John 1:5

5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome[a] it.

John focuses a lot on Jesus, who He is in John 1. In fact, he is really showing that you and I cannot live without Him.  That not only is He God, but He is the God who came in the flesh, came to give us life, life more abundantly, that He came to bring and truth, that He came to shine light into the darkness we were living in, and in this verse He brings us hope, by reminding us that there is no existence of darkness that Christ cannot dispel as He is "The Light of the World" and the darkness "cannot" overcome it.

The application here is simple to understand.   Light is required for life here on planet earth; without it, we would perish.  This verse reminds us that life is found in Jesus Christ, that all that we need is found in Him, and that He has the power to dispel the darkness in your life, so that you can overcome the things that bound you, and you can be set free.   Jesus said you shall know the truth and the truth will set you free.  We often forget that Jesus came to bring truth and grace. The truth is, God loves you just the way you are (that's grace), but He loves you too much to keep you that way (that's the truth).   So light dispels darkness, as truth dispels lies, we must allow the Lord to shed light on the lies we believe, and live in the truth of who/what He says about us.

Lord, O' that you would dispel the darkness from our lives, even the deep areas, that you would drive out things that don't belong, that you would produce growth to the things that do, that you would remove the lies that the enemy has planted and expose truth, what you say about us, who you see us to be, where you see us going, allow us to walk with you in an authentic relationship, that we would be transformed by that relationship, in Jesus' name, Amen!

1 Corinthians 5:17

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:[a] The old has gone, the new is here!

"Old Things!"  Our past can have two effects on our lives, can't it?    It can either be a launching point that pushes us into better places, or it can be a lead weight that holds us back.  One of the great plans of the enemy is that you and I would stay in condemnation, that we would get stuck there.   I like what Rick Warren says:  "If you are going through hell, you don't rest there, you don't stop, you keep moving, you keep moving."   Paul said it in Philippians 3, "I press on toward the upward goal."   

This is what the Paul is conveying, that because of Christ, you and I can "Press On!"   We can "BECOME" all that God intended us to be, we can put our past respectfully in the place it belongs, in the PAST.   

Some of us this morning need to say it:

• "I AM A NEW CREATION!"   Maybe even shout it!
• "OLD HAS GONE"   because that is not who we are anymore.
• "NEW HAS COME" because I am becoming what Christ called me to.

The application here is to pursue Christ, to become transformed by that pursuit. Notice he says, "Anyone who is in Christ."   That is you!    If you are pursuing to be transformed by knowing Christ, that is you, you're in Christ.    Which means that you need to let go of who you were before Him and become the new creation IN Him.

Lord, I pray that we will get this, that our walk with you;  It is that which transforms us, that changes us, that we would be able to forget what is behind, press on toward the prize that is Christ Jesus, that we would be renewed, reframed, refreshed, in Jesus' name, Amen!

Job 34:31-32

“Suppose someone says to God,
    ‘I am guilty but will offend no more.
32 Teach me what I cannot see;
    if I have done wrong, I will not do so again.’

Blind spots, we all have them, you know, areas that need to be changed, but we are oblivious to them. Job 34 points us to two important truths: The first being things we are aware of, the ones we know we should change, the things that are not pleasing to God, not good for our lives, those things we should not do and know it.   And the second and most important bit, we should get from Job 34 is: We should ask that God would reveal to us what we cannot see, the blind spots, the weak areas in our lives that allow the enemy in, drag us down, slow us, keep us from moving in the right direction.

To examine our lives and to ask God to reveal our blind spots.  So, that ultimately we would be closer to Him, that we would rid ourselves of anything that hinders our walk with Him.   Secondly, that the things we overlooked, could not see, we would change our mind (Repent) , we would see them through His eyes.  

Lord, I pray that each of us would draw nearer to you, that we would be open to you shedding light into our lives, revealing to us the things we need to change, that you would help us change the things we know we should. You sent your Son to pay the penalty so that we could have the POWER to overcome them, so, I pray that you would sever the things that don't belong in our lives, that ultimately we would become that which you called us to be, in Jesus' name, Amen!

Matthew 1:21

She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."

Jesus (Yeshua), meaning "Yahweh saves" or "Salvation."  His name is His mission, He is the Christ, the (Mashiach) Messiah, the deliverer.  He came that the world would be redeemed through Him.  Forgiveness is the essence of the Cross and Christmas.   Luke 4:18-19 reminds us that His mission is to:

• Proclaim good news to the poor (those who lack).
• Proclaim freedom for the prisoners (stuck in sin).
• Recovery of sight for the blind (by the world).
• Set the oppressed free (free from... addiction, depression, discouragement, sickness, the enemy).

Forgiveness and reconciliation are His Mission.  To restore us into the right relationship with the Father, to redeem us for eternity.

The application here is to join Jesus' mission, to give what we have been freely given, the gift of forgiveness.   If you have someone that you have been estranged or could not forgive before, this message urges you to reconcile, to forgive as you have been forgiven.   Let the work of Christ dwell in your hearts this Christmas, proclaim His good news to everyone, forgive, and be at peace, and allow this Christmas be one of reconciliation.

Lord, I pray that you would bring to mind anyone we have not forgiven.   That you would not allow another year, or month, or day go by that would allow any unforgiveness to stand, that we would be set free from it, and that you would heal old wounds, old relationships, that you would bring in us and through us the gift of forgiveness.   In Jesus' name Amen!

Isaiah 9:6

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace

"Who He Is!"  He is the Wonderful Counselor, He is the Mighty God, He is the Everlasting Father, He is the "Prince of Peace."    What we learn from the word of God is that what Jesus brings and what the world brings are totally two different things.    The world says peace is wrapped up in circumstances, "If I only had enough money, or if all my bills were paid, if my children were in the place I need them to be."   Then I would have peace; it is based on circumstances, but that is not the peace that Jesus brings. 

The word tells us that Jesus is the Prince of Peace; that word in Hebrew (sar) tells us that Jesus fights for our peace.   Jesus brings peace (John 14:27) not like the world, but get this "Lasting Peace."   Because He battles for your peace, His peace is lasting because He has the power to destroy the things that steal your peace.   This verse is a reminder to seek the Prince of Peace.  

The application here is for those who want to find real peace to pursue the Prince of Peace, the Lord of Lords, the Great I Am.   Isaiah 26:3 says He keeps those in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Him.   We need to focus all of our energy, our hearts, our minds on the Lord Jesus Christ, then we will find peace, because we will have found the Prince of Peace, it is who He is, not just what He brings.

Lord, amongst the hustle and bustle of this time of year, I pray that each of us takes a breath, a moment to reflect on you, to not lose sight of what and why we do what we are doing this time of year, that we would celebrate your presence, not just presents that we would pursue the Prince of Peace, the Mighty God, Wonderful Counselor and in that pursuit you would bring perfect peace, in Jesus' name, Amen!