Are You the Light?

I'd like to begin by asking you a question. How long did Jesus fast before he was tempted by Satan the Devil? Got that in mind? Got that in mind, everybody? How long did Jesus fast before he was tempted by Satan the Devil? Okay, let's all say it together. Ready? One, two, three. Fourteen days. Wrong. Let's go over to Luke 4, verse 1, and see a little-known passage of Scripture, I guess. Luke 4, verse 1. Luke puts a lot of detail. He was a very detailed person, a detailed writer.

Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness. Being tempted for 40 days by the Devil. So he didn't fast at all before being tempted by the Devil. He went into the wilderness. He was tempted by the Devil for 40 days. And then it says, And in those days he ate nothing. And afterward, when they had ended, he was hungry. Just a little aside, it doesn't say he was thirsty. You'll die of thirst about 10 times faster than you will of food. But it never mentions that he was thirsty. And the Devil said to him, You're the Son of God.

Command this stone to become bread. Why didn't he say, Command this stone to pour water out, like happened to Israel? There's some little details in the Bible. And let me ask you another question, as long as we're asking questions. What was the purpose of Jesus Christ's ministry here on earth? Why did he come to earth? We know he came to die for the sins of mankind. But what was the purpose for his 3 1⁄2 year ministry?

You ever thought about that? And how successful was he at it? Let's go on here in Luke 4. Let's drop down to verse 14. Today I want to take a look at, first of all, the ministry of Jesus Christ and try to identify what it was about. Here we find a time when he didn't have disciples. He just went up and was tempted for 40 days by the devil.

After that, he is going to begin preaching. In verse 14, Jesus returned in power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of him went through all the surrounding region. And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. So here he begins his work. Now let's notice a few other little details here. It's all about details. He taught in their synagogue one Sabbath or synagogue many Sabbaths. Synagogues only meet on the Sabbath. So it sounds like he's there for a while, doesn't he? He's teaching for some time in the synagogues, and the people got to know him and began to glorify him.

In verse 16, he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. As his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day and stood up to read, etc., etc. We see he's reading on the Sabbath. Dropping down to verse 28, it says, So all in the synagogues, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath. So now you have other synagogues and other teachings, and he's beginning to say some things that are upsetting the way things were, the status quo in the political religious system of the day.

And they rose up and thrust him out of the city, and they led him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw him down over the cliff. They're going to kill him! That's what they thought of his message. Verse 30, Then passing through the midst of them, he went his way.

Now how do you take a long-haired, unique person who you're throwing over the cliff, and suddenly he can disappear through the middle of the crowd? Obviously, he didn't have long hair, and that's one of the proofs he didn't have long hair, because he looked much like them and worked his way back through the crowd. That's why he also needed somebody to betray him with a kiss on the cheek as to who he was, instead of just saying, it's the long-haired guy, save yourself a few shekels of silver, just go look for him. Well, you know, the life of Jesus Christ began with a ministry that was controversial. It was a ministry that was very unique and very powerful, and he's working his way through this ministry alone.

We come on down to verse 37, and the report about him went into every place in the surrounding region. There's news about him, about what he's doing. Verse 38, Now he rose from the synagogue. Here he is in another Sabbath. Think of how many synagogues have been mentioned here. There's time in this area. He arose from the synagogue and entered Simon's house. Who is this Simon? This is Simon that would be called Peter. He has been teaching in the synagogues, and he naturally, as a course of things, goes to Simon's house for a meal.

They know each other by then. He's invited over to the house. But Simon's wife's mother, his mother-in-law, was sick with a high fever, and they made request of him concerning her. So he stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. And immediately she arose and served them.

And there was no argument about being served a meal on the Sabbath after leaving the synagogue. But here we see she's serving. He knows the family. They know him from the synagogue. And what happens?

In verse 42, Now when it was day, he departed and went into a deserted place. And the crowd sought him and came to him. He had a relationship with people in the Galilee area. He had spent Sabbaths and time there. The people knew him. And the next day they sought him out, even though he wanted some privacy.

And so they tried to keep him from leaving them, but he said to them, I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, because for this purpose I have been sent. So his ministry is to preach the Gospel, not unlike the mission of the church today and the people that God calls. But let's notice something right up front. He spent a lot of time with people. He didn't sort of drop by with some leaflets and throw them in the synagogue and move on. He didn't sort of drop off Bibles in motel rooms or booklets. He was there among them, and he taught, and they listened, and they ate with him, and they followed him. And he was preaching in the synagogues of Galilee. There it is again. He's preaching Sabbath by Sabbath in the synagogues in an area. He's spending time. The ministry of Jesus Christ was about a message, but it also was about love, about loving people, about taking time, sharing, showing, guiding, much like a mentor would work with a mentee or a parent would work with a child to not just tell them, I told you how to live life. Now I'm back ten years later to see how you're doing. Jesus Christ was there. He was with them. He was becoming a part of their life as we go on in chapter 5. And so it was, as the multitude pressed about him to hear the Word of God, that he stood by the lake of Geneseret and saw two boats standing by the lake. He just happened to be at the lake, and he just happened to see two boats.

Is that what happened? Let's see.

You see, when Jesus Christ preached on that lake to the crowds, he already had a relationship with the crowds.

He had a relationship with the man who owned the boat. He had been in his home. He had healed his mother. He had taught in his church. It was no fluke that he happened to be there by the lake, by Peter's boat.

And so as we go on, he got into the boat and put out and sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat. That kept the people from crowding in because they were crowding around him.

Now, if you think about the boat scene for a minute, you only have two people reported in the boat. One is the great teacher, Jesus the Christ. And the other is the person rowing the boat.

So if the boat is not at anchor, you probably have to row a little here and row a little there and keep the boat in the right place.

No matter what, from the crowd's view, you're looking at Jesus Christ and you look at him for a long time, and then you look at the guy in the boat with him, and back and forth.

Peter, the professional fisherman, is in the eyes, the limelight, as it were, of the whole crowd on the shore.

And when Jesus Christ finished talking, he said to Simon, launch out into the deep and let down your nets for the catch.

Whoa! Everybody in town is now looking at the professional fisherman who's been told to go fishing at a time of day. You cannot catch fish.

Now, a professional fisherman whose carnal with pride, like Peter, would have said probably different things than what he said, because he had a relationship with him. And Simon answered and said to him, Master, we have toiled all night.

Hint, hint. That's when you fish for fish. We have toiled all night and have caught nothing.

Nevertheless, at your word, I will let down the net. Notice what's important here. There is a relationship. Nevertheless, at your word, I've come to know you and see you, and I realize you're probably not into fishing, and you don't know these things, but nevertheless, because of who you are and the respect, and you healed my mother, I'm going to let down the net in front of all of these people. And when they had done this, verse 6, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking. So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both the boats so that they began to sink.

And when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord, for he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish which they had taken. Verse 10, As also were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus Christ didn't just come down the shore one day and say, Simon, John, James, you know, hop in the boat. No, I'm sorry, get out of the boat and come follow me. I'll make you fishers of men. And they were like, whoa, you know, and off they went.

Jesus had a relationship with John, and he had a relationship with James. And they were partners with Simon, and he took the time here. And Jesus said to Simon, Do not be afraid, from now on you will catch men. And with this massive load, they brought their boats to land, and they forsook all and followed him.

Notice two things here. They abandoned the catch of their life, which meant money, and they followed him. They didn't just say, I were with you, we support you, we're in your ballpark. No, they went in a direction that he went.

They went in a direction that Jesus Christ went.

In John chapter 8 and verse 12, Jesus makes a statement, a profound statement that oftentimes we don't understand. I've heard many people talk about this topic, but I wonder if we really understand what he meant. I'm not saying that I even have the full understanding of it, but I believe that there is more here that we can... that we can grasp today. In John 8 verse 12, then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, I am the light of the world.

The light of the world. Now, we tend to think of that, at least I have. The light of the world is something over there that's beaming at you, that's showing, it's different, it's unique, it's silent, it's powerful, it's a witness.

It is something profound in darkness. And he says, I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life. In the next statement, he talks about that light as being something other than what we typically imagine it. It's a light that's lighting a path. It's a light where the one who has the light is showing the way, by the way in which they live, the way in which they speak, the knowledge, the understanding that they have. And it's lighting a path and bringing people along that path. As Jesus said, he who follows me, the light. You have to walk this way. Shall not walk in darkness. There's nothing to do about recognizing Jesus Christ, having the faith that he is the Son of Man, recognizing the truth. It's all about walking. It's about going, traveling. He shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life. The understanding, the miracle, the knowledge, the ability to repent and grow and overcome and change into something else. Something that's not darkness. During Jesus' ministry on earth, he was the light to the world because he was the only person on earth with God's Holy Spirit. There was no other person on the planet. After the death of John the Baptist, he was it. And he said, I am the light to the world. I'm the one who can lead. I'm the one who can guide. I'm the one who can nurture. I'm the one who can show and shine and help people go down a road. For that reason, he was a light to the world.

John 1, verse 4, identifies him, describes him as being the one who created all things. He was the word, the logos from the beginning. But there's something interesting here. Verse 4, in him was life. Something unique about him. If you were to follow that, he just told us in the last verse, that following this direction will take you to life. So in him is life. It's not going to be something he just gives. You know, boom, boom, boom, you have life. No, it's something that you can follow and obtain if you don't walk in darkness.

In him was life, and the life was the light of men. God's way of life is the light. God, godliness, his Holy Spirit brings that into an individual, and that provides light and life forever in the kingdom of God. Ultimately, that's the ultimate destination of it. Verse 5, in the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. You know that light shone on the disciples, and they never comprehended it. They got glimpses, but not very strong glimpses. And so during Jesus' ministry, he was the light in darkness, and he was trying to help people who did not understand. He was teaching them. He was trying to bring along disciples. As many as 120 were still following him at the time of his death.

That's not a huge group, because the world did not know him. Verse 9, that was the true light which gives light to every man coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, and the world did not know him. Another question for us today, then, what is light? What really is light? When we talk about light to the world, who is the light to the world?

What is the difference between being in society and of society? I'd like to take a look today at our important calling and our purpose for being called now. Sometimes we underestimate or don't realize the importance of our calling and the expectation that God has from you and from me in calling us at this time.

Let's take a look at that. We talk about the church and the world. This is part of our church speak, our church culture. You're in the church, or you're in the world? The world, the church. Jesus said, I'm not of the world, but I'm in the world. Now, you're not in the world. You're not of the world, but you're in the world. We're in and out, and what about the world? We always talk about the world. It's them and us.

What is the world? Does anybody know what the Greek word cosmos, which is translated world, means? You know the definition of the Greek word cosmos? Does it just roll off your tongue? If you look it up, it's very interesting. The definition of the Greek word cosmos is the arrangement or the decoration. Now, what does that do to your concept of when you say the world? Them and us, the world. The decoration and the arrangement. We are not to be of the decoration and the arrangement.

We are to be of the family of God. The decoration and the arrangement really says it well. It really, really does. Because these things are contrived, but an arrangement is what works. It's sort of the rhythm of life. I'll get this and I'll stroke that and you can help here and I'll do that for you and you do this for me.

It works in society, it works in marriage, it works in business. We have the sales and we have the arrangement. And then there's the decoration that goes along with this. I'll decorate me and I'll look good and I'll be kind of powerful or I'll be real beautiful. I'll move my little plan along through life.

So we have the decoration and that works well with the arrangement. That's what society is. It's an arrangement with personal decorum. And it's a sham, it's a shell, it's a facade.

There's nothing to it. It's all self-centered. A bunch of self-centered people working out how their egos and their vanities can all get the best they can in this lifetime. And then ultimately you have the afterlife. I read a definition of the afterlife the other day. People consider whatever your view of the afterlife is. For us it's the kingdom of God, other people it's heaven or whatever.

Your people's view of the afterlife is merely extra innings. You have your plan that you're working on, right? At some point it gets interrupted with death. But the resurrection gives you extra innings. What do you think happens on the other side?

Will you continue on, don't you? With whatever your plan was, because that's sort of built into your plan. That is not what God is offering. And that is not what God wants. He doesn't want a self-focus now in this life projected out through eternity to continue. It's going to work out well for me. Remember what the sons of thunder did? Oh, can we sit on your left hand and your right hand? We're just working out our little plan here out to eternity. Continue on with the chief seats.

That's not what God has in mind at all. It's easy to see this once you step out of your culture, whether it's your religious culture or your physical culture. Either one. If you step out of the church and you look at other religions, you can say, wow, we can see this so clearly. Or you step out of your physical culture, you can see things very clearly. But in your own culture, you become satiated and a little bit used to what's going on.

You don't see things so clearly. It's easy to step into the culture, let's say, of China and see them go busily about their daily life in a personal role that's promoting each person individually. And since almost immediately, as Mani and I did, there's a great disconnect between people. They don't bond. They're not connected. I don't know whether it was communism or whatever it was, but these people are very congenial, they're very nice.

But there's no connection, not with you, and apparently not with each other. It's very pleasant, but there's just no real connection. And the other thing is, there's no churches. You can drive for hours through cities, through farms, through little towns. There's not a church anywhere of any kind. I know there are some old temples that pre-existed before the time of Mao Zedong, and they're kind of historical tourist spots for the locals and for internationals. But other than a few, I guess, monks that sort of work there, I'm not sure why.

We saw two at a Starbucks one time. That's the only two I saw the whole trip. And they were a couple of young guys. I don't know, it's easy to look at another culture and say, you know, this is kind of shallow. It's just not a lot here. When you worship the dragon or the ear of the pig to bring you good luck, and that's about it, you say, there's a problem here.

One of our tour guys was an English professor, and he took us through the Sian Terracotta Warriors Museum, where he had this greedy first emperor, and he made all these, an army of at least 7,000 warriors out of clay. The reason he made them out of clay was because one of his generals convinced him he'd be more popular with the people.

If he didn't do like the previous people, previous leaders, and bury them alive, real people alive, to support him in the afterlife. So he agreed, yeah, we'll make all the real troops, we'll cast their faces, we'll do their costumes, make them just like they look, but we'll make them out of clay and bury them. Well, the tour guide said, you know, I have, at my house, we have a little conflict from time to time, you know, in the family.

So I bought two life-size terracotta replicas. Paid a lot of money for them. And he said, I put two in our living room, and they bring peace to our house. They keep peace in the family.

Like, wow! You can see a disconnect, like I said, when you step out of your own culture, if you can go to Africa or the Middle East or wherever it is, but sometimes in our own culture, these things don't stand out quite so profoundly. But there is the arrangement, and there is the decoration, and there's what the human heart comes up with in the machinations of the mind.

And in Ephesians 2, it tells us that we were all part of this. We sometimes think we weren't. No, I was always sort of a believer. I was always, you know, I always believed in God. My great-grandma used to tell me about God even before I ever heard about the truth, and all I had to do was make a few adjustments, which day you keep, which festivals you keep, what you eat, things like that.

But I've always been a good person. Well, here it says, we were walking according to the course of this world, verse 2, according to the prince of the power of the air. We're following a different mentality, and this mentality is the world, is the cosmos, it is the decorum, it's the arrangement. It's the sham. In verse 5, even when we were dead in trespasses, God made us alive together with Christ. By grace are you being saved, it should say.

In verse 6, raised us up together and made us sit in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. It's not what the Bible says. It's what your Bible says, but that's not what the Bible says. Let's read that a little more carefully. We're not being taken to heaven. Notice what it really says. And raised us up together and made us sit together in the heavenly, if you look up that word, you'll find in the spiritual, and in your Bible the word places is in italics, it was added.

So He's raised us up and made us think in the spiritual instead of the carnal. He's changed our mind from the societal machinations of self and made us have a spiritual mind. How does this happen? In Christ Jesus, we have been given the mind of Christ, the understanding, plus the godly action.

The Holy Spirit moves us away from the veneer of human charades and takes us to the deeds and the mentality of God, of godliness. And we have been moved from this physical carnal passion to spiritual, spiritual thinking in Jesus Christ. We must remain unmixed from that which we came out of. In James 4, it says you really need to move away from that cosmos mentality, that self-centered mentality. He begins in James 4, in verse 4, adulterers and adultresses. Well, He's referring to the first three verses, and He's saying spiritual adulterers and adultresses. You're trying to mix the mind of the cosmos with the mind of Christ.

You're trying to mix them up. That's what adultery is. You're mixing up different covenants. You made a covenant over here, now there's a covenant over here, and you're trying to mix these covenants. Do you not know that friendship with the world... Ah, there's that word again. Friendship with the cosmos. That's the friendship with the charade, with the decor, the decoration, the arrangement. If you go back to that selfish process by which humans raise their selves, then that is enmity with God. Whoever therefore wants to be a friend... It's not talking about a friend of. In the Greek it's fond, it's dear, it's actively fond of the world, that mentality. Whoever wants to be fond of the mentality of this charade of life, if you're fond of that, if that's what you want, fond of the world, makes himself an enemy of God. It's nothing to do with being friendly to people, helping people, working with people. Jesus Christ himself was a great friend to many. He was friendly to many.

But here we're not talking about friendly to people, but fond of a mentality of Satan and human nature. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, the Spirit which dwells in us yearns jealously. God's Spirit wants to lift us out of this human self-focused passion and get us to be alight, get us to help others, to love, to serve, to have the mind of God, to put ourselves on the path with God's help, and also to help others walk down that path.

That's what Jesus Christ's life was about. He was a perfect example. He was friendly to sinners. He gave people himself. He gave his time. He gave his teaching. And those whom the Father chose, those who could see the truth with a calling, He helped them to walk properly in it.

The disciples had a calling, but they didn't have a choosing yet. They didn't have God's Holy Spirit. He knew that. He worked with them for three and a half years. Even though they didn't get it, He kept working with them and working with them. He never gave up on them. In John 6, verse 64, we see a statement that puts the calling from God into a clear perspective.

It says, But among you there are some who do not believe. Why do people, some believe, and why do some not believe? Don't they get it? Don't we write the literature plain enough? Why is that going on? For Jesus knew from the first who were the ones that did not believe, and who was the one that would betray Him. He knew from the first when He got there whom the Father had called, who did not believe and would not believe. He knew in advance who wouldn't believe, and also the one that would betray Him. It wasn't a question in His mind.

He knew He had 120. He knew it from the day He started His ministry at least. He said from the very start, And He said for this reason, I have told you that no one can come to Me unless it is granted by the Father. I know who the Father has granted this to, and I have known it from the very beginning. Because of this, many of His disciples turned back and no longer went about with Him.

They weren't being given that understanding, and they didn't want to even try to be around the light. They didn't want to go that way. So they turned back and they walked a different direction. The Holy Spirit gives an individual understanding. We can see things differently than society can. In Jesus' time, He had a particular view and understanding.

If we look in Luke 19, verse 11, we see Jesus Christ compared with the disciples. Luke 19, verse 11, Now as they heard these things, He spoke another parable because He was near Jerusalem and because they thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately. They're in one track. They're thinking the Roman Empire is going to get overthrown. Israel is going to be restored to its prominence in the world. Was this going to happen now? They thought it was going to happen immediately.

And so therefore He said, now here's from His understanding, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return. During the disciples' lives, before the death of Jesus Christ, they had no concept that He would die and go to heaven for 2,000 years and return with a kingdom that would rule the world. Never entered their mind. They were waiting any minute for Him or the Messiah to show up, knock out the Roman Empire and become a people who many did not even believe in and after life whatsoever, would just be a strong nation, the strongest nation on earth, and would be recognized and respected.

In John 6 and verse 15, again we see the disciples' mentality. John 6 verse 15, Therefore, when I say the disciples, there were quite a few disciples, 120 in the end, and a lot more than that were following Him at that time that this was written.

Therefore, when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force and make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone. There's their mentality. They're going to force Him to become the king. They're going to make this kingdom, you see, happen and mix it up with the Roman Empire, and they're going to win. They could see the miracles and all. Let's go to John chapter 20 and verse 26. Let's skip to the end of Jesus' ministry here on earth, because at this point He's died.

He's been crucified and resurrected. And the disciples were very dismayed about this. They did not understand that He was going to die, even though He told them. It says in the Scriptures they didn't understand. Their excitement for the kingdom is dashed and smashed. The Holy Days in the spring were over. Now, after eight days, this is after the Feast of Unleavened Bread had finished, His disciples were again inside and Thomas with them.

Now, you know Thomas, he's the one with no faith, doubting Thomas. That's what we think. We don't realize that none of the disciples had faith. And Jesus was not talking just to Thomas. Jesus came, the doors being shut stood in the midst and said, Peace to you. And He said to Thomas, You see, Jesus just appeared there, the doors were shut and He just appeared. He said to Thomas, Reach your finger in here and look at My hands, and reach your hand in here and put it in My side.

Do not be unbelieving, but believing. And Thomas answered and said to Him, My Lord and My God. And Jesus said this to Him, Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. How many of you have seen Jesus Christ? I haven't. How many of you can go find a piece of clothing He wore? How many can find His name written somewhere? Who can go to the Roman Empire's archives and find a book that mentions Jesus Christ? When you go to the Holy Land, can you go to one single place and stand in a place where Jesus Christ stood today? Why do you believe in Jesus Christ?

Who irreligious people say is an invention. All the disciples saw Jesus Christ, including Thomas. He said, You have seen Me and you have believed. You know, He also said that Satan and the demons see Jesus and believe. But going on, He says, Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.

The word blessed here again is, Oh, how supremely blessed are those who have not seen Me and believe. That's you, and that's Me, and that's those people going back through time who, other than the apostles, who were all eyewitnesses of Jesus Christ, heard from them, as you and I have and read about it today, heard about Him and we believe.

It's not about simple belief in Christ, rather the faith of Christ, the faith from Christ, the faith that results from having the Holy Spirit in us with His godly mentality, His works, His deeds. I was talking to a young lady up in Sholoh today who believes in the things she mentioned, God's way works. Here's a teenage girl, God's way works. We believe, we sample, we test, we hold fast to that which is true. In other words, that which has been proven by testing, by trying.

The disciples, on the other hand, gave up. Right after this, in John 21, here Jesus has presented Himself twice to the disciples. And what do they do? John 20, verse 26. Well, we just did that. John 21, verse 2. Simon Peter, Thomas called the twin, Nathanael of Cana, in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and the two others of his disciples were together. That's most of the disciples right there, including James and John.

And Simon Peter said to them, I am going fishing. We're done here. This didn't work. All that we have heard and seen and followed hasn't worked. I'm going to be a fisherman again. I go fishing. And they said to him, we are going with you also.

This is Simon, and this is John, and this is James, and some of the other disciples. And they go back out immediately and got into the boat. And that night they caught nothing. Verse 4. But when the morning had now come, Jesus stood on the shore. Yet the disciples didn't know that it was Jesus. And Jesus said to them, children, have you any food? They answered Him, no. And He said to them, cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you'll find some.

So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish. Therefore, John told Peter, it's the Lord! Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment, for he had removed it and plunged into the sea. But the other disciples came in the little boat, for they were not far from land, about 200 yards, dragging the net with fish. And Simon Peter went up and dragged the net to land full of large fish, 153. How do we know 153? They were large fish, and these were fishermen, and they had gone back to fishing, and they counted them. They counted their catch, 153.

And although there were so many, the net was not broken. And Jesus said to them, come and eat breakfast. In verse 14, now this is the third time Jesus showed Himself to His disciples.

The third time. Jesus is working with people who don't see. The light is there. The path is being shown, but they can't see it. They can't follow it. Does He give up on them? No. What's interesting about this is we've now come full circle. Remember the beginning? It was the same boat on the same lake, and the same nets, and the same fish. And they went for three and a half years with Christ in His ministry, and went right back to the same place they started from. They abandoned what they started from, and they were back fishing once again. And Jesus Christ comes back and does something profound. He showed Himself.

In Acts chapter 1 verse 6, just continuing on the story, therefore when they had come together, they asked Him saying, Notice the question. Had they gone anywhere in three and a half years mentally?

When they had come together, they asked Him saying, Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel? Will You restore the kingdom to Israel? Will You make the twelve tribes the leading nation and knock out the Roman Empire now?

And He said to them, It's not for you to know the times of the season, which the Father has put in His own authority. Verse 8, But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall witness to Me. Who is He? The light of the world. You're going to talk about the light of the world. You're going to witness to Me in Jerusalem, in all Judea, Samaria, and to the end of the earth. How could they do that? Well, it was fulfilled in chapter 2, verses 4 and 5, when they were all filled with the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost and began to speak with other languages. In verse 5, And there were men dwelling in Jerusalem, Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. And there they talked, they witnessed, of the light. They talked about the light. This was a transference from them, from being with the light to becoming the light. This has happened in your life and in my life. If you've been baptized, there was a transference that took place and an expectation that God has for you and for me, along with that transference. We first see the light, and we walk with God. And as a child, as a teenager, we don't always understand fully and we don't always follow fully. But does God give up on us? No. Those whom He is drawing, He continues to work with, and at some point, like the apostles, we receive God's Holy Spirit. And that Spirit transfers us into being with the light, to being light, to being light.

John 9, verse 5. Let's understand this specific statement. Again, it's in the details. John 9, verse 5. Jesus said, As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world. Jesus is not the light of the world today. You have to understand that. He is not the light of the world as this statement says. Because He says, As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world. And in John 17, verse 4, in that prayer that He prayed to the Father, He says, verse 11, I am no longer in the world, but I am coming to the Father. So He says, I am no longer the light. Now, if we read Matthew 5, verse 14, notice what He says.

You are the light of the world. Aha! There's the transfer. We are to be what Christ was. We're not just supposed to be Christians, believers, have faith. We are to do the work that He did. He has left us. He has given us His Spirit. He has put that light within us to be the light for others. And that's a big job. It's a big responsibility. We're not to abandon them. We're not to throw booklets at them. We're not supposed to just throw a little lit card, you know, kind of put it on the store there. They saw it. Or like the people who come to their door and they really believe this. They've got the literature out. Have you heard the Lord today? And they hold the literature out. If you touch it, if you touch it, you've been warned. Now, it's important that you touch it because in their culture, you haven't been warned if you haven't touched it. So they'll do anything to get you to touch it. Here, hold it. Push it at you. Throw it at you. Catch it. Just love to not touch it. Whatever you do, don't touch it. It just frustrates them. But that's kind of the simple thing. If you just would have touched this thing, you see, if you were just to see it, if you were just to hear it, then you've had it. It's good. If you were to catch me, I'm the light of the world. If I walked through your neighborhood, you know, is that what the light of the world is? Is that what Jesus Christ did? Did He just go by and heal a few people and move? You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Well, the city set on a hill is far away, and it can be like you and me. Well, here I am. I'm letting my light shine. But then He breaks it down. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. One is just an analogy of light and darkness. The other is, you're in a house. You're like Jesus Christ was with people. You're mixing with people. You have people around you, and you are giving light in the sense that you are sharing. You are leading by example. You are mentoring. You're encouraging. Right there in the house.

Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works. Not see your message, your curious little, you know, I go to church every Sabbath. I don't eat pork. Your good works, you see. I'll tell you a secret. You'll hear from the church, and you always have. How many booklets we send out, how much advertising we do, how many responses we get, and there's not very many responses actually. What you don't hear is, most of the people that have ever been in God's church did not come in through those avenues. People who come into God's church come in through other people in God's church.

Yes, they hear, and they bump into it, but that does not convert them. That's not a light to them. That's information. But that information tends to get swept under, or the cares of the world, the roots don't go deep, and nothing much happens to it. But where you combine that little seed with the light of the world, somebody who's living that way, and they can compare that, somebody who will talk with them, somebody who will be their co-worker at work, a family member, a friend, and they actually see this way of life, this light, that's where people come into the church.

It's always been the largest number of people, the largest group, category of people that have ever come into the church. And we really should talk about that, because it is really a legacy, it's really an honor that should be given to those who are living God's way, those who are walking God's way, those of you who are working in the workplace, and friends, school friends, neighbors, and people who interact with other people and take the time.

And that's a good thing. That's a very good thing. I don't want to at all put down what the church is doing, but realize in a sense that that's very impersonal, very impersonal. Mr. Herbert Armstrong was an agent that brought a lot of people to the church, to the knowledge of the church, and why he spent time with them every day for 30 minutes.

And sometimes, many times a day for 30 minutes, you could turn the radio dial when I was a kid, almost any night, just spin the dial, and he was on. And when he was done, spin it again, and he's on again. And he was there with you, and he was teaching you, and you got to know him.

And people wanted to meet him. It's a little different than what we have today, and it's more of an Internet. And here, read the truth. But how much does that take hold of an individual? No, you are the light of the world. Therefore, let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father in heaven. Jesus tells us that we cannot serve God in anything else. You cannot mix light with darkness. I don't know if you've ever tried, but light and dark don't go together. Is it light in here, or is it dark in here? Well, it's light in here, because you can see.

If there was one candle flame burning, it would be light in here. Now, it might not be a bright light, but you have to say there's light. If you go down into a cave, one of these deep caverns somewhere, and they turn the lights out, now you have dark. But if somebody even lights a match, then you have light.

You cannot mix light and dark. There's no way to mix them. They're total opposites. God wants us to not try to mix the two, but be total opposites. In fact, the very deeds of darkness don't register with light. When we were over in China, we don't see many foreigners like yourself. But once in a while, you bump into one. In one bust or something, we had a young American guy who got on there. And so sad. He looked like a drummer in a heavy metal band or something. But he got on and said something about, Hey, I think tonight I'll party again.

Go get drunk. Now, you know, darkness is all about, you know, some girl. You hear young girls these days saying, Hey, let's get some guys in the squad tonight and get drunk. Let's go binge drink. You're throwing up the next day. We saw a Chinese lady in a taxi cab next to us as the traffic was going through the toll booth, and she was puking out the window. Now, I said, Monty, don't look over there.

Where? No, I didn't. But you know, if you see somebody puking, and then the next day they're like, Hey, let's go do that again. It doesn't register, does it? It doesn't register. Hey, tonight, Saturday night, let's get a good Satan movie and see who's chopping up somebody with the spirit, you know, stuff. Because good old Halloween 3 just came out. You know, or... No, it's like, what? I don't get it. It doesn't register, does it? After a while it doesn't register. Those things that used to make sense to us, whatever they were, now you think, Hmm, you know, I don't think so.

I don't want to know about Harry Potter and his wizardry with the witch and everybody's flying on brooms. How do I know that? It was on the TV screen on the airplane with Chinese subtitles. And I was trying not to look, but you look over there, there's another one. You know, it's like, ugh, I don't identify with that. And we don't identify with certain things, nor do people of darkness identify with light. What? You know what, you know what Sholo's doing tonight for fun?

After services today, they have a board game. It's Bible Trivia. And they're going to have, they just can't wait. They were bringing the game out today. Oh, look, look, we have so much fun doing this. We've quit playing cards up here because this is so much fun. Now, try that on the neighbors. It's Saturday night! What are we going to do? Bible Trivia! You know, it probably wouldn't, probably just wouldn't go over real well. And so things of darkness don't really register with light, and likewise, the reverse. In 1 Peter 2.11, I would like to read this from the New International Version.

Dear friends, I urge you as aliens and strangers in the world, in the world, the cosmos, in this mental machination of fakery that people go through. You abstain from sinful desires which war against your soul. The word soul there means life. War is against your life. Live such good lives among the pagans that though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God when? On the day that he visits. People aren't always going to respond well to the light. They didn't to Jesus Christ.

He said, look, if they responded well to me, they'll respond well to you, and vice versa. But someday they will. Someday they'll look back when the lights come on, and they'll say, you know what? There was a person who walked this way, who showed me that way.

It didn't make sense to me then. There was a person who took the time to teach me the truth, but I didn't get it. He wanted me to walk this way, or she wanted me to walk this way and live a happy life. And they had a happy life, but it didn't seem happy to me.

It didn't seem happy to me. But now I see it, and now I give God the glory for it. To those who are called, the light will make sense. The few that God is calling now.

And if love is present, then they will want to walk. They'll want to imitate and emulate. Jesus Christ was light, and He came, and He loved, and He served. And He was a friend to any and everybody. Sinners and saints. Well, there weren't any saints, so just sinners.

And that was His work. That was His ministry. We are now light. We are now His disciples. We are now His ambassadors. And we must love and serve.

Romans 10.14. Notice how this verse can be now understood in the light of what I've been teaching today. Romans 10.14. How will they then call on Him in whom they have not believed? Will it be a pamphlet? Will it be a piece of literature? Will it be something on the Internet? How will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a teacher? How will they hear without a teacher? It won't be a pamphlet. It won't be some electrons on a screen that's going to teach them. It's going to be a teacher.

It talks here about a teacher, about a preacher. It's not just these tools that we have. Even by themselves, we can send this stuff out, and send this stuff out. It can appear in mailboxes, and people look at it and say, What is it? It talks about different stuff that I'm used to, but what is it?

How does it work? How does it apply? What's the end result? I don't trust it. I don't know. They need light. They need somebody with a supporting relationship. They need somebody to show how it works. To give you an example, we all know Steve Kennedy. Steve said, I wouldn't have continued attending church without a certain previous relationship, an experience with a church member, because Stephen in his life had had previous experiences with religion, and he was burned with religion. He was going to have nothing to do with religion.

But there was this one person, one person who took the time to talk to him and show him and walk with him. And Stephen came to church. There's another individual, Mr. Denny Luker. He went to college and got skilled in engineering. Over in Los Angeles, he got in with an engineering firm, and he was an engineer.

And one of his co-workers at work was a church member. And gradually, that person introduced him to Bible teachings, introduced him to Mr. Herbert Armstrong on the radio, the television, introduced him to the truth itself, introduced him to the church, and he started attending. Two examples of people who may not have in this life gone forward had not God sent them somebody to walk them through it. What's interesting in both of these cases is the two individuals who brought them along, who were examples of them, later left.

But there is a power that comes along with a person who is there for you, takes the time that believes him or herself. Relationships. Relationships from you, from me. They're very important today, whether the person is being called now, or whether someday an individual will give God the glory for his way of life. But even within those being called, relationships are important. Just because you have God's Holy Spirit, relationships are important.

Galatians 6, verse 10, let's look at this scripture through the light of being a light to others. Galatians 6, 10, So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people. It doesn't say, let us be a flicker, a light, a reflection. Let us throw booklets at all people. Let us pray for all people.

Let's be glad we're not like those sinners out there. What does it say? As we have opportunity, let us do good. That's love. Doing good means righteousness, the acts of righteousness, loving, serving, being involved with others. Let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are the household of faith. Because those who are walking this way of life now, it turns out, need the light to be shown to them often as well. We need it from each other.

We need the encouragement one from another. We need the reassurance. We need the redirection. We need the spark that somebody has over here. We need a little bit of new understanding that somebody has over there. We need the encouragement from somebody who's been persevering over here. That light is very important. So everybody needs the love, the righteousness, the example inside and outside the faith.

Let's look at Hebrews 10, verse 23-25. As we wrap this up, Hebrews 10, verse 23. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. Yes, we need to hold fast. That's true. How do we hold fast?

How do those of us who are the light, who contain the light and are being lights to others, how do we hold fast? Can we do this individually? Can we just sort of stay home and burn bright? Let us consider one another, verse 24, in order to stir up love and good works. Aha! Let us consider one another. Let's be together. Let's encourage. Let's stir up love and good works among each other.

Turns out that lights need lights. Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together. That's why we need to be here. We all need each other. Just as others who are not here need that example, as at least a witness, we need each other. Not forsaking ourselves or the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another. And so much more as you see the day approaching. In conclusion, Jesus Christ worked a ministry, the disciples became apostles, church members have carried that light for 2,000 years. And still, the world is blind. It's dark. And sometimes we get frustrated because of all of our efforts, more people aren't coming into the church.

Well, the only people who can really come are those whom the Father draws, and He knows who those are. Yes, we should keep being the light. We should keep preaching the gospel, but we should keep being the gospel, too. As far as being a representative, an ambassador of it, a light, a representative in our thoughts, our deeds, our actions, our language.

And God will take care of the rest. This is not the day of salvation. We should not be at all disappointed. In 1 John 5, verse 19-20, we see that you have God's Holy Spirit, and I have God's Holy Spirit if we've been baptized already.

Or those of you who haven't been baptized yet, if you continue on in this calling that God has given you, you will become light in due time.

In 1 John 5, verse 19, we know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. There's the world again, the decoration, the arrangement. They're out doing something under the sway of another mindset. And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding. That's why we see. We have been given an understanding through the Holy Spirit that we may know Him who is true, and we are in Him who is true in His Son, Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and this is eternal life. And that's what we're about. And that's the light that we are, that we continue on behalf of Jesus Christ, who was the great light, the one who showed us the way. So you have the Holy Spirit, you have the deeds. What are we doing with those? We need to use them to really be the light. To be the light that Jesus Christ needs in this world. It's our calling. It wasn't to get into the Kingdom now. Our calling is to do His work, to do that which He left for us to do. I was the light, you are now the light. You set that example in a dark world. You lead. Eventually, this will bring glory to God when His Kingdom is established and when Jesus Christ returns.

In conclusion, let's read Romans 13, verse 12. In short, verse 13, I think it's very profound. Romans 13, verse 12. The night is far spent. In other words, the age of Satan has gone on to almost its end. The night is far spent. And the day is at hand. The Kingdom is coming. When the light, the way of God will be lived and understood by all people. Therefore, let us cast off the works of darkness, you and me. And let us put on the armor of light. The armor of light. If you go back and look at the armor of God, put on the whole armor of God, we find here it's light. That is what light is. Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness and the lewdness and lust and strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ. This is what it is. The light isn't you. The light isn't about you and me. It's about Jesus Christ. Putting Him on. Growing up into the fullness. Changing and overcoming and growing and repenting into Jesus Christ. Growing up into the fullness and stature of what He did, what He is. Loving, serving, caring, sacrificing. Being an example along the way. We do these things. Then we will be light. And that's our job. Let's be about light. Living light ourselves. Shining light for others so they can walk. Let's be about loving and serving and showing others the right way by example. In doing so, God and His Son Jesus Christ will get all the glory. That's our calling. Let's be busy about our Father's business.