January 20 – “Light”

We have a great group of children at Seaside – Kings’ Kids, we call them.  And quite a few of them were there yesterday for the Kids’ Sermon.  I think I counted at least ten or eleven.  That made a difference because the first thing we did was make a fort.  You know, the same way you no doubt made at some point in your own career as a kid – using blankets and furniture.  In our case we moved around a couple of the front pews and draped a blanket over the top.  It didn’t completely block us in, but it made for the perfect effect.  Especially with the littlest ones.  They weren’t so scared as if it had been really dark.  There was one guy who assured me he could make the place as dark as I wanted it to be, even with the lights on.  All he needed was one more blanket.  About that time someone turned off the room lights, though, so I assured him we would be fine.  In fact all of the older ones were great.  They held the little two-year-olds in their laps or made a special place for them right in the center of the group where they would feel safe.  Everybody managed to get under the blanket.  Well, except for me.  They told me I was just too big and that I would have to sit on the outside.  Hey, that’s OK.  I can handle it.  My self-esteem is doing just fine right now.  I plopped myself down and got as close as I could.

The first thing I did was turn on a flashlight.  That’s part of the fun, isn’t it?  That’s one of the things that makes a pretty good fort into a really great one.  Their eyes were wide with excitement as I flashed it around the tiny, cramped little house of fun.  And then I turned the flashlight off.  That was my cue to start the teaching. 

“Wait a minute.  There wasn’t really light coming from in there, was there?  It’s just a big stick.  Everybody knows light doesn’t come from a stick.”

That brought some immediate disagreement. 
“Yes, there was light.”  “It’s not a stick.  It’s a flashlight.” 
I kept going: “Don’t get me wrong.  Light would be a good thing to have.  We need light.  But really, there’s no such thing as light.”
Again, the floodgates of protests began.    
“Of course there is light.”  “There’s light everywhere.” 
Undeterred, I continued bantering: “But how do you know there is light?  Can you prove light to me?”
And then one of my favorites.  I asked, “Who told you there was a light?”
Instantly came the response: “My science teacher.”
Hey, science teachers of the world.  Someone out there is listening.
I replied, “Can your science teacher be trusted?  What if I don’t know her?  How can I trust her?”

I finally gave in and turned the flashlight back on.  Here’s how I continued:

You know, there is something really special about light.  Light is what we call, self-evident.  That means it doesn’t need a witness to confirm its alibi.  If it is on, there is no doubt about it.  In the story today Jesus says, “I am the Light of the World.”  There were a lot of people who didn’t believe him.  They wanted proof.  They wanted to hear some eye-witnesses.  But you know what?  Jesus doesn’t need any of that.  He is like light.  He is self-evident.  All they had to do was listen to what he said and see the miracles her did.  Jesus is the one to trust when you need to know where to go or what to do. 

John 8:12 says, “When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’”

Jesus, thank you for being the best flashlight ever.  Amen.