your word that says, you sent forth your word and healed them. So, God, we ask for continued healing in clay. Give Nancy great strength and endurance and patience. God, we ask that you would continue to provide opportunities for clay to be that light in a place that's potentially sad and maybe doesn't have a whole lot of hope.
Fill him and infuse him with hope and with strength, and we thank you in advance for a perfectly clean bill of health. God, thank you for carrying him this far during the race, and help him to know that he's surrounded by a tribe family that loves and supports him. And just like in any kind of race, we tend to run harder and faster and stronger when we've got a big cheering section. God, I ask that you would help them to know that they got a lot of people cheering for them as they finish the last half of this race. We pray these things in Jesus name, the strong son of God.
And you guys said, and everybody else said, alright. Come on. Let's help him out. Let's help him out. Halfway.
Halfway, Clay. Clay, You got this. Halfway, buddy. Halfway. Halfway.
Now everybody else stand up. I command a blessing over each and every person here today, Lord. Give them strength and endurance. Fill their hearts with light and help them to run with perseverance, the race marked out for them. We pray these things in Jesus' name, the strong son of God.
And everybody said
Amen.
Amen. I love you guys so much. I will not see you here tomorrow or next Sunday at 10AM, but I'll see you next Sunday, 06:30PM, Town Square. I love you. Have a great week.
And remember, you got this.
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