Today, we continue our Advent series. It's based on the
theme of light from Jesus' statement, 'I am the light of the world'. Last week
we looked at what Jesus has come to rescue us from. That was about the darkness of death. This week we're going
to consider some of what He has rescued us to.
We'll do that by looking at this from 2 Corinthians 4. 'For 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.'
The first thing that I want to do is to be clear about the
basic point here. Paul is talking about what happens when someone becomes a
Christian. He is reminding the Corinthians about what happened to them when
they were converted. To do this, he uses an image, light. Jesus discusses the
same topic also using an image, but He uses a different image. He uses the
image of birth. Christians are those who have been born again. Jesus uses that
image to highlight certain aspects of this converting work of the Spirit in a
person's life. Paul draws his image not from birth but from God's work of
creation. God created His universe by causing light to shine in darkness. By using
this image Paul also highlights certain aspects of this converting work of the
Spirit in a person's life. God has created us as Christians, and He has done
that by causing light to shine in darkness. But while that first light of
creation shone in the exterior darkness of the world, this light has shone in
our hearts. We have become new creatures, Christians, because God has given us
His light and in this way He banished the darkness of death from us. That's
Paul's basic point here.
Now, let's build on this by thinking about another image
in our text, this image of the heart. The Scriptures frequently use this image.
While the body is the person as he can be seen, the outer person, the heart is
the inner person, what cannot be seen. The heart is about the mind, the will
and the affections. Those three go together to make up what the Bible calls the
heart. The mind is about things that we understand. The will is about things
that we choose. The affections is about things we desire. These three describe
the inner dynamics of the heart. So, what Paul is teaching the Church is that
this light from God has shone in our hearts, and, as a result, it has changed
these three aspects of who we are. These three aspects of our inner life are no
longer enslaved by the darkness. Because of this light we can now understand
what we could not before, we can choose what we would not before and we desire
what we did not before. The light has come and has banished the darkness.
Now, what else does our text have? Paul tells us that this
light in our hearts has given us something. It has given us knowledge. Be
careful here. Knowledge in the heart is much more than information. Knowledge
in the heart applies not just to the mind but also to the will and the
affections. So, this knowledge is about what we know, what we choose and what
we desire. It is this knowledge that frees us to know and to choose and to
desire in ways that those without this light cannot.
But what is this knowledge about? What is it that we get
to know once this light shines in our hearts? What does the text say? It is the
knowledge of the glory of God. Now, I found it rather interesting that Paul did
not write, 'the knowledge of God'. I expected that. But instead it's 'the
knowledge of the glory of God'. Even
though it's the difference of just a word or two, this is a big deal. Paul's
choice of words is no accident. The Spirit wants to emphasize something with
these words. It's not just that we have come to know God but that we have come
to know His glory. And what is that? What is this glory? God's glory is
whatever it is that makes Him God. Paul wanted to stress that what we come to
know is the God-ness of God. We have been given the ability to see something of
what it means that God is God. I find that both intriguing and so very helpful.
We could spend a lot of time dealing with this. What is it
that makes God to be God? Huge topic. But let me narrow it down a bit. To do
that I’ll use something from the Lord's Prayer. Jesus taught us to address God
as, 'Our Father who art in heaven.' I've talked a bit, recently, about God
being our Father. So, today, let me use the 'who art in heaven' part to try to
get a handle on this idea of knowing the God-ness of God.
In having us address God in this way, as the inhabitant of
heaven, Jesus wants us to get a sense of God's transcendence. This phrase
emphasizes how God is so very different from us. So, just as a sampling, let's
consider the 'omnis' of God. God is omnipresent. That means that all of God is
present in every place at every moment. So, all of God is here with us. All of
God is in every other bit of Erie County. All of God is present in each of the
other states of the Union. He is in China, as well as South Africa. He is
present on Jupiter as well as Alpha Centauri, as well as the furthest galaxy.
All of God is present in every place at every moment. That's God's
omnipresence. God is also omniscient. He knows everything. He knows every
detail of what has happened in the life of every person that has ever lived -
and that's a lot of people. He already knows everything that is going to happen
in the life of every person yet to be born. He even knows what could happen,
but won't, from this point in history until Jesus returns. He knows the cause
of cancer and its cure, what the next big terminal disease will be, and whether
we will ever have another nuclear bomb exploded in anger. He knows everything
that is, was, will be and could be. He knows what you're thinking right now. He
knows everything. That's God's omniscience. God is also omnipotent. He can do
anything that He wants to do. Anything. He can break His laws of physics to
make the water of some sea clear away to make a completely dry path through its
midst. He can kill and then raise to life again. He can make the sun stop
moving across the sky. He can create a universe out of nothing and keep it all
going, or He can stop it all and start over from scratch. He can do anything He
feels like doing. That's God's omnipotence. Those are just the 'omnis' of God.
We could go on and talk about a lot more that is unique to God. I will add just
one more. It's a favorite of mine: God's aseity. God depends on nothing and no
one for anything. His very existence depends on Himself. He is because He has
decided to be. Who else can say that? That's God's aseity.
So, do you see what Paul is getting at? Light has shone in
your hearts to give you the light of the knowledge of the glory of this God.
You have some sense of the God-ness of God.
I had said earlier that getting a sense of the God-ness of
God is not only intriguing but helpful. Now let me tell you why this knowledge
is so helpful. It is only when you get to know this God in His glory that you
can get to know yourself. As you get to understand the God-ness of God you get
to understand the you-ness of you. Understanding yourself without understanding
Him is impossible. Again, this is a big topic. But a few thoughts will be
enough to start.
Consider this. It is as you gain some insight into the
glory of this transcendent God, this God who is in heaven, this huge God, that
you come to see that you are small. You have none of the 'omnis'. And forget
about aseity. Compared to this God, you are incredibly small. And acknowledging
that is so freeing.
We have been told, and, to one extent or another, have
believed, that significance is about being big. Little people are unimportant
people. Our pond might be small, but we need to be a big fish in that pond. We
need to make a big enough splash so that it will be noticed by others. That's
what we've been told. It's all about being big enough to be noticed. But it's
just a fact that we're not big. We're small. We will not be able to make that
big splash. So, trying to find significance in being big is trying to be what
we are not. God is big. God is huge and beyond huge. But we are not. We are
small. God has made us small. And contentment is found in being who we really
are. Trying to be what we are not can only result in frustration and even in despair.
I have told you about my wrestlings with being a driven
person. I was trained to believe that life is about pushing to accomplish more
and more, and never stopping. (No one ever told me about when I could stop
pushing. It was always about being better.) What is that but trying to be
bigger than what I really am. And that has tripped me up too many times to
count. Needing to be noticed becomes a slavery. I am told that, on average, an
American pastor stays at a church for about four years. Then it's on to the
next church. I can't help but think that one reason for that is to be able to
move on to larger and larger churches. After all, how much of a splash can you
make with a church of fifty people? I've struggled with that one for a while,
though no longer. (Thanks be to God!) I am finding contentment in being what I
am, small, and in seeing God as what He is, big.
Significance, being somebody who matters, is not about how
big a splash you make. It's not about being noticed and approved by others.
Being somebody who matters is all about whom you know. And if you know the
transcendent God, or better, if you are known by the transcendent God - well,
who cares about the splash? Being known by Him makes you important. A person
doesn't have to be the best or have the biggest or do the most. If you think
about it, that's wanting to be like God. Wasn’t there a famous temptation with
that as the bait? Having the knowledge of the glory of God helps you to
understand yourself. He is big. You are small. And being small is okay because
the big God thinks you're important. This is yours because the light has shone
in your heart.
And that brings us to the last part of our text. This
light is given to us 'in the face of Jesus Christ'. The good gifts of the light
are yours because Jesus has come. Advent. Without Him, there can only be
darkness. But Jesus has come, and the light of the knowledge of the glory of
God has shone in your hearts. You have a sense of the God-ness of God. And
because of that you can have peace, the peace of contentment. And you can enjoy
that peace because of what you know. You know that you were created to be small
and that being small is okay. And it's okay because you are known by the very
big God. So, wherever you are, the omnipresent God is right there with you and
He will take care of you. And whatever the obstacles that block your path to
happiness, the omnipotent God is more than able to remove them all, one by one,
until they are all gone and complete happiness is yours. And when there is so
much confusion that you're not even sure which way is up, the omniscient God
will tell you what you need to know and, in this way, guide you through the
confusion and into perfect clarity. And even God's aseity is helpful. It
reminds you that there is mystery. We need that because it is out of a sense of
mystery that we experience wonder. Life without wonder is boring.
Jesus has come so you might know. So, this Advent,
celebrate the knowledge of the glory of God that has been given to you.