Out of the Night; Into the Light

John 8:12; John 9:1–41

1. The Light that Reveals: Jesus reveals the truth about God and ourselves.

In him was life, and that life was the light of men. That light shines in the darkness, and yet the darkness did not overcome it.

John 1:4–5 (CSB)

The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact expression of his nature, sustaining all things by his powerful word.

Hebrews 1:3 (CSB)

This is the judgment: The light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil.

John 3:19 (CSB)

2. The Light that Restores: Jesus opens eyes that cannot open themselves.

In their case, the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

2 Corinthians 4:4 (CSB)

For God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of God's glory in the face of Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 4:6 (CSB)

3. The Light that Requires a Response: We must believe in Jesus and follow Him.

But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

James 1:22 (CSB)

But to all who did receive him, he gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in his name.

John 1:12 (CSB)

“In the Storm”

John 6:15-21

1. Keep obeying when the wind turns against you.

Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds.

Matthew 14:22 (CSB)

2. Trust Jesus when you cannot see him.

After he said good-bye to them, he went away to the mountain to pray. Well into the night, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and he was alone on the land. He saw them straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. Very early in the morning he came toward them walking on the sea and wanted to pass by them.

Mark 6:46–48 (CSB)

Therefore, he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, since he always lives to intercede for them.

Hebrews 7:25 (CSB)

3. Don’t let fear cause you to miss Jesus in the storm.

Seeing them straining at the oars—for the wind was against them—at about the fourth watch of the night, He came to them, walking on the sea; and He intended to pass by them. But when they saw Him walking on the sea, they thought that it was a ghost, and they cried out;

Mark 6:48–49 (NASB 2020)

Immediately Jesus spoke to them. “Have courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

Matthew 14:27 (CSB)

4. See Jesus as greater than your storm.

God replied to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you.”

Exodus 3:14 (CSB)

He alone stretches out the heavens and treads on the waves of the sea.

Job 9:8 (CSB)

The Bread of Life

John 6:1-15, 22-40 (ESV)

1. We all need Jesus

John 6:1-5 (ESV)

2. When things don’t add up, Jesus has the power to multiply.

John 6:5-7 (ESV)

3. Entrust what you have to Jesus

John 6:8-15 (ESV)

Charles Spurgeon - Now, I daresay that some of you have had Satan saying to you,

“What is the use of your trying to do anything?” To you, dear mother, with a family of

children, he has whispered, “You cannot serve God.” He knows very well that, by

sustaining grace, you can; and he is afraid of how well you can serve God if you bring

up those dear children in His fear. He says to the peddler of books over yonder, “You

have not much ability; what can you do?” Ah, dear friend! he is afraid of what you can

do, and if you will only do what you can do, God will, by-and-by, help you to do what

now you cannot do. But the devil is afraid of even the little that you can do now; and

many a child of God seems to side with Satan in despising the day of small things.

4. When you don’t have enough, Jesus is enough.

John 6:22-40 (ESV)

Whenever God reveals something about His nature, it always comes with the

invitation to know Him in that way. Never does the understanding of His nature

come to us just to make us more theologically sound. That's important, but it is

secondary. What's important is to know Him in that way, to encounter Him.

He who is already king, has come to open his kingdom to men; but in their

blindness, men try to force him to be the kind of king they want; thus they fail to get

the king they want, and also the kingdom he offers.

Jeremiah 2:13 (ESV)

Isaiah 55:1-2 (ESV)

The Cure

John 5:1–18

1. Look beyond the solution you have settled for.

2. Trust the abundance of God’s grace.

For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will.

John 5:21 (ESV)

3. Take Jesus at his word and move.

Then he told them, “The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath.

Mark 2:27 (CSB)

4. Seek the healing that matters most.

Jesus responded to them, “My Father is still working, and I am working also.”

John 5:17 (CSB)

This is why the Jews began trying all the more to kill him: Not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal to God.

John 5:18 (CSB)

The greatest reality was that God had come to the pool.

The Kind of Faith God Honors

John 4:46-54

Now without faith it is impossible to please God, since the one who draws near to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

Hebrews 11:6 CSB

1. Jesus receives crisis faith but refuses shallow faith.

2. We need a confident faith to carry us home.

Jesus said, “Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe.”

John 20:29 CSB

“So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.

Romans 10:17 NASB95

“He sent his word and healed them.”

Psalm 107:20 CSB

The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.

Hebrew 1:3 NIV

For he spoke, and it came into being; he commanded, and it came into existence.

Psalm 33:9 CSB

3. A confirmed faith is a contagious faith.

So he went out and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and they were all amazed.

Mark 5:20 CSB

But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

John 20:31 (CSB)

1. Jesus enters our ordinary lives with extraordinary grace.

2. Jesus meets us at the point of our emptiness.

3. Jesus transforms empty religion into abundant grace.

But the grapevine said to them, “Should I stop giving my wine that cheers both God and man, and rule over trees?”

Judges 9:13 (CSB)

He causes grass to grow for the livestock and provides crops for man to cultivate, producing food from the earth, wine that makes human hearts glad— making his face shine with oil— and bread that sustains human hearts.

Psalm 104:14–15 (CSB)

4. Jesus reveals his glory that leads us to faith.

I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.

1 John 5:13 CSB

I. I believe in the power of prayer (v. 26 & 27)

II. I believe that God can be trusted (v. 28)

III. I believe in the blessing of God (v. 31 & 32)

IV. I believe in the love of God (v. 33-39)

The One Thing You Can’t Earn

Mark 10:17-27

1. You can have everything going for you and still be missing what matters most.

2. Jesus will expose whatever you are trusting instead of Him.

Do not covet your neighbor’s house. Do not covet your neighbor’s wife, his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.

Exodus 20:17 (CSB)

Do not have other gods besides me.

Exodus 20:3 (CSB)

3. The One Thing you need most is the one thing you cannot earn.

“Salvation is not achieved; it is received.”