The Gospel of John-2 – The Light That Overcame the Darkness

John 1:1–5
 
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” Amen.
 
The Beginning of a New Creation and the Advent of the Word
You will well remember the opening of John chapter 1. The declaration, “In the beginning was the Word,” reminds us of the Book of Genesis. As mentioned previously, the Gospel of John is basically like a ‘New Genesis.’ John is declaring the start of a new creation, as if rewriting Genesis.
 
This new Genesis has points of difference from the first Genesis. In the first Genesis, light came into being when God said, “Let there be light.” But this time, He says, “I am the Light.” If in the first we saw a God who made living creatures, this time He declares, “I am the Life.” If in the beginning there was the Word that said, “He spoke,” now the Word of God, Jesus Christ, has come directly among us and dwells with us.
 
Do you understand why I am comparing these two? How wonderful the first creation must have been. We occasionally listen to Haydn’s The Creation, and every time we hear it, we think it is truly grand and majestic. No, just imagining that scene makes the heart race.
 
Imagine for even a moment that process of light appearing at the voice saying “Let there be light,” the sea and land being divided, the dry land appearing and the beasts dwelling there and the fish of the sea being created, and the sun and moon being made. How grand and majestic is it?
 
However, everyone, this event that we are reading and witnessing together today is an event far superior to the creation of heaven and earth that we imagine. Now, it is not a command of “Let there be light,” but the Light Himself has come. The Word has come directly. He has begun a new creation among us, and you and I are precisely the fruits of that creation.
 
Behold, all things have become new.
 
The Source of True Life Within Christ
This Word has come and now shows us the life that is within Him. Let us look at verse 4 together. “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” The Bible expresses that there is life within the Word, that is, the Logos, Jesus Christ.
 
The life spoken of here is different from the biological ‘being alive’ that we commonly know. It is not a level of life that eats, sleeps, and works. We all have that already. Am I not alive, and are you not all alive? We think, we work, sometimes we get angry and annoyed, we doze off or sleep. However, the life in the text is of a different quality. The life spoken of here refers to the source of life called eternal life, that is, ‘Everlasting Life.’
 
This expression is recorded in Psalm 36:9 as follows: “For with You is the fountain of life; In Your light we see light.” It makes it clear that the source of life is in God alone.
 
You have likely read this John chapter 1 several times, and I too have read it quite often. While encountering the words of verse 4 countless times, I used to just pass by, vaguely thinking, “Yes, there is life in Christ.” However, while meditating deeply on it this time as I prepared the sermon, I received a great shock anew. It is because I realized again how wondrous a thing this is for those who believe.
 
Why is the fact that there is life in Christ surprising? To be honest, it is because I have lived as if life were within me. I do not know if you are the same, but we often forget this fact. So I lived thinking that my life was my own possession. In all the daily life of speaking, arguing at home, feeling upset or getting angry, and scuffling with the child over the TV remote, I thought that this thing called ‘life,’ the fact of being alive, was entirely my own.
 
However, the moment I faced this verse head-on, I discovered the fact that my life is not within me but within Christ. I thought I was holding on and living by my own strength every day, but in reality, my life was being preserved within Christ. I was truly surprised. I thought I possessed life simply because I was breathing, but I realized that just because the flesh is alive does not mean one is all alive.
 
When I thought deeply about this verse, life was never within me. I am breathing, but with that alone, I could not say I possessed true life, that I was truly alive. Life exists only within Christ.
 
If so, we naturally reach this conclusion. “One truly lives only when one is inside Christ.” Is it not so? If one is outside of Christ, it cannot be called truly living. When thinking that way, the concept of ‘being alive’ was so different from what we usually thought. As I mentioned a moment ago, it was a word that essentially had no relation to the act of simply walking around and breathing.
 
The true meaning of this word ‘to be alive,’ that is, ‘there is life in Christ,’ is as follows.
 
The Lovingkindness of the Lord and the Relationship with God Which Are Better Than Life
Psalm 63 is one of the Psalms that also surprised me when I read it. Let us find it together. Let us read Psalm 63 verses 2 and 3 together. “So I have looked for You in the sanctuary, To see Your power and Your glory. Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, My lips shall praise You.”
 
The life spoken of here is, without need for words, the physical life that we enjoy. It is that very life of breathing, eating, and thinking. However, it says there is something better than that life. It says there is something superior. What is it? It is precisely ‘Your lovingkindness.’ Your lovingkindness is an expression very similar to the word ‘Your love.’ The psalmist is finding the ground of his being alive right here.
 
In verse 2 of the text, he confesses, “So I have looked for You in the sanctuary, To see Your power and Your glory.” And then he declares that Your lovingkindness is better than life. He is saying that the Lord’s lovingkindness and love, glory and power that he beheld in the sanctuary are more precious than his own physical life.
 
Ultimately, these words teach us how we know we are alive, what the true meaning of being alive is. It is precisely my staying in the sanctuary of God and my looking to the Lord in that sanctuary. The psalmist is expressing that that is the state of being truly alive.
 
Everyone, what kind of thoughts do you usually have when we talk about eternal life? We often think of ‘living without ever dying.’ However, that is just the concept of eternal youth that Qin Shi Huang dreamed of; the eternal life the Bible speaks of is distant from simply living forever in terms of time. Actually, you are all beings who will live forever anyway. Those who do not believe in Jesus also live forever. It is just that the place where they stay is different. We live in a somewhat cool place, and they live in a somewhat hot place. Only the place is different, but the fact that you exist forever is the same. Therefore, eternal life does not simply mean the extension of life.
 
Eternal life, as the text says, refers to the state of being in a ‘right relationship with God’—wearing God’s lovingkindness, power, and love, and me loving God and looking to the Lord. Whether I am in that right relationship of loving God and God loving me, that is precisely eternal life. The life John’s Gospel speaks of is this.
 
However, the Bible testifies that this life is only within Jesus Christ. Why is that? It is because the only being who perfectly knew God, truly loved Him, and perfectly wore His love is Jesus Christ, who is God the Son. Who among us has known God perfectly and loved Him truly? Only Jesus knew God, wore His love, and loved and rejoiced in the Father. God also rejoiced in Jesus. God was Jesus’ Father and also His most intimate friend.
 
The Tears of Jesus Christ Shed for Us
Jesus therefore says this. “He who has seen Me has seen the Father.” Because the Lord loved God in that way, He loved us. Because God loves us. So the Lord obeyed the heart of God. He followed. He cast Himself away, denied His own place, laid down all authority, and came to us. To the place of us who could never obey, that Jesus came and was thoroughly obedient to God.
 
Everyone, you will frequently discover the God appeared within that. When He perhaps performed amazing miracles, everyone, did you see God? However, everyone, the character of God appeared in Him did not appear only there. When Jesus Christ looks at Jerusalem and weeps, we see love. In the tears of the Lord who weeps saying, “How often I have gathered you, as a hen gathers her chicks,” we see God’s love.
 
Everyone, who would shed tears for you? A child? Ah, my children are still young, but I gave up a long time ago. I already recognized it when I entered the house. The two sons come running and greet me. It is good up to the point they do it, but after that, they look at the hand once and if there is nothing, they just go up. If I brought something, then it is “Ah, my beloved father,” and if I came empty-handed, it is “My enemy-like father.” Would a child really weep for you?
 
When we all weep, we weep for ourselves. Even if a child goes wrong, we weep because of our own pride, and even when a child weeps for a parent, they actually weep for themselves rather than for the parent. Even when weeping because a loved one has left first, one weeps because of the loneliness of being left alone, not many cases where one weeps only because that person is pitiful. One does not weep for that alone.
 
In the end, our hands bend inward, our arms bend inward. However, here, there is someone who truly sheds tears for you. There is someone who weeps for you without any condition, without expecting any reward. It is Jesus Christ, the God of love. Seeing the Lord who regards the sick with compassion and heals them, and even when they make Him so tired and come standing in line saying, “Lord, heal us,” He does not dislike them or cast them away but leads His tired body and heals their sickness, we see the God of gentleness and compassion.
 
Seeing Jesus Christ who explains the Kingdom of God again, and explains again, and cries out again toward the disciples who do not understand even when told that way and do other things, we see the God who suffers long. For your information, I cannot do it. I cannot do it because I would get fired up. “Why do you still not know?” Everyone, you might not know, but these are words I often cry out in my room after the sermon is over.
 
Love That Knelt for the Hard-Hearted
These are the words I mainly cry out in my room, but the Lord was a God who suffers long. Everyone, when washing the disciples’ feet, our Lord was a God who kneels. He laid down all of His own things, girded a towel before the disciples, and knelt. When we ourselves stiffen our necks and think we are great, the Lord bent His own head and prayed. “Forgive them of their sins. They do not know what they are doing.”
 
Everyone, how hard-hearted people are we the more we think about it? Even if we hear a story that pierces the heart while listening to a sermon, it is our specialty to apply it all to other people rather than ourselves. “Why didn't Deacon Kim come today? He should have heard this, he would have received much grace if he heard this,” we say that, but we do not think much about how much of a sinner we are. We are deceiving each other because you and I are doing this now. We don't know what kind of great people we are.
 
You think not? “Yes, I should not be like that.” No, we are the people who do that as soon as we say those words. How serious it is—no, it's not just us, look at David too. David committed adultery with another man’s wife and made her have a child. Then he sends that husband to the battlefield and makes him die. The prophet came after hearing that story. He didn't even come and say, “You must not do this,” he came to directly accuse him of the sin, but even until then, David does not know at all. Literally, he does not know at all.
 
So the prophet Nathan gives a parable. There is a rich man who has a hundred sheep of his own, yet when a guest comes, he takes away the one sheep of a poor man in front of his house and treats the guest with that. The moment he hears that story, David gets angry; in our words, his lid really opened. He gets angry to the top of his head and shouts. “Bring that man here immediately and kill him!” Then the prophet says. “That man who shall die is you.”
 
Only then does David know. But, David was really fast. Isn't it so? Realizing that itself is a great grace. We, however, are the ones who still do not know. How many times have we heard it during sermons? Someone told me while listening to our church sermons. “Pastor, how about giving some praise instead of just scolding?” I didn't know either, but I guess scolding was the main thing. However, even if told to that extent that “the person who shall die is me,” we are the ones who are just blinking our eyes. We are saying, “Deacon Kim should have been in this.”
 
We are all like that. However, the Lord had no sin at all, yet He is the one who said, “The one who shall die is precisely me.”
 
The Light That Overcomes Darkness and a Sincere Community of Faith
Instead, the one who made us live is precisely Jesus Christ. Therefore, the Lord is the one in whom life dwells, and these words are the true meaning of the word ‘alive.’ Everyone, when it is said that life has been shone upon us, do you get a bit of a sense of what that life is? Do you know the meaning of the words that I am alive?
 
That life, namely the life within Christ—if I am alive, that life I have means that I am within this Jesus, and within this heart of Jesus, and within this work that Jesus did, and within those tears He shed, and within that place where He knelt, and within His humility, and within His love; that is the meaning of the words that I am alive. It is the meaning of the word ‘to live.’ It is the true meaning of the words that I have a right relationship with God. Look at that verse 5.
 
To explain this verse a bit more clearly, looking at verse 5, it says, “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” Here, rather than “did not comprehend,” it seems more appropriate for the context to translate it this way: “did not overcome.” Then it becomes like this: “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.”
 
The words that darkness does not overcome mean not only that because the light comes, the darkness cannot overcome that light and retreats, but it also means that even if the darkness continuously attacks the light and continuously harasses the light, that light ultimately wins. You can know if you look at the life of Jesus Christ. When Jesus came and was present, many people did not welcome Jesus who came as light, and rather the high priests and Pharisees tried to kill Him. However, that light did not disappear.
 
Darkness, because that light is light, naturally dislikes and naturally hates it. Why is that? Why does it try to hide and why does it try to avoid? It is because as the light shines, its own darkness is revealed.
 
Everyone, do you know why it feels uncomfortable when the word of God sounds like it is piercing your heart? It is because the darkness is revealed. If the darkness I wanted to hide is revealed, people do not return to the light but rather throw stones at the light, try to turn off the light, and devise all means and methods to make that light retreat. Darkness does not retreat easily.
 
However, this verse is a word of too great a comfort to the beloved people of the Lord. Because, as it is, darkness cannot overcome the light. Everyone, do you know who a saint is? Saints are those who admitted how filthy they were when the light shone. Saints are those who know that the clothes they wore are rags, those who know the clothes they wore are tatters. So, those who know that they need light, get to know the light, and go toward the light are called saints.
 
The first step of a saint is not “Jesus, I love Jesus,” but the confession, “Lord, I am precisely the person who wore these rags and tatters. Since that light shines, I cannot bear it because I am ashamed.” This is a saint. And then they get to look at the light. Because, they thought that when that light shines, it would turn everything upside down and burn everything up, but rather that light makes that darkness clean.
 
Victory in Jesus Christ Over Past Wounds
Everyone, the thing called the wound that darkness gave you in the past is too serious. Because we were born in this world of darkness, that darkness exerted an immense influence on everything from our way of speaking to our thoughts, to our everything. So there are too many wounds that darkness gave us. Sometimes we don't want to face it, and there are too many times we fear without facing it. The pains that the family gave, for some people the wounds of pride created because of their own ability, and the contempt received from the person loved most, there are many wounds received while living in this world to the extent that one cannot even understand oneself. Perhaps among those here in this generation, there will be those who have wounds of war, and there will be those who have wounds of death.
 
That wound goes around hiding tightly. It shrinks more when the light shines. Because it wants to protect itself. However, everyone, the reason I so desire for you to truly meet Jesus Christ is because when you truly receive the shining of that light, you finally get to know what true honesty is. At that time, you finally get to understand your own life and existence, and you get to know what it is for myself to be honest.
 
Do you know why honesty is important? Because from then on, the traces and wounds of the past that have harassed you so much can no longer harass you. Your weaknesses become no longer shameful nor fearful to you. Your pains and wounds are now no longer shame. My failure is no longer shame, and the matter of my weakness being revealed is no longer fearful.
 
Everyone, when you come to church you get to do Bible study, and because our church mainly does lecture-style Bible study, you individually realize the word of God or experience the grace of God while listening to sermons. However, at the same time, the church is the place where the fellowship of the people of God occurs. The words that fellowship occurs mean that your heart and heart are shared.
 
One of the biggest reasons I don't think I did pastoral ministry well is because I feel that this matter of sharing heart and heart is still lacking within our church. We all come to church wearing armor. No one shares. Eating a meal, seeing a face once, and going home is all. That is not fellowship. The church must be a place where your hearts are shared. Because, one becomes honest. Because one has come before God, there is no need to speak lies even here.
 
Therefore, when coming here, one must be able to enjoy rest, it must be like my home, and the church must be a place where my heart can be at peace.
 
A Plentiful Life Abiding in the Light of Life
So we need to know a bit more about what the Lord has done for me. Everyone, if you are not holding onto that, if you do not put the wounds of the past in the light even though you believe in Jesus, you cannot help but continue to live with the same bitter heart. Because it is not resolved. It is revealed when meeting other people, it is revealed when doing church work, and it is revealed even when you come out and serve as the people of God. Because even though you believe in Jesus, you are still too lazy in the matter of truly drinking and eating the life that is in Christ.
 
Beloved everyone, you can just show everything to God, things fit to be seen and things not fit to be seen. No, has He not already seen it all? Everything is revealed before God. The wounds received in my life, whether it is a wound received when I was young, or a wound received as I got older, or a wound received today, or a wound received yesterday, even the wound received while listening to a sermon. Everyone, it is all revealed before God. Those are heavy burdens.
 
However, I hope you know now. I truly hope you know that you have come into the light, and the meaning that the light has shone. Your wounds cannot overcome the light. Your darkness cannot overcome the light. This is what today’s text says. My wound cannot overcome the Lord’s lovingkindness and the Lord’s love. My pain cannot overcome the tears of the Lord’s love who is weeping for me. Whatever kind of wound you had, whatever kind of pain you harbored, even if you had a heart that is rotten and rotten within you that no one can recognize, it cannot overcome the tears of Jesus Christ.
 
Beloved everyone, your sick body cannot extinguish the Lord’s compassion. Even the death of you and me cannot overcome the love of Jesus Christ who gave Himself even to death. If even your death cannot overcome it, what can overcome you?
 
As written in the words of 2 Corinthians chapter 4 verse 6, “For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” Think for a moment about that light that created the heaven and earth. When creating the heaven and earth, did it end with light? No. All the things created, for whom were they? They were for Adam. God made the Garden of Eden for him, and permitted animals and plants and things to eat and everything for him. It was truly plentiful.
 
If so, when God’s light shines in our hearts, would we not naturally come to enjoy all of that plentiful creation within us?
 
Beloved everyone, the Lord who wept for me, the Lord who knelt to wash my feet, and the Lord who died hanging on the Cross overcame your darkness. Why are you still holding onto that and weeping? Why do you live holding onto that? Why do you think that is yourself? Why do you think you will fail again because of that? Why do you think your heart will be pained again because of that?
 
Everyone, the Lord overcame. He overcame the sick body, He overcame death, and He overcame the deep wounds within your heart. Do you really know what kind of life you are enjoying?
 
Let us pray.
 
Heavenly Father, the source of life, we thank You for coming to us who were trapped in darkness as the true light and starting a new creation.
 
We are still tied to the wounds and pains of the past, but we declare in faith that the Lord's tears and the love of the cross have already overcome all that darkness. Now, let us realize that the abundant life that even death could not overcome is within us.
 
Let us no longer stay in our wounds, but enjoy true honesty and rest in Christ and live as children of light.
 
We pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.