The Light of Home - John 1:1-18 (Christmas 2C)

 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I'm glad you didn't get too lost last week, because it seems as most of you have found your way back here. I appreciate that! Welcome to the last Sunday of Christmas this year, and this is day seven for those who are counting. Watch out for any swans you come across, hopefully they’re all swimming. 

Speaking of swimming, I know these days it’s too cold to go swimming, but just know that out of the darkness, the light is increasing and spring and summer days will be here soon! Did you know that Indiana has lighthouses? Two of them, in fact. You really don’t think Indiana as much of a state that would have any lighthouses, but yeah - two of them, both on Lake Michigan. I’ve seen one of them - the one in Michigan City. The other one is closer to Chicago near Gary. But aren’t lighthouses kind of incredible? Someone had the idea that to keep the ships safe, even in the waters of Lake Michigan, that there needed to be big lights to help direct them so they don’t crash into the shore! I wonder before lighthouses were operational, how many ships were lost before someone engineered that! 

Anyway - so you know the basic idea of a lighthouse, you have a light at the top of a tall structure, sending light out into the darkness of the open water, where sea and sky merge. It can be a welcome sign of land for those traveling the ocean in the 19th & early 20th centuries. The first lighthouses were built in Egypt, but there have been some found in Roman ruins as well. America built its first lighthouse in 1716 in Boston. Now, you didn’t come to church this morning to learn about lighthouse facts, but they are a really incredible invention. 

What does it say about someone who manages the lighthouse? They’d have to live in remote locations, on the premises, to make sure the light doesn’t go out. I’m sure that became much easier at the discovery of electricity and harnessing it. They would have a rough job, making sure the oil is stocked, and that the mechanicals kept working. Since they’re also distant from any people, it would be that a family would get the job, and then it would be passed down through the family because they already knew it. But are you minding your light, making sure it doesn’t go out?

Now, the Gospel of John is our scripture today, and with it, a different structure. The narrative we read at Christmas is familiar to most who know the story. But John gives us… poetry. Starting not really with the actual story, but with the story from the VERY beginning. Before there was time, there was God. And much like the creation stories of Genesis, In the Beginning… here we are, but John takes us a different direction. Like the story in Genesis, God spoke creation into being. The WORD of God was in the beginning, starting everything in creation. The word being separate from the mind and soul of God. But it tells us the heart of God, through his words. And when God speaks, things happen. Seas and mountains rise and fall, animals of all kinds are sprung from the seas, skies and earth. 

But Jesus is here - the Christ Child was born, and - God is with us - God is here! In fact, let’s re-read the opening of the chapter changing “the Word” to “Jesus”. In the beginning, was Jesus, and Jesus was with God and Jesus was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made, without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood (or overcome) it;” skipping down to verse 14, “Jesus became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his GLORY, the glory of the one and only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” 

The first section that was read this morning had to do with lights, and darkness, and seems to be all obtuse and abstract. But after reading it again with Jesus in there, doesn’t that clear it up, maybe just a little bit? I know it’s a lot easier to imagine the birth of Christ as in Luke’s Gospel, framing it as a story where a family is welcoming new life amongst their people

We are people steeped in hope. Desmond Tutu, the Anglican archbishop in South Africa, who died last week at the age of 90, once said, “Hope is being able to see that there is light DESPITE all the darkness around us. There’s a lot of that darkness, friends. Seeds of division, half-truths and misinformation confusing us. But make no mistake - Jesus is here! As I said earlier - Jesus became flesh - could it be as a second Adam? Re-creating the world as God wants it to be, putting love first, putting relationships first, making sure that the Light would never be able to suffer in darkness again? 

How can we be the light in the lighthouses for the ships of our lives to know where safe harbor is? God lives among us with grace and truth, as it says in our scripture. But that’s not that specific… Pastor Dan, do you have some practical advice for us? Yeah - find people to mentor. They don’t even need to be children, as good as that is. Mentoring is a chance at building community with those who have questions (don’t we all?) but have a lack of experience to back up their dreams. I know that sounds intimidating, but Big Brothers / Big Sisters is always looking for good people to step up. If that doesn’t suit you, maybe even talk to our Scout leaders and others even here in our church community who you’d like to get to know, and share the information you have. Our society is in a weird place right now, where many experiences are new and may be scary for those who are afraid of technology. But, that is also an opportunity for learning! I bet not everyone here knows the same information, and shouldn’t we be sharing that information for the betterment of our community? Since we have a small congregation, maybe reach out to another Methodist church here in town to see if there’s a possibility to connect with either a youth group or a small group. 

Coming into the light takes some adjustment… even when we come home. As you walk out of a movie theatre on a summer day, your eyes take a moment to be able to see where you’re going. And some of us hopefully don’t get stuck trying to adjust. It’d be easy to just go back into the darkness of the theatre. But you’d be missing out on the hope that the light provides. Think of all the lights you put up during this dark season of Advent & Christmas, the point was to make sure that the light leads the way so that we don’t get lost. We think that our little lights shining can stave off the darkness that invades so much of our days, but now that we are halfway out of the dark, hope can breathe into our spaces. Much like the sailors in the days of old, these lights can give just a glimpse of hope in a space full of darkness. That light, which is made possible because of Jesus, is bright when the darkness cannot overcome. 

Sometimes we need to go into the wilderness like those early lighthouse operators, to make sure that someone has gone ahead and lights the way. Those structures are not there because they need to make sure the light exists, but they need to warn others that danger might be ahead, or that there is a safe path somewhere and can guide the way. Can we do that without being putting off to others? I know there are pushes to get people back in church, but isn’t it more important to make relationships and walk people into a safe harbor before they make deep changes in their life? What is it about the life with Jesus that may appeal to others and have you been willing to share it? How can we WELCOME people into our community rather than shun them for being on the outside, like a country club? There’s many people who are putting up walls because the church has hurt them in the past due to inattention & neglect, but actual harm and problematic teachings. Now, I’m not saying I have all the answers, because I don’t. I just want to be able to walk and talk with you through your difficulties, whatever they may be, and have the ability to rejoice with you and weep with you.

Life is hard enough, trying to do everything on your own. Know that you’re not alone, no matter your predicament, that we’re all in this life thing together, and with grace and hope, we’ll take the steps together. Verse 11 even says, that John’s own people did not accept him. We may not be the popular one, but our faith and hope rest in Jesus Christ, as it says in the next verse, he gave POWER to become God’s children - adopted by the God of the universe! And at the end of our scripture today, the other plain truth - no one has seen God - but through Jesus, he has become known. Jesus lit the way. 

When we’re in the dark, it’s easy not to know which way to go. But light the way home, and it’s easier to trust the path in front of us.  Who among you could use a candle, even if a small one. Remember it just takes a spark to get a fire going… which can ignite the world. Love can spread like a wildfire. 

Now, as we are about to share in communion, remember that the light that was shared with you, however long ago it was, continues to burn. Just like lighthouses, let’s take those lights and make a path for the world to see and get transformed. Be the light that comes from God. 

Amen.