Preaching from Advent 3b

Sermon:
Text - John 1:6-8,19-28
Setting - Larger middle to lower middle class suburban church

This time of year always brings with it lots of photographs. There are pictures of the children opening the presents, pictures of family and friends at office parties and family reunions. We love pictures, and Christmas affords us the opportunity to take a lot of them. Some of them are good, some of them are not so good, but we love them all.

What makes the difference between a good and a bad picture? Well, obviously the subject matter determines whether the photograph will be good or not. Then, the angles matter. My sister loves to take pictures, but she often has difficulty centering the subject in the photo. She always seems to cut their heads off, or she only gets half of one person in the shot. I don’t know why, but that’s just the way she takes pictures. Other times, though, she can get the angle just right and the photo is wonderful. Though angles and subjects do matter in the photo, they are not of supreme importance. For every photo there is one thing that must be correct for the photo to be right—the light. You can’t take a good photo if the light isn’t right.

The magic of photography lies in the light. Light can do more than make an image on film; it can emphasize, subdue or alter moods. It can help you say many things about your subject. Yes, light makes all the difference in the world. It is light that makes the image on the film. Without light there would be no image. All that would be there is darkness.
Our own lives can be very dark at times. We see a world surrounded by the darkness of war and poverty, the darkness of death and disease, the darkness of sin and brokenness, the darkness of abuse and violence. Yet, amidst this darkness we catch glimpses of light, and the glimpses of that light cast out the darkness of our lives, even if it is only momentarily. Like the flash of a camera that sheds just enough light to cast an image on film, so amid the darkness of our world we catch just enough of the light God has sent to drive out the darkness of this world.

Take a moment and consider with me the moment in time which is captured in our Gospel lesson for today. What may seem like a throw away line at the end of the lesson is actually a very important signal to the reader.

Verse 28, this took place in Bethany across the Jordan where John was baptizing.

In all four gospels, the town of Bethany is the staging ground for something big.

In Matthew 26: Jesus’ feet are washed with expensive perfume, then Judas sneaks off to betray him.

In Mark 11: Jesus dispatches the disciples to get the donkey for the palm Sunday ride

Luke 24 – Jesus leads the disciples out to Bethany, the place of the ascension

This text holds true to form, something BIG is about to happen. In the next few verses, John the Baptist will be the first person to testify that Jesus is the long awaited messiah. He points to Jesus as the light, the son of God. Something BIG is going to happen. Light has come into the dark places of the world, and the darkness will never be the same. The change is dramatic, darkness to light. Scripture is full of stories about the light of Christ breaking into the darkness of the world:

There were 10 men standing on the outskirts of the city, living in the darkness of isolation because of their disease. Jesus’ light cast out that darkness and the lepers returned to society.

The skies were dark with storm clouds and the boat was tossed from side to side. Yet with 3 little words, “peace, be still” the darkness was scattered, and the wind and the waves grew calm.

The room was dark, the only sound was a gentle sobbing of a mother weeping for her dead daughter. Jesus says, “tallitha cum,” little girl, come out, and the darkness of that room is banished as the girl, now alive, gets up and begins to walk about.

This light is -- powerful and it is not reserved for biblical times. Jesus is still very much at work in the world today, shining his light, scattering darkness. This light is greater than any darkness we may encounter. Jesus, the true light, is shining chasing away the darkness. He banishes the darkness of war, shining the light of peace. He chases away the darkness of death and disease with the light of the resurrection. He scatters the darkness of our own hearts. May the light of Christ shine in your heart this Advent. Amen.