The Dawn of a New Day

By Rev. Heidi L. Barham |  January 2, 2022

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Read John 1:1 – 9
 
Here we are on the first Sunday of a brand-new year.  And if you’re anything like me, you are probably hoping and praying that this is a far better year than the one just past. 
 
Now, I do have to admit, there were some pretty wonderful moments that took place in 2021; however, I am sure we can all agree, there was a lot that was definitely not so wonderful.  But this morning, I do not want to focus on the not-so-wonderful… instead, I want us to focus our attention on the hope that comes with THE DAWN OF A NEW DAY.
 
Our text for this first Sunday of the New Year comes from John’s Gospel.  It is a passage that is probably familiar to most, if not all of us, especially since it is part of the passage that I just read on Christmas Eve during our service of Carols, Communion and Candlelight. 
 
One Bible commentary noted that the synoptic Gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke, all tell the story of Jesus’ life once He came to earth.  But John tells the story of Jesus from before He came to earth… from the very beginning of time.
 
And as we take a closer look at this passage from John’s Gospel, what we find is that it reveals the full identity of Jesus in the first two verses where we read, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was with God in the beginning.”
 
“In the beginning…” this is the same prepositional phrase that we find in the first verse of Genesis… the first book of the Bible… the book that contains the story of Creation and the very first DAWN OF A NEW DAY when:
 

 
Now if we flip back to John’s Gospel and keep reading, what becomes clear is that the Creator actually became part of the creation:
   
Jesus was right there… in the beginning… and that is basically where we find ourselves today… in the beginning… of another New Year… with THE DAWN OF A NEW DAY.
 
Some of you may not know this, but I am generally an early riser.  In fact, I am usually up before sunrise.  That is the time of day when I tend to do my best thinking and writing… when the day is just getting started and I am not distracted with all the busy-ness that can be so… distracting.
 
Being up that early means that I have the chance to see the first light as the night begins to fade and gives way to THE DAWN OF A NEW DAY… weather permitting of course. 
 
And seeing that first light fills my spirit with hope and expectation as I think about what the new day might hold… what promises might come to pass… what joys might come to light… and what opportunities might present themselves to be a blessing to someone else.
 
It is that same sense of hope and expectancy that we can all have as we look forward to this New Year ahead. 
 
Now, it is no secret that the past couple of years, in particular, have been filled with more than their fair share of challenges but in the midst of it all, God has remained faithful. 
 
It reminds me of the Old Testament book of Lamentations (3:22-25) where we find the words penned by the Prophet Jeremiah that serve as the basis for the beloved hymn, “Great Is Thy Faithfulness”:  
We have the assurance that God will continue to be faithful when we place our hope in Him.  But how can I say that with any real certainty?  Especially with everything we have been going through lately… 
 
Well, it says so right over in Hebrews 10:23 which reads, “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.”
 
That means that even when times are hard, we can hold onto hope… even when the diagnosis or the prognosis is not what we wanted to hear, we can hold onto hope… even when loved ones pass away, we can hold onto hope… even when whatever other circumstances arise that would seem to dictate otherwise, we can still hold onto hope… because God is still faithful.
 
In his letter to the Romans (5:2b – 5) the Apostle Paul wrote:
   
Now, most of you know that I like to refer to the Message Paraphrase to get a deeper understanding or different perspective on certain passages of Scripture.  Listen again to these verses from Romans as they are found in the Message which reads:
    
Did you catch that?  “We continue to shout our praise even when we’re hemmed in with troubles…”
 
Even when times are rough… even when it seems that the darkness is going to overtake us… even then we should continue to shout our praise.  Why?  Because, believe it or not, our troubles actually serve a purpose. 
 
Paul says that our “troubles can develop passionate patience in us…” and “that patience in turn forges the tempered steel of virtue…” and that keeps us “alert, [on the lookout,] for whatever God will do next.”
 
And he goes on to say that, “in alert expectancy such as this, we’re never left feeling shortchanged.  Quite the contrary—we can’t round up enough containers to hold everything God generously pours into our lives through the Holy Spirit!”
 
In essence, what Paul is saying is that our troubles ought to get us excited because when we are faced with hardships and difficulties what that really means is, “Get ready!  There are blessings that are yet on the way!”
 
And given everything that we have been through lately, I just have to believe that there must be some pretty amazing blessings heading our way!
 
So, be encouraged, whenever the storm clouds start swirling overhead and darkness starts to descend, we do not have to live in despair… we can face whatever storms come our way with a sense of hope and expectancy that blessings are in story for us with THE DAWN OF A NEW DAY.
 
And that takes us back to our New Testament lesson which contains John’s declaration and reminder to us that the darkness cannot overcome the Light.
 
According to the text, Jesus is the Creator of life and His life brings light to all mankind.  That means that when we follow Jesus, who is the true Light, we will not have to walk blindly into dangerous situations or risk falling into sin. 
 
Jesus lights the path ahead of us so we can see how we ought to live… it reminds us of what the psalmist wrote in Psalm 119:105, “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.”
 
Jesus is the Word and Jesus is the Light. 
 
Now, as we begin to walk forward into this New Year, we have the opportunity to be like John the Baptist in our text today.  We can be witnesses and testify concerning the Light so that others may believe in Jesus as their Savior and believe in the hope that comes with THE DAWN OF A NEW DAY.
 
The Psalmist David said it like this in Psalm 30 (4 – 5):
    
Joy comes in the morning… in THE DAWN OF A NEW DAY… I don’t know about you, but that sounds to me like some good news that we can carry into this New Year.
 
And given all that we have been through, who couldn’t use some good news right about now?  But we do need to keep in mind that the good news is not just for our benefit… it is for us to go and tell others.
 
Like John the Baptist, we are called to shine the light of Christ so that others will see and be drawn to Him.  That is what the Great Commission is all about.  Each of us has been called to, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations…” (Matthew 28:19).
 
Now, before we get too nervous about having to go to “all nations,” let me suggest that sometimes those nations are really right here in our own backyard, or even in our own homes.  We do not have to go far to find someone who needs to hear about the Light of Christ. 
 
And what better gift is there to give someone than to share the love of Christ with them? 
 
It has only been a week since we celebrated Christmas with all of what we thought were precious gifts that we exchanged with one another… gifts that may become obsolete or get used up over time… gifts that may be exchanged for something else or even worse, that may get tucked away in the back of a closet or a drawer, to be pulled out only when the gift-giver comes to visit.
 
But even those gifts that brought squeals of delight when they were opened, as wonderful as those gifts may have been… they will not last for eternity like the gift of Christ’s love will. 
 
Because the love of Christ is ultimately the most precious gift that can ever be given.  And, let me just add, it is a gift that was designed to be shared.  It is a gift that cost God the life of His only begotten Son… but it is a gift that God was willing to give… because He loves all of us just that much.
 
So, as we move into 2022, let us make it our mission to carry the love and light of Christ with us so we can share it with others.
 
Now, there is something that I do need to point out… in order for us to carry the love and light of Christ, we have to let go of all that baggage we have been carrying around for far too long.  We simply cannot hold onto one without letting go of the other.
 
It reminds me of a passage of Scripture that we often read at the start of the New Year.  In sharing what God had spoken to him, the Prophet Isaiah said this, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.  See, I am doing a new thing!  Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?  I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland” (Isaiah 43:18 – 19).
 
In other words, stop looking back at the mistakes of the past.  Stop beating yourself up over missed opportunities. Stop second guessing yourself on the decisions you made that did not turn out the way you would have liked. 

God has something greater in store… but we will never see it if we keep dwelling on the past. 
 
And that reminds me of something that I saw circulating over social media in the days leading up to New Year’s.  I am not sure of who may have actually written it but I liked the sentiment it contains.
   
And with that thought in mind, let us prepare to take flight into 2022 and THE DAWN OF A NEW DAY. 
 
Amen.
 

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