Are You A Star? Do You Want To Be One?
John1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
This morning during worship I was given a word picture. Please understand this picture is neither an argument for nor against "Big Bang" theory. It is not flying in the face of established astrophysics or quantum mechanics. It is simply a model, a simplistic representation, or gestalt if you will of a very mind-blowing idea. Enjoy the ride!
So here goes. God is the source of light. We dwell in darkness. When Adam and Eve sinned and were booted from the garden, our world fell into darkness and was thereby ruled by it. Before then, they walked in the light with God. See Gen 1-2.
So mankind is living in darkness. Sinning, dying, hating God. God still loves us. So He, the source of light shines a concentrated focused beam of light into the darkness. OK here comes the slightly weird but cool picture. Each of us are like a little wooden box dwelling in the darkness. God became a box of the same size and dimensions as us in the darkness only He was made of glass with all kinds of prisms and reflectors mounted in it. So that when the Father shines his light into the darkness, Christ the glass box, illuminates the way. When we are re-birthed in Christ we are given a light on the outside and a photoelectric receiving panel (Holy Spirit). Kind of like a solar panel mounted on the inside. (Put the stones down!!! I told you that this is just a word picture!) The light of God shines on us and energizes our individual lights and we each shine around us into the darkness. As we grow, God changes our boxes from wood to glass with varying degrees of transparency because we all grow differently at different rates. As a result more light passes in energizing the light to shine greater into the darkness. Sometimes the glass, because it dwells in darkness, gets a little smudgy, dimming the outward light. So as shown to us in John 13, we gently and lovingly squeegee each others boxes and our lights shine brighter again.
Now here is the really cool part! Think about all of these pinpoints of light, us, shining into the darkness. The darkness is still in between but there are guiding lights inside of it for those lost within it. Now, expand outward to the universe. The stars are like tiny pinpoints of light shining into the vast expanse of darkness! Like our lights, they too have varying degrees of illuminating strength! So God was showing me that since we are created in His image, He is the source of light... Wait for it. Wait for it. We, are like the stars illuminating the VAST expanse of darkness! [DO NOT START SINGING "This Little Light of Mine!!!!" If you do I will play 5 hours straight of Kumbaya on a kazoo followed by Its A Small World on the Bagpipes!] OK. I know it is a little nerdy. But think of it! What an honor! How humbling! God could have just removed the darkness, and by route, us. But instead decided to change us into beacons that would bring those in darkness into light. Into Him! The Star of Bethelehem was the first box. We are the stars! Not the self-serving celebrities who deem themselves above others but the Holy Spirit powered balls of God-energy set in darkness to guide others into the light! Merry Christmas!
10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
This morning during worship I was given a word picture. Please understand this picture is neither an argument for nor against "Big Bang" theory. It is not flying in the face of established astrophysics or quantum mechanics. It is simply a model, a simplistic representation, or gestalt if you will of a very mind-blowing idea. Enjoy the ride!
So here goes. God is the source of light. We dwell in darkness. When Adam and Eve sinned and were booted from the garden, our world fell into darkness and was thereby ruled by it. Before then, they walked in the light with God. See Gen 1-2.
So mankind is living in darkness. Sinning, dying, hating God. God still loves us. So He, the source of light shines a concentrated focused beam of light into the darkness. OK here comes the slightly weird but cool picture. Each of us are like a little wooden box dwelling in the darkness. God became a box of the same size and dimensions as us in the darkness only He was made of glass with all kinds of prisms and reflectors mounted in it. So that when the Father shines his light into the darkness, Christ the glass box, illuminates the way. When we are re-birthed in Christ we are given a light on the outside and a photoelectric receiving panel (Holy Spirit). Kind of like a solar panel mounted on the inside. (Put the stones down!!! I told you that this is just a word picture!) The light of God shines on us and energizes our individual lights and we each shine around us into the darkness. As we grow, God changes our boxes from wood to glass with varying degrees of transparency because we all grow differently at different rates. As a result more light passes in energizing the light to shine greater into the darkness. Sometimes the glass, because it dwells in darkness, gets a little smudgy, dimming the outward light. So as shown to us in John 13, we gently and lovingly squeegee each others boxes and our lights shine brighter again.
Now here is the really cool part! Think about all of these pinpoints of light, us, shining into the darkness. The darkness is still in between but there are guiding lights inside of it for those lost within it. Now, expand outward to the universe. The stars are like tiny pinpoints of light shining into the vast expanse of darkness! Like our lights, they too have varying degrees of illuminating strength! So God was showing me that since we are created in His image, He is the source of light... Wait for it. Wait for it. We, are like the stars illuminating the VAST expanse of darkness! [DO NOT START SINGING "This Little Light of Mine!!!!" If you do I will play 5 hours straight of Kumbaya on a kazoo followed by Its A Small World on the Bagpipes!] OK. I know it is a little nerdy. But think of it! What an honor! How humbling! God could have just removed the darkness, and by route, us. But instead decided to change us into beacons that would bring those in darkness into light. Into Him! The Star of Bethelehem was the first box. We are the stars! Not the self-serving celebrities who deem themselves above others but the Holy Spirit powered balls of God-energy set in darkness to guide others into the light! Merry Christmas!
Pete, We have to have these kinds of talks more often during our Sunday morning get-together s. Love You Man, You always give me a light to shine down the dark tunnel. You were a blessing to me this morning and You remain a blessing always. I am proud to be a friend to all of our favorite Nerd. !!!!!
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