Grace Baptist Church, Nokomis, IL.

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One of the main themes for our Vacation Bible School was following Jesus. But how do we do that? Even when we have good intentions, it seems like there are too many obstacles to really follow Jesus. Our schedules get in the way. We’re too busy to serve God or even sometimes just to go to church. Sometimes our friends get in the way. Maybe they encourage us to make bad choices rather than good ones. And, actually, the greatest obstacle to following Jesus is that our own sin gets in the way. We just can’t be good enough, or maybe we don’t even know where to start.

But there’s good news. When Jesus calls us to follow Him, He takes away all of our obstacles. He takes away our sin. He shines His light into our darkness, shows us the path, and lovingly says, “Follow me, not as a way to earn my love, but because I love you.”

Read John 8:12

This was Jesus talking. And when Jesus talks, we need to listen. He’s the Son of God, and He’s God in the flesh. And Jesus wasn’t just talking to the people of that day, but to us. The Bible is God’s message to us, to teach us truth, and give us hope in this dark world.

It’s kind of like checking the weather before going out. I live about a mile from here, so during the summer, I like to ride my bike to my office here during the week to get a little exercise. But it’s funny how the weather works, because it can look like a beautiful day in the morning, and by afternoon and evening, like we saw this last week, it can be raining cats and dogs!

So, anyway, one day awhile back, I didn’t check the weather, but it looked nice out in the morning, so I rode my bike here, and then when I was about to go back home in the evening, it started storming the biggest storm I’d ever seen! I was about ready to call up Noah because I didn’t want to miss the boat! I didn’t know what to do! So I waited to see if the rain would slow down, and it did after about half an hour, so I jumped on my bike, started peddling as fast as I could, and then, sure enough, it started pouring again after just a minute, so by the time I got home, I looked like I had just climbed out of a swimming pool.

The Bible is like that. It tells us what to expect, and shows us the way, so that we can walk in it, and not be consumed by life’s storms.

So Jesus says to us in this verse, “I am the light of the world.” And I think that simple statement is packed full of symbolic truth. Jesus is the most glorious person in the world. The whole world only has light at all because of Jesus. In Jesus, everything in the world is held together and has purpose.

But the thing that’s most pressing for us to know this morning is that Jesus illuminates our lives so that when we follow Him, we will not stumble in darkness (v. 12b). Do you ever feel like you just don’t know where you’re going? Do you ever feel like you just don’t know how you’re going to make it? Like, you’re just wandering around in the dark, hoping that one day things will make sense?

And if you’ve never felt that way, maybe you need to ask yourself, “Why not?” I mean, one of the most important questions of your life is, “Why am I here?” “Why are any of us here?” I mean, when you start thinking about the purpose of life, it’s all wrapped up in the existence of God and how God created man.

You see, someone who doesn’t believe in God ultimately has to admit that life is meaningless. Some will say that they create their own meaning in life, but even that’s arbitrary, so ultimately they have no true purpose for their lives.

But the Bible disagrees. The Bible says, “Whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God.” That’s our purpose. Our purpose is to glorify God. He made us! And He made us in His image so that we would reflect His goodness in whatever we did. But then we sinned, and the image of God in us was concealed, like it was hidden under a bushel.

But then when you trust in Jesus, who died for your sin, you get to let your light shine! So, you see, we find real purpose by following Jesus Christ. When you follow Jesus, you’re no longer in the dark. You’re walking in the light. The light of the gospel. The light of truth. The light of life.

Jesus came that you might have life, and have it abundantly. Trusting in Jesus leads to a joyful life! People often think about all the things they would need to give up in order to follow Jesus, but Jesus promised that knowing Him is eternal life. It doesn’t just lead to eternal life, it is eternal life. It’s the full life that we all long for. Full of joy, full of peace. Both peace in life and, even more important, peace with God. These are given to you by grace, through faith in Christ.

The motto for VBS was “This is the way, walk in it.” And on one level, it’s just encouraging us to live the way God wants us to. Read the Bible! Do what it says!

But I think there’s a much more important level that we need to understand it. Jesus said, “I am the way.” What Jesus was saying was that He is the only way to Heaven. He is the only way to God, because He is God. We can’t obey the Bible perfectly. We’ve all sinned. But Jesus obeyed God’s Word perfectly. He never sinned. And then He died on the cross for us, paying the price for our sin. So the most crucial way to walk God’s path for us is to trust in Jesus, who is the way, the truth, and the life.

Now is the time to trust in Jesus. Don’t put it off. A relationship with God is far more than going to VBS a few weeks out of every summer. It’s walking with Jesus every day. Every moment. It’s following Him, as your way, your truth, your life. And He gives you joy and peace every day. If you’re never trusted in Jesus like that before, you can today.

The Bible says today is the day of salvation. Don’t put it off till tomorrow. This isn’t just a message for kids. It’s for all of us. We all need Jesus to forgive us of our sin and show us the way. So if you’ve never trust in Jesus, and realized today that you need Him to forgive you. I invite you to come and talk with me during this song we’re about to sing.

And children, if you want to trust in Jesus, in just a moment, I want you to tell the person who brought you, whether your mom or your dad, or your grandma, or your friend, and let them know, “I want to trust in Jesus and follow Him.” And parents, if your child tells you that, I want you to encourage them. Tell them that’s awesome! Because it is. And then bring them to the front up here to talk with me during this song. So kids, if you want to trust in Jesus today, tell your parents right now while we sing.