Certain Eternity Part 8 – Light and Glory
1 John 1:5 October 13, 2024
Introduction
Arora Borealis (northern lights) were visible this week here in the Lehigh Valley,
Pennsylvania. Amazing phenomenon flowing “light-curtain” phenomenon that is
usually only seen way up in the top of the northern hemisphere (or southern
hemisphere for the Aurora Australis). Amazing and vibrant hues usually of red,
blue, green, or purple.
o I looked into what causes these majestic and glorious lights to occur and I
learned that they arise from solar activity known as coronal mass ejections
(CMEs) when the sun spews out super-hot gas made up of charged
particles known as plasma. When these plasma particles reach Earth, they
interact with our magnetic field and create these beautiful geomagnetic
storms that here in the northern hemisphere we call Arora Borealis.
o Usually, the northern lights can only be seen at the higher latitudes in
places like Canada or Scandinavia. Because of the unusually high solar
activity this year – which apparently has to do with the sun’s solar cycle –
the CMEs are particularly strong this year and therefore the geomagnetic
storms spread much farther away from the poles of the Earth. This is why
we could see them this past week.
How many of you had the privilege to witness these otherworldly
lights? Did you get some nice pictures? Well, for those up you who
saw them (I was at a dinner and didn’t get to see them), I imagine
that there are many words you would use to describe them and
perhaps one of those words is glorious. The beautiful northern lights
gloriously shown forth around us.
Today we are going to look at one of my favorite meta-themes in scripture, God’s
light. Because I believe this is such an important topic within scripture as a whole
and certainly within 1 John, Lord willing we are going to take several weeks to
study what it means that God is light, and today we are going to focus on one
aspect of God’s light – His glory and then we’re going to talk about why that’s
practically important for us.
1 John 1:1-5 “1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which
we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our
hands, concerning the word of life— 2 the life was made manifest, and we have
seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the
Father and was made manifest to us— 3 that which we have seen and heard we
proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our
fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4 And we are writing
these things so that our joy may be complete. 5 This is the message we have
heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness
at all.”
o The message that was from the word of life, from the beginning, from
Jesus, that brings fellowship, unity, and joy is that God is Light.
Let’s begin to dive into what that means and why John starts here.
Gnostic View of Light
If you recall from our first sermon in the series where we went over
background, context, and the important themes of this letter, we know
that John is writing to give certainty and confidence in the faith and
salvation of his readers (among other reasons) and he does this
through reinforcing good theology as well as drawing a contrast
between the kingdom of the world and kingdom of God. In verse 5 we
see John using the first analogy of contrast between the God and the
world, which is light vs darkness, but we also see John continuing to
affirm proper theology in the face of the lies, mistruths, and twisted
understanding of the early Gnostics.
Gnostic view on light
Though themes and metaphors of light were used by early
Gnostics in the positive sense of enlightenment, to them god
has no physical manifestations and therefore god is not
light…god did not create, but his lesser created gods, or
archons, did the creating…creation was a mistake – a weak
moment from the archon “Sophia” which lead to all of
physical/material creation. All things physical that have a
manifestation in our reality are evil – including the physical
manifestation of light.
Instead, Gnostics taught that we must focus on the “divine
spark” or “inner light” – we all have capacity to be divine, just
need to ignite our spark to “awaken it” with secret knowledge
that we may become god
o We are to be lifted up and exalted as our individual value
is to be elevated over others as we attain deeper levels of
knowledge and power
Obviously, all of this early gnostic garbage is heretical…but it led many
astray…and continues to lead many astray today. Traces of gnostic thought can
be found almost anywhere you look in our culture today.
o Gnostic thought has influenced Mormon and Jehovah’s Witness theology
and, of course, the “new-age” movement essentially re-packages all kinds
of various gnostic teachings.
o Gnostic lies have influenced acclaimed philosophers and psychologists that
are esteemed by academia. Hollywood and the major content producers
around the world spew gnostic/occultic trash in their movies, tv shows, and
best-selling books, while self-help speakers repackage gnostic thought in
their mantras and techniques to visualize, attract, and achieve success,
have your best life now, and become enlightened or awakened to the
power within you.
So it may seem like we keep coming back to this gnostic stuff, but that’s because
we all deal with its lies every day – even if we don’t realize it. And by God’s
grace, we must know truth so that we can recognize the lies when they emerge
around us.
Biblical View of Light and Glory
So, what is the biblical view of light and why does John start there in refuting the
lies of his adversaries?
In making the statement that “God is light and in Him is no darkness at all”, John
is immediately calling the minds of his readers back to his gospel.
In John 1:1-9, he wrote, “1 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. 6 There was a man sent from
God, whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness, to bear witness about the
light, that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but came to bear
witness about the light. 9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was
coming into the world.”
o Lord willing, we’re going to look at this passage more next week, but what I
want us to see today is that John is immediately connecting God’s light to
Jesus – of course – but also to creation. In saying that God is light and also
in his gospel explaining that Jesus is light, John is reminding us that Jesus
is God, and that Jesus, together with the Father and Spirit, created
everything…and the first and foremost aspect of that creative work is light.
Let’s turn to Genesis chapter 1 and break this down a bit.
Genesis 1:1-5 “1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2
The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the
deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 And God
said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was
good. And God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day,
and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was
morning, the first day.”
Genesis 1:14-19 “14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the
heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for
seasons, and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the
heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. 16 And God made the two
great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the
night—and the stars. 17 And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give
light on the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the
light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was
evening and there was morning, the fourth day.”
There are so many things in here, but our purposes isn’t to exposit Genesis 1. So
we’re going to pick out a few important details as it relates to light and ultimately,
helps us understand why John is highlighting that God is light.
o So the initial thing we should notice is that the very first thing in all of
creation that is called good is light. Look at v3 and v4 again. 3 And God
said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light
was good.
This is a big deal, especially in view of Gnosticism, which teaches
that nothing in creation is good. Everything material is evil and should
be left behind. By recognizing that God is light, we are reminded that
light is good, that God is good, that all of creation is very good (see
Genesis 1:31), and that Jesus Christ created all that is good in unity
with the Father and Holy Spirit.
But even more than the goodness of God, by declaring that God is light John is
also reminding us of the glory of God.
How do we see this? Well, again when we review the creation account in
Genesis 1, we see that the first thing that God creates is light on day 1, but then
again God creates heavenly bodies to shine the light on Day 4. So, we see that
there is a distinction in the light that is separated from darkness and is emanating
from God Himself on day 1, and the light that shines from the sun and is reflected
by the moon on day 4.
Have you ever thought about that? That the light on day 1 is qualitatively different
than the light on day 4?
o The light from the lord and the light from the son are both shining forth, they
are both visible in that they separate from darkness, but the light from the
Lord is much more than a visible spectrum…the light from the Lord is a
physical manifestation of His glory.
Biblically what is glory?
Glory in Hebrew is the word kabod, which has the root meaning of
weight or heaviness. Thus, when we talk about the glory of God we
are talking about the weightiness of God.
Let’s take it one layer further: discussing something in terms of
its weight was equivalent to expressing its value. In the ancient
world, one would weigh out their coins in order to pay for
something to determine its value and worth. Thus, weight or
kabod, was a reference to value.
2 Corinthinas4:17-18 “17 For this light momentary affliction is
preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all
comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to
the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are
transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”
So, when we are talking about the glory of God, we are talking
about His value, His worth. When we talk about recognizing His
glory or ascribing Him glory, we are talking about seeing His
value and ascribing Him worth through worship.
In Jewish tradition, the Hebrew word Shekinah is often added to glory
– the shekinah glory of God.
To be clear, Shekinah never appears in scripture, but it helps us
further understand the meaning of glory.
Shekinah (Heb) means the divine dwelling of God – it is His
power and presence manifested to us.
Exodus 40:34-38 “34 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting,
and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 35 And Moses was not
able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and
the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 36 Throughout all their
journeys, whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle,
the people of Israel would set out. 37 But if the cloud was not taken
up, then they did not set out till the day that it was taken up. 38 For
the cloud of the Lord was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was in it
by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their
journeys.”
Lord willing we’re going to revisit the importance of fire to light
in a future sermon, but what we need to see here is how God’s
presence and His power are related to shining forth His light-
filled glory.
Psalm 104:1-2 “Bless the Lord, O my soul! O Lord my God, you are very great!
You are clothed with splendor and majesty, 2 covering yourself with light as with
a garment, stretching out the heavens like a tent.”
o Light “clothes” the Lord – anthropomorphism – God the Father is spirit and
doesn’t wear clothes. But any physical manifestation of His power and
presence will be through splendorous, majestic light.
Isaiah 60:1, 19 “1 Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord
has risen upon you. …19 The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for
brightness shall the moon give you light; but the Lord will be your everlasting
light, and your God will be your glory.”
o The shining light is the physical manifestation of the glory of God
Revelation 21:22-25 “22 And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the
Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. 23 And the city has no need of sun or
moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.
24 By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory
into it, 25 and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night
there.”
o Again, God’s light is the manifestation of His glory
o This light is the light of God’s holy and transcendent deity and its fullness
cannot be approached by any man of their own strength and merit.
It is said in the Talmud that the Emperor Hadrian demanded of a
rabbi, “I want to see your God.” The rabbi replied, “You cannot see
him.” “Indeed,” said the Emperor, “I will see him.” So the rabbi took
the Emperor and positioned him to face the sun during the summer
solstice, and said to him, “Stare into the sun.” Hadrian replied, “I am
not able to.” The rabbi said, “If you are not able to look at the sun,
which is merely one of the servants that attend the Holy One–blessed
be He–then how can you presume to look at the divine presence!”
The people of the world cannot see God in their own strength.
Thus, all men lost in their sin, like the Gnostics, make
themselves to be gods…deceiving themselves into thinking
they can become what they cannot see.
But praise God that He manifests Himself to us so that we can
know Him and ultimately see Him.
This is why day 1 light is so special. In a sense, we can understand day 1 light as
God manifesting His glory into creation for the very first time. Prior to the creative
act recorded in Genesis, God existed in eternal community with Himself – the
Father, Son, and Spirit.
When the Lord decided to invite others to experience and perceive His power
and presence, the first thing that was created was light – or rather God’s
Shekinah glory shone forth and all darkness was separated from it.
o From the beginning of that shining light, we can now perceive and, to the
extent the Lord reveals Himself, we can begin to understand and
appreciate the value and worth of God’s character, His work, and His
beauty.
Put differently, it is because of the unique character, work, and beauty
of God that makes Him the most valuable and glorious being in
existence and the day 1 light allowed for the first fleeting glimpses of
that glory filled value.
o With this separation from darkness on day 1, God’s glory was manifested
and in particular three aspects of God and His light were now able to be
brought about in His creation 1) life, 2) truth, and 3) order (holiness)
It’s these three aspects of His light – His glory – that, Lord willing, we
are going to break down over the next several weeks and it is these
three glorious aspects of God’s light that John is bringing to the
attention of his readers in this verse and throughout the rest of his
letter.
o The early Gnostics were seeking to become gods by igniting their so-called
divine spark. But John is coming out swinging as He reminds us that there
is only one triune God – the Father, Son, and Spirit – and we can know Him
and have fellowship with Him as we walk in His light and give Him glory…as
we focus on His life, His truth, and His order we will see Him more clearly
because we will be drawn to Jesus.
When John is declaring that God is light, John is declaring that God is good, His
creation is good, and that God’s glory shines forth into this world and is made
manifest to us – in particular through His Son, Jesus. And through Jesus, we can
see God, know God, and have fellowship with Him…we are not divine, but we
can have fellowship with the divine for all eternity through faith in Jesus Christ.
The Application
Do you give weight to God’s character, work, and beauty?
o How often do you stop and appreciate the character of our God?
o How often do you express thanks and praise for His work in your life?
o How often do you marvel at the beauty of His creation – knowing that this
pales in comparison to the beauty of God Himself, that we will one day
have the privilege to look upon when His dwelling place is with us. (see
Rev. 21:1-3)
Do you value His presence and power in your life?
o Don’t just say yes. How often do you intentionally seek to be in His
presence?
o How often do you invite Holy Spirit to lead you and guide you throughout
your day?
o How often do you seek to have your mind renewed by His truth in the midst
of the fear-filling situations, constant pressure to conform, and subtle lies
that daily bombard you?
Conclusion
When I looked into why the beautiful Arora Borealis takes on its different colors, I
learned that when the coronal mass ejections (CMEs) hit our atmosphere, the
plasma supercharges the atomic molecules in the air. These supercharged
atoms then reflect and emit the power of sun’s plasma, each molecule producing
its own unique color.
o Nitrogen produces blues, oxygen produces greens and reds, hydrogen and
helium hues of purple, and depending on how they are mixed together,
they’ll shine forth hues of pink, orange, and yellow.
https://sciencenotes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Aurora-Colors-
Science.png (for picture of colors and their atoms)
o Each unique atom, supercharged by the power of the sun, reflects its
beautiful glory.
The more we focus on the light of our God – His eternal weight of glory that is
beyond all comparison – the more we will be supercharged to shine forth and
share His life, truth, and order with those around us, the more we will be able to
proclaim His glory as we are willing vessels of reflection to a world that is in
desperate need of the beautiful display of God’s power and presence, His
glorious light.
Amen. Amen.