SERIES: Advent
TEXT: John 1:4-5
MESSAGE: “Life in Jesus”
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Genesis 1:1 — “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
“And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.” — Luke 2:7
Q: And so, how is Jesus our life?
TEXT: John 1:4-5
“In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” – John 1:4-5
“…all human beings have a theological bent, whether they consider themselves religious or not. Everyone wants life to make sense. Everyone is a committed interpreter. No one leaves his or her life alone. We all pick our lives apart, trying to make sense of them.” – Paul Tripp
Three insights about life in Jesus. We must see life…(1. In Him 2. In Us 3. In the End)
- In Him (v.4) — “In him…”
“…then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.” – Genesis 2:7
“…But God…made us alive together with Christ.” — Ephesians 2:4-5
2. In Us (v.5) — “The light shines in the darkness…”
“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins…” – Eph. 2:1
“…we are as unresponsive to God as was the dust of the earth before God breathed his Spirit into it…In our natural state we can do nothing to improve ourselves spiritually.” – James Boise
3. In the End (v.5) “…the darkness has not overcome it.”
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shined.” — Isaiah 9:2
TAKEAWAY REFLECTIONS: How can I live out my new life?
Admit my darkness & bring it into the light (learn to tell on myself)
“Quit keeping score altogether and surrender yourself with all your sinfulness to God, who sees neither the score nor the scorekeeper, but only His child redeemed by Christ.” – Thomas Merton
Live into my new identity (The Cure: Caterpillar to butterfly)
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” — 2 Corinthians 5:17
Believe God is able to overcome my darkness
“He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” — Colossians 1:13-14