WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.540 When I was a kid, I was really scared of the dark. I mean, I couldn't go to sleep at night 00:00:07.540 --> 00:00:13.200 unless there was a light on in my bedroom. I can't remember exactly how old I was before 00:00:13.200 --> 00:00:18.960 I overcame that fear, but I guess however old or young we are, there are several things 00:00:18.960 --> 00:00:24.400 about darkness that none of us like. When there's no light, we can't see what's going 00:00:24.399 --> 00:00:32.179 on around us. We can't see where we're going or what lies ahead. Darkness masks the truth 00:00:32.179 --> 00:00:38.159 and it distorts reality. The only time when that appeals is if you're trying to cover up 00:00:38.159 --> 00:00:43.679 and hide something that you don't want to be found out for, but which you know deep down 00:00:43.679 --> 00:00:51.840 inside is plainly wrong. And so it is that we find the contrast between darkness and light 00:00:51.840 --> 00:00:58.500 as one of the central images that recurs throughout the Bible. For Paul, writing to the church 00:00:58.500 --> 00:01:05.200 in Corinth, he would of course have been writing out of his own experience. His own life had 00:01:05.200 --> 00:01:12.240 been turned around from systematically persecuting Christians and approving of their executions 00:01:12.240 --> 00:01:20.620 to being overcome by light in a vision of Jesus on the road to Damascus. The very encounter that 00:01:20.620 --> 00:01:28.540 pulled him out of darkness into a totally transformed life. Anyway, I guess you know all that. 00:01:29.340 --> 00:01:35.820 So looking at today's passage from 2 Corinthians, there's just one thing I want us to focus on, 00:01:35.820 --> 00:01:46.380 and it's this. We need to pay very close attention to the way our eyes can become accustomed to the light, 00:01:46.379 --> 00:01:53.420 or lack of light. Firstly, there's the danger that our eyes become accustomed to the light. 00:01:54.219 --> 00:01:58.379 What I mean by that is that when you become a Christian, you see things differently. 00:01:59.579 --> 00:02:04.780 When you know the reality of God in your life, it's like having the light suddenly come on. 00:02:05.819 --> 00:02:11.900 Now, as long as you are aware of that reality, it has this amazing way of holding things like worry or fear 00:02:11.900 --> 00:02:18.379 or despair at bay. Why? Not because you can necessarily see the future all of a sudden, but 00:02:18.379 --> 00:02:22.860 when you sense the light of God's presence in your life, you just get this reassurance that 00:02:22.860 --> 00:02:28.540 there's enough light around for you to see where to put your foot as you try to move forwards. 00:02:29.259 --> 00:02:33.580 You can keep walking and take each day as it comes, as you know God is with you. 00:02:35.020 --> 00:02:41.180 Now, notice I'm choosing my words very carefully here. I'm saying that it's when you know the reality of 00:02:41.180 --> 00:02:47.659 God's presence that you are aware of his light. Things get more tricky when we forget about that 00:02:47.659 --> 00:02:57.099 presence. And what I mean there is that God is present throughout our lives, but we forget that he is. 00:02:57.099 --> 00:03:03.100 That is to say, our eyes become accustomed to the light. We get used to the truths of the gospel, 00:03:03.099 --> 00:03:09.740 and so we get caught up and distracted by whatever problems our circumstances throw at us. 00:03:10.620 --> 00:03:14.620 And that's when we need to remind ourselves that we're not actually in the dark. 00:03:15.340 --> 00:03:21.579 That's when we need to reclaim those simple gospel truths that ignited us when we first heard them, 00:03:21.579 --> 00:03:25.099 but which we've allowed to take a bit of a back seat in our thinking. 00:03:25.099 --> 00:03:32.939 The writer Garrison Kyler recalled his childhood Thanksgiving dinners as the family gathered 00:03:32.939 --> 00:03:39.579 around the table and remembered the blessings of the past year. He described an uncle, he was called 00:03:39.579 --> 00:03:47.180 Uncle John, who would usually say a very, very long and drawn out prayer, which caused everyone to squirm. 00:03:47.180 --> 00:03:57.340 And Kyler said this, everybody in the family knew that Uncle John couldn't pray without talking about the cross and crying. 00:03:57.980 --> 00:04:07.659 And sure enough, Uncle John prayed, talked about the cross and cried. Meanwhile, the rest of us shifted nervously from one foot to the other and longed for the prayer to end. 00:04:07.659 --> 00:04:16.300 And Kyler adds this very powerful observation. All of us knew that Jesus died on the cross for us. 00:04:17.259 --> 00:04:36.459 It's just that Uncle John had never gotten over it. Let's never get over it. Let's not let our eyes become so accustomed to the light of God's presence that we fail to see and appreciate the difference it can make when we face the challenges and uncertainties of everyday life. 00:04:37.660 --> 00:04:47.600 But you know, there's a second danger that's worth mentioning too. And that's the danger of becoming all too familiar with a lack of light. Darkness, that is. 00:04:48.620 --> 00:04:54.220 Some time ago, I remember going to the cinema on what turned out to be a really lovely, sunny summer's evening. 00:04:54.220 --> 00:05:01.240 It was one of those evenings that was so nice and sunny that, had we known, we probably wouldn't have chosen to spend it in the cinema. 00:05:01.240 --> 00:05:05.519 But arrangements had already been made. And that was where we were. 00:05:06.319 --> 00:05:17.699 I don't recall what the film was, but I do remember leaving the cinema, which of course had been darkened for the film, and then stepping outside into the glorious sunshine. 00:05:17.699 --> 00:05:25.659 It jarred my senses, because having spent a couple of hours in the dark, it felt like it was night time. 00:05:26.279 --> 00:05:31.360 Well, it was evening, but it wasn't dark. It was still very, very bright outside. 00:05:31.360 --> 00:05:39.560 And it took me some time, not only for my eyes to adjust, but also to mentally adjust to the fact that it was actually very light. 00:05:40.840 --> 00:05:47.939 You know, it's possible for us to be so immersed in darkness that we just absorb it, or rather, it absorbs us. 00:05:48.639 --> 00:05:55.699 We forget about the light. We become so drawn into something that's really not good for us, or indeed good for anyone. 00:05:55.699 --> 00:06:00.180 We can get into patterns of destructive thinking and negative thoughts. 00:06:01.399 --> 00:06:11.740 We can get pulled into really unhelpful cycles of behaviour and activity, doing stuff and thinking stuff that deep down we know is not good. 00:06:12.439 --> 00:06:20.319 Yet the more we're exposed to it, we become desensitised, kidding ourselves that, well, maybe there's no real problem. 00:06:20.319 --> 00:06:25.699 Paul's answer to that is not easy, but it is quite simple. 00:06:26.360 --> 00:06:28.139 In Ephesians 5, he writes, 00:06:28.379 --> 00:06:29.819 Wake up, sleeper. 00:06:30.860 --> 00:06:36.699 I love the way it's paraphrased in Eugene Peterson's The Message. 00:06:37.500 --> 00:06:38.120 He writes this, 00:06:38.120 --> 00:06:45.019 Don't waste your time on useless work, mere busy work, the barren pursuits of darkness. 00:06:46.100 --> 00:06:48.420 Expose these things for the sham that they are. 00:06:48.420 --> 00:06:54.819 It's a scandal when people waste their lives on things they must do in the darkness where no one will see. 00:06:55.780 --> 00:07:00.480 Rip the cover off those frauds and see how attractive they look in the light of Christ. 00:07:01.700 --> 00:07:03.360 Wake up from your sleep. 00:07:03.879 --> 00:07:05.160 Climb out of your coffins. 00:07:05.879 --> 00:07:07.720 Christ will show you the light. 00:07:08.379 --> 00:07:09.460 So watch your step. 00:07:10.500 --> 00:07:11.220 Use your head. 00:07:12.040 --> 00:07:14.540 Make the most of every chance you get. 00:07:14.700 --> 00:07:16.300 These are desperate times. 00:07:16.300 --> 00:07:21.160 Today, today is Mothering Sunday. 00:07:21.460 --> 00:07:23.800 We give thanks for mothers and we pray for mothers. 00:07:24.439 --> 00:07:29.340 And as we do so, we're reminded of our own birth and the gift of life itself. 00:07:30.300 --> 00:07:34.819 So as we celebrate mothers and as we celebrate the gift of life, 00:07:34.819 --> 00:07:40.480 let's wake up again to the new birth and the new life in Christ that is ours. 00:07:40.480 --> 00:07:42.500 Let's pray. 00:07:46.060 --> 00:07:51.259 Lord Jesus, thank you that your desire is to shine your light into our darkness, 00:07:51.740 --> 00:07:54.620 giving us hope, peace and a sense of direction. 00:07:55.980 --> 00:07:59.640 Shine in and through us whatever age or stage we're at. 00:07:59.639 --> 00:08:10.419 And on this day, we give thanks for mothers everywhere and we pray for them and for all who are involved in the daily challenges of caring for and raising children. 00:08:11.639 --> 00:08:16.300 Encourage them and sustain them in the power of your love. 00:08:16.300 --> 00:08:18.620 Amen. 00:08:18.620 --> 00:08:18.759 Amen.