In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. (John 1:1-5)
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In the great Alice Walker novel "The Color Purple," the main character is Celie. Celie is a young woman with a tragic life, but in the midst of it all she develops some great wisdom about God and religion. One of my favourite quotes from Celie is this: "...have you ever found God in church? I never did. I just found a bunch of folks hoping for him to show. Any God I ever felt in church I brought in with me. And I think all the other folks did too. They come to church to share God, not find God.” Having reflected just a few hours ago on the importance of light entering the world and overcoming darkness and driving away the fear that darkness represents, I thought about those words from Celie. To me, they seem to capture what these opening verses from John’s Gospel are talking about.
Jesus was light; and His birth was God’s way of overcoming the darkness that had overtaken the world. And that light shines. Those who follow Christ are those who live in that light, and so, in a way, Celie’s words are very wise, and they capture better than any sermon possibly can the meaning of Christmas and the meaning of worship. Our goal when we come into this place - whether for an 11:00 Communion service or for a 10 am regular service - isn’t to find God. Mainly, that’s because God isn’t lost. God is already here among us; God is already here within us. That’s what the light of Christ is all about. God is here. We’re not here now looking for God; we’re not going to find God. We’re here to be a family, united by our common faith in Jesus, our lives already enlightened by the gospel He shared. No. Our goal isn’t to find God. Our goal on this holy night is to share with one another what we know about God and what we’ve learned about God. It’s that light shining from within us that is our life, and it’s that light shining from within us that offers new life in Christ’s name to all whom we encounter.
We gather around the table as people whose lives have been transformed and as people who are guided constantly by that light that entered the world so long ago in Jesus. We share the gifts of God with each other; indeed, by our faith, we share God with each other; we see God reflected in one another’s faces. Jesus was that everlasting light spoken of in the carol “O Little Town Of Bethlehem.” But Jesus also called us to be lights. When we leave this place tonight, may we shine for all the world to see as a testimony to the love of God shown by Jesus and shown through us.
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