First Presbyterian Church                                                                                            Rev. Michael J. Imperiale

Salt Lake City, Utah                                                                                                                    April 23, 2006

                                                      “Right Before Our Eyes: The Word of Life”

                                                                        1 John 1:1 – 2:2

Introduction

As I drive around town, I am fascinated, humored, disturbed and sometimes surprised by bumper stickers, symbols and sayings that people put on their cars.  “My Child is an Honor Student at Churchill Junior High… My Child was inmate of the month at County Jail… Four out of Three People have trouble with Fractions… Jesus is coming!  Look Busy… Guns don’t kill people, Drivers with cell phones do.”

Last week I saw a bright beautiful bumper sticker that proclaimed “Celebrate Diversity.”  And right next to it was a mocking symbol, the Christian ixthus fish with the word DOG in it with the dog/fish doing its business.  Yeah, celebrate diversity except the Christian faith.

Jesus said some pretty challenging things.  He didn’t believe for a moment that all religions lead to the same place.  In his famous Sermon on the Mount, he advised his followers, “Enter through the narrow gate.  For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.  But small is the gate and narrow is the road that leads to life, and only a few find it” (That’s Matthew 7:13-14).

Jesus didn’t think for a moment that human beings are basically good and can be taught, reformed, shaped, or educated toward higher and higher forms of goodness.  “This is the verdict,” said Jesus.  “Light has come into the world, but men and women loved darkness instead of the light… But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that shat he or she has done has been done through God” (that’s John 3:19-21).

With the resurrection of Jesus came a whole new way of looking at his life and teachings, his healings and miracles, his suffering and death.  With the resurrection comes the light and truth of almighty God fully revealed in Christ.

I. The Word of Life (vs. 1-4)

Jesus came into a world similar to ours.  There was a dominant religion where he lived: Judaism.  There were pagan religions in the pantheon of gods in Greek and Roman culture.  There were philosophies and political parties vying for power over the people.  In this diverse, multi-cultural context, Jesus taught, lived, and proved the unique will, plan, and purpose of the one true God.  And now after the resurrection, his disciples are preaching the teaching what they knew to be true.

John begins his first letter to the churches under his care much like the way he began his biography of Christ, the Gospel according to John.  “In the begging was the Word, and Word was with God and Word was God… In him was life… The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it… The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.  We have seen his glory… full of grace and truth.”  That’s from John’s gospel chapter one.

Here’s I John, his letter, chapter one.  “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched – the word of Life – we proclaim to you… God is light and in him there is no darkness at all.”

”A good man… yes… perhaps one the best ever… but just a man,” say many.  Others disagree, claiming that Jesus suffered from delusions of grandeur – a messiah complex.  Suggestions have ranged from simple teacher to egomaniac or misguided fool.  But all must agree that Jesus Christ left his mark on history.  Is Jesus really God?  Did he come to save sinners like us?  Does God really care about you or me?

First John was written to dispel doubts and build assurance by presenting a clear picture of Christ.  John the apostle walked and talked with Jesus, saw him heal, heard him teach, watched him die, met with him risen, and saw him ascend.  John knew the Lord Jesus as God incarnate – he had lived with him and had seen him work.

Written between 85 and 90 A.D., John is writing to congregations of new believers who had not seen Jesus physically here on earth.  So, he is also writing to us as well.  On one hand he is writing to encourage believers in the God who is light and love and life, wanting us to enjoy fellowship with the Father and the Son and with one another.  On the other hand he is writing to correct some serious errors creeping into the church through some false teachers who were combining Jesus with other religious and philosophical ideas.

John refers to Jesus as the Word of God, the word of life, a personal title important to both Greek and Jewish listeners.  The Word was both the creative self-expression of God in creating the universe (see Genesis 1) and the divine reason that gives the world coherence and purpose (according to many Greek philosophers).  John sets out this amazing, marvelous tension of Christian faith and thought: the One who existed from limitless eternity has entered time and space and taken up residence here on earth.  The historical Jesus is the Christ of God, the embodiment of eternity in human terms for our human understanding.  The writer of Hebrews put it this way: “The Son is radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being” (Hebrews 1:3).

If anyone wants to know God, look to Jesus Christ.  If you want to know the light, love and life that God intends, trust in Jesus Christ.  Invite Jesus into your mind, heart and life and you will know the fellowship of joy that John is writing about.  Jesus is the Word of Life.

II. God is Light (5-7)

Some people see it, some people don’t.  Darwinism and other theories aside, some scientists see intelligent design; others don’t.  Some rejoice in the creator, redeemer and sustainer of life; others prefer a stark reality of random existence.  In politics, education, philosophy, and even business, some integrate faith in Christ as essential to success in their policies, lesson plans, more construct and ethics; others don’t.

We use phrases like “I get it… now I see…” or “he just doesn’t get it… or she’s as blind as a bat.”  John wants us to get it and see it.  Jesus is the full and complete revelation of God.  “This is the message we have heard from him (from Jesus) and declare to you: God is light and in him there is no darkness at all.  If we claim to have fellowship with him yet keep on walking in darkness, we are lying and do not live by the truth.  But if we keep on walking in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.”

John is countering two major threats to authentic life and faith in Christ that some of these special knowledge (Gnostic) teachers were promoting.  They were denying the reality of sin.  Gnostics believed that the physical body is evil or worthless and only the spiritual life was important.  So they advocated denial (through rigid discipline) or indulgence (gratifying every and any physical lust).  Guess which one was more popular?  Look at our culture today.  We suffer from this false understanding in our world today.

The Bible says that if we intentionally decide to keep on sinning, how can we claim to belong to God?  And if we say we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and refusing to accept God’s truth, God’s light.

These Gnostics were also denying that Jesus was the Messiah – God in the flesh.  The Bible says that if we believe that Jesus is God incarnate and trust him for our salvation, we are children of God (again see the gospel of John chapter 1).

Again john intentionally reaches out to both Jew and Greek with the phrase, “God is light.”  Throughout the Old Testament the people of God experienced the Lord as light in the burning bush, in the pillar of fire, in the golden lamp stands of the tabernacle, and in the words of the prophets.  Remember Simeon welcoming baby Jesus at the temple saying, “My eyes have seen your salvation, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel” (Luke 2:30-32).  Among the Gnostics, light was a premier metaphor for God illustrating religion as mystic enlightenment.

John is insisting, as should we, that Jesus is the light.  Everything that Jesus said and did brings the light that dispels the darkness.  As members of the household of God, we are called to walk in that light so that we may “have fellowship” with one another and “with the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ.”

Conclusion

Ours is not a bumper sticker faith.  The Christian life is not about “religion.”  It’s all about “relationships.”  Love God, love neighbor and make disciples.  Cultivate your relationship with God in Christ.  Read the Word, come and worship, attend to the leading of God’s Spirit.  Cultivate your relationships with the people in your life.  Encourage them in their faith, help meet their needs, reach out with friendship and understanding.  Introduce others to Christ and offer your understanding about what it means to be a follower of Jesus.  For Jesus is the Word of Life right before our eyes.

Let us pray together.