QUOTES FOR REFLECTION

“Shame is a soul-eating emotion.”

~Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961), Swiss psychiatrist

“We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.”

~Plato, ancient Athenian philosopher

“Heaven is a fairy story for people afraid of the dark.”

~Stephen Hawking (1942-2018), theoretical physicist and author

“If Religion is a fairy tale of those afraid of the dark, then Atheism is a fairy tale of those afraid of the light.”

~John Lennox, Oxford professor of mathematics and author

“Why is it that those with the most skeletons in their closet always seem to the most judgmental of everyone else?”

~Source Unknown

“We cultivate love when we allow our most vulnerable…selves to be deeply seen and known….”

“If we can share our story with someone who responds with empathy and understanding, shame can’t survive.”

“Perfectionism is a self-destructive and addictive belief system that fuels this primary thought: If I look perfect, and do everything perfectly, I can avoid or minimize the painful feelings of shame, judgment, and blame.”

~Brené Brown, social researcher, professor and writer

“The essence of sin is we human beings substituting ourselves for God, while the essence of salvation is God substituting himself for us. We … put ourselves where only God deserves to be; God … puts himself where we deserve to be.”

~John Stott (1921-2011), theologian and pastor

SERMON PASSAGE

John 2:23-25 & 3:19-21 (ESV)

John 1

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…

4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it…

9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.

John 2

23 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. 24 But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people 25 and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.

John 3

19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.