"A LIGHT TO THE WORLD!"

Written and preached by David P. Nolte

ISAIAH 42:6-7

1. BY OPENING EYES THAT ARE BLIND:
1. The Bible says, "The Lord gives sight to the blind," Psalms 146:8 (NIV). And He does that through the Gospel when we take that Gospel and people receive it.
2. The world is blind. But with what kind of blindness?
1. Many are blinded by preconceived notions of what can and cannot be. If we believe something cannot happen, then when it does happen we just can't see it. We offer some seemingly rational explanation for it.
2. Doubt has blinded some to truth. Jesus said, "If you believe you will see the Glory of God." But for the world, seeing is believing. If they don't see, they won't believe; but conversely, by Jesus' reasoning, if they don't believe, they won't see.
3. Some are blinded by fear. Fear can give us such tunnel vision that we can't see anything but that which frightens and upsets us.
4. Many are blinded by grief. We can't see joy or hope or peace or happiness or life when grief pokes out our eyes.
5. Some are blinded by materialistic viewpoints. We can't see anything beyond the tangible, the measurable, that which we can handle and touch and hold in our hands.
6. Many are blinded by personal, selfish, self-centered concerns. What matters too much to us blinds us to what matters to others or even to what matters to Jesus. That kind of arrogance is blind. That kind of "It's all about me ness!" is blind.
7. Hypocrisy and all forms of dishonesty are blind.
8. Hate is blind.
9. Immorality is blind.
3. Helen Keller said that it was better to be blind than to have two good eyes and see nothing. There is an old saying, "None so blind as those who will not see." Some people are blind to the truth because they don't want to see it; they prefer the darkness!
4. Many are like Rose Crawford. She had been blind for 50 years. But she underwent a delicate surgery in Ontario, Canada. She gasped in disbelief as the doctor removed the bandages. She wept for joy when for the first time in her life a dazzling and beautiful world of form and color greeted her eyes. The amazing thing about this story is not the gift of sight. The amazing thing is that the last 20 years of her blindness had been unnecessary! The surgical technique that restored her sight could have been performed when she was 30. But the doctor summed it up, "She just figured there was nothing that could be done about her condition. Much of her life could have been different." And it was different when her eyes were opened and she beheld the light. The world is blinded by untruth and sin but they can have sight if we take the light. We are to be lights to the world and we do that by opening eyes that are blind and:

2. BY FREEING CAPTIVES FROM PRISON:
1. I've never spent any time as in inmate, but I have visited in a prison. They are pretty gloomy places. We visited one in Wyoming, no longer in service and now a tourist attraction, which was dank, dismal, dreary and really dark. If you have ever visited Alcatraz you will find a dark and unhappy place.
2. The world is in prison and needs liberation. It is in bondage, it is put behind bars.
3. What kind of prisons are holding people captive?
1. The prison house of sin. But it is a needless imprisonment, because He will forgive all and set anyone free.
2. The jail of overwhelming pressures and stresses. But we are needlessly overwhelmed because He will strengthen the weak.
3. The slammer of sorrow. But it is a needless sorrow, for He will comfort and sustain all who have broken hearts.
4. The hoosegow of hopelessness and despair. But it is needless despair because He is our living hope.
4. Whatever prison we may be experiencing, we need hope to believe we can be free. One man was in a dungeon for some crime of which he had been convicted. After several years of sitting in that dark hole, a new king ascended to the throne. He heard about the man and was convinced he had paid his price. So he issued a royal pardon. One of his emissaries carried the note to the prison keeper and the man was freed. As he walked from the prison, one of the guards tried to stop him. But the man showed the paper of pardon and said, "Now, let me walk by. The king and me says I am free!" Satan, the world, others, our own conscience might want to keep us in prison. But in Jesus, the King says you are free. Take that light to the world. It needs to be freed from prison. We are to be lights to the world and we do that by opening eyes that are blind and by freeing captives from prison and:

3. BY RELEASING THOSE WHO SIT IN DARKNESS:
1. Isaiah spoke of the world's darkness. He spoke God's word about His rebellious people, saying, "Wherever they look, there will be trouble and anguish and dark despair. They will be thrown out into the darkness." Isaiah 8:22 (NLT). But, that is not His last word. For God's word continues, saying, "Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever. The land of Zebulun and Naphtali will soon be humbled, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles, which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be filled with glory. The people who walk in darkness will see a great light - a light that will shine on all who live in the land where death casts its shadow." Isaiah 9:1-2 (NLT). He has reference to the coming of Jesus, the light of the world, and the propagation of the Gospel, God's light to salvation.
2. We're not considering physical darkness here. We're talking mental, emotional, spiritual darkness.
1. There is the darkness of dread, anxiety and fear. The hazards, menaces, threats and dangers of the world press in upon you like nameless, faceless bogies.
2. Life has left scores beaten, hopeless and despondent and that darkness engulfs like a shroud. There seems little reason to go on.
3. Dreams that come crashing down produce a darkness. The darkness of failure has many in it's grip. They just can't find it within themselves to start over.
4. Many are in the darkness of anger, hatred, animosity and ill will.
5. Others are in the darkness of ignorance about God and His love and will.
6. Too many live in the darkness of evil and occultism and superstition.
3. Light always, 100% of the time, without single exception, predictably overcomes darkness. Darkness never overcomes light. It's not going to happen. And when we shine His light, the darkness disappears.
4. A boy about 12 years old was sitting on a curb with a broken piece of mirror in his hand. He was flashing it into a window on the second floor of a tenement building. A passerby asked, "What are you doing, son? Sending a message in code?" The boy smiled and said, "No, sir. My 10 year old brother is in that room and he has been stuck in bed for 6 months. The sun never gets to that window, so I'm sending him some sunlight to brighten his day." That's the attitude. Release those who sit in darkness by sending the light.

Keep shining as a light to the world. Light is always stronger than darkness. The world is in darkness of superstition, satanic bondage, fear, hopelessness and sin. You have the opportunity to shine for Jesus at work, at school, at home and even here at Shasta Way. God has created some of His light in those who know Jesus as Lord and Savior. We are His lights - and we are compelled by His love to shine. This is a moment to decide. You can be a proponent of darkness by doing nothing, or you can be a proponent of light by living and speaking and serving for Jesus. While we sing our song of commitment, make that decision. The world sits in darkness. We can dispel that darkness. Will we shine for Jesus?

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