Archive for December 13, 2016
Dec 13
“Arise, Shine!” New Series for December–January
If you’re reading the Bible, you can’t get away from it: light is everywhere.
The Bible opens with creation when God turns on the lights with the words, “let there be light†(Gen. 1:3). The Bible ends in a world without a sun, “for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb (Rev. 21:23). In between is a story about light and darkness. When God promised a Messiah, he said, “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light (Isa. 9:2). Israel walked in darkness instead of the light, but this Messiah would be a “light to the nations†(Isa. 49:6). Speaking of the salvation of his people, Isaiah wrote these climactic words: “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you†(Isa. 60:1). And, today, what God did in creation he is doing in our hearts: “God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ†(2 Cor. 4:6). Jesus, the light of the world, shines on us and through us to the world (Jn. 8:12; Mt. 5:14).
From December 18 through the month of January we’re going to work through a series of sermons on the biblical theme of light. Ryan and Trent will tag-team on this series. Here’s where we’re going:
- December 18: Genesis 1:3 and 2 Corinthians 4:4–6
- December 24: John 1:4–9
- December 25: Light in the book of Isaiah
- January 1: 2 Corinthians 3:12–18
- January 8: Ephesians 5:8–14
- January 15: 1 John 1:1–10
- January 22: Matthew 5:14–16
- January 29: revelation 21–22
That’s the plan, though we may fiddle with it a bit.
Invite your friends to a service this Christmas season. Remember that we have two services on Christmas Eve—4PM and 6PM. Join us at 6PM if you’re able to free up space at the more heavily attended 4PM service. Then, on Christmas Day, we’re looking forward to one full single service at 10AM.