Light in the Darkness

Third Sunday of Advent *
Zechariah 1:67-79

• Advent is waiting for the coming of God, the fulfillment of God’s plan. Lotta people wondering where is God, hoping for God’s return

• There have always been acts of evil. And until Jesus comes again, there will always be acts of evil. Perhaps the frequency or intensity of those acts will increase before his return, I can’t say. But there are a few things I can say.

• A friend cried out on Friday “So we can't go to the mall or send our kids to school wtf?”
My response: “No. You CAN go to the mall. You CAN send your kids to school. You NEVER had a guarantee of safety, and you CANNOT live in fear.”

• And we find in scriptures that perfect love casts out fear (1 John 4:18), and that there are three things that endure: faith, hope, and love (1 Corinthians 13:13). We find that when God sends his angels among us they always bring the words Do not fear.

• And we find that it was not into a world of love and light that God sent his son… it was into a world of darkness into which God sent his light. He did not remove the darkness, he did not take it away, he brings light into the darkness, and asks that we be bearers of that light.

• Thy kingdom come, Lord.

• Children’s presentation**

* This message was shared on 12/16/12, two days after the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre

** Our children presented a musical called "O Little Christmas Town"