A World Without Christ

John 8:12 A world without Christ

It is an amazing feeling to stand up here. It feels so powerful and humbling at the same time. If I say let’s all stand everyone will stand. If I say let’s all sit down, everyone will sit down. If I say let’s sing a hymn, everyone will sing. I am so tempted to say wash my car.

Honestly, it is powerful, because God’s word is powerful. It is so powerful that it has changed the world forever. It is humbling because I feel so inadequate to present it.

John 8:12

12Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.”

Jesus says he is the light of the world. What a dark world we would live in if Jesus had not come! I know that in my life I had no direction or real purpose in life until I met him. So many parts of the world have no purpose or direction. If they only knew him what a difference, it would make.

14“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. 15No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lamp stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

I am the light of the world. You are the light of the world. Over the years, I have met a few people who didn’t understand how both these statements were true.

He is like the pillar of fire that led the way for the nation of Israel in the wilderness. The fire made the light and the light led the way.

In Mathew Jesus says we are the light. What he means is we are the lamp. Jesus is the fire. The lamp contains the light and makes it available to all.

The lamp of Jesus day looked a lot different from what we use today. The closest thing would be a hurricane lamp. They work on the same principle. There is oil in a reservoir in the bottom. A wick has one end in the oil. The other is set on fire. The lamp enables us to take the fire any place needed. An oil lamp takes a serious bit of adjustment. You don’t just stick the wick in and light the fire. A proper ratio must be achieved. Hurricane lamps have an adjustment mechanism just for this purpose. If the wick stays too deep in the oil, only a dim light will be seen. If too much is sticking out the light will be erratic and the wick will burn.

I don’t know if Jesus meant an additional lesson here but this is how I apply it to my life. If I keep myself immersed too deeply in the Word and my Christian community very little of my light will shine. If I extend myself too far out in the world and have little depth, I will be erratic and possibly burn out. It is this perfect balance that allows out light to shine brightly.

The words of one man Jesus Christ changed the world. Only three years of his life were recorded. One small life affected billions of others. There are six and one half billion people on the Earth today. Not all believe in him but everyone’s life has been affected by him. Over the last 2000 years, the total number of affected lives must number hundreds of billions. That is a lot of power for a humble man born in a humble town.

A few months ago, I was teaching a mid-week Bible study. The book we were working out of had a two-page topic called “The world without Christ.” It was a depressing thought, a haunting thought. I could not get it out of my head. This thought doesn’t just occupy my mind, but many others as well. For me it is a disturbing thought but for them it is a goal. How long now have we been hearing “separation of Church and state?” They want God out of public institutions. I suspect what they really want is God out of public view. “We don’t need God” they say we do just fine on our own. These people do not have a clue what they are asking for. There is no truth, there is no morality, and there would be no prosperity without Christ.

How dark would the world be without the light of Jesus Christ? If Jesus never came what would our lives be like?

In this country our justice system, our laws, our morals are based on the teaching of Jesus Christ. Non-Christians if they want to admit it or not base their ideas of right and wrong on the teachings of Jesus.