Theme verse: I am the light of the world.

Whoever
follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the
light of life - John 8:12
Session 1: Jesus is the Light
Session 2: Walking in the Light
Session 3: Be a Shining Light

Leader Name _______________________

Group _____________________

Session 1:I am the light of the world

Read John 1:1-23 and Mark 1:1-8

John the Baptist was sent by God to prepare Gods people to receive His son Jesus. His
ministry centered on speaking the truth that he was not God, that God was coming, and
that the call for their lives today was to respond by confessing and repenting of their
sins and being baptized. John 1:23, Mark 1:3, and Matt 3:3 all introduce John by
referring to an Old Testament prophecy concerning him in Isaiah 40:3, A voice cries: in
the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for
our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low.
Johns call to the people of God in the wilderness is the same call that goes out to each
of us today; the Kingdom of Heaven is here, will you respond with repentance and faith?
Isaiah 40:3 begins, In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord. The wilderness is
where God meets us. In our wilderness, in our wandering, in our darkness, and in our
pursuit of finding happiness from wordly pleasures is exactly where God finds us and
calls us to a relationship with Him. He comes to us when we are lost, tired, weary, and
broken, and He beckons us to Himself with an offer of peace, hope, and restoration.
Isaiah 40:3 concludes by saying, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low. We walk
through desert seasons when we go through hardship, suffering, doubts, or unbelief.
Preparing a highway in the desert refers to the process of getting our hearts and lives
prepared to encounter a holy and righteous God. But maybe there are too many
obstacles in your life that seem insurmountable for you to overcome and you dont have
hope that God will meet you. His promise for you is that as you prepare to meet with
Him, He is already at work lifting up the valleys and making the mountains low for you
to walk down the path that leads to Him. Wherever you are today God is asking you to
simply prepare to meet him: to make space in your life for Him to move, and to trust
Him to remove the obstacles.
There is a path available to you right now for you to know God, and it is available to you
only through Jesus Christ. In John 8:12 Jesus says, I am the light of the world, whoever
follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life. We are going to be
studying this passage all weekend but tonight our prayer is that you would come to fully
believe that Jesus is the light for your life. He is the way, the truth, and the life (John
14:6) and the call today and the hope for you today is that it is wherever you are as you
enter this weekend, God is already here and He wants to have a relationship with you.
He is the light of the world and not only the world but also for you individually. He is
hope. He is peace. He is joy.


Response Questions
John the Baptist came telling people to prepare to meet God. In order for the people
to receive Jesus and His message God knew that they would need to be prepared
spiritually to hear what He had to say. Before we jump into this weekend, how do
you need to prepare spiritually to hear from God and respond?
We have to consistently remember that the way of the gospel is not the way of the
world. Have you made a straight highway in your life through which God can move,
speak, guide, correct, and teach you? What are some decisions you could make to
pursue God more in your daily life?
God speaks and calls us to respond. If you dont have a relationship with Jesus then
Gods call to you tonight is that you would open your heart to know Him that you
would realize the dark and lost state that you are living in and that you would
recognize Him as the true and only light. If you have a relationship with Jesus, then
His call for you is that you would continuously engage with Him in the sanctification
process. Where are you at tonight? How is God leading you to respond right now?
Going Deeper
If your group is having good discussion and responding to this topic consider
challenging them to spend silent time in guided prayer and ask them these
questions (they can journal responses or just spend it in silent prayer:
o Just between you and God where do you stand with Jesus tonight?
o What obstacles have come between you and God? Ask him to reveal those to
you.
o Where do you need God to move in your life?
o What area of your life do you really need God to speak into?
o Jesus is the light. Pray that he would shine that truth more brightly in your
heart this weekend, that you would believe it more fully, and that your life
would change as a result of knowing Him more this weekend
Godwe are powerless to change ourselves and we are desperate for youcome and
move in our hearts this weekend and change our lives, may we never be the same.
Amen.
Key Terminology
Confession & repentance
Sanctification

Session 2: Those who follow me will not walk in darkness

Read John 8:31-38
Before we can be a light for the gospel we first have to allow the light of truth to shine in
our hearts illuminating the darkness within us and then through confession &
repentance being filled instead with the light and forgiveness of Christ. The reason that
we stay in darkness is because it is comfortable and there is a fear of what will happen
if our dark deeds or thoughts are exposed. But the reality is that you are not completely
free or able to enter into joy if you are walking in sin and darkness. Read John 3:19-21.
Last night we discussed how Jesus is the light of the world. Once we acknowledge this
truth we become His children and His purpose in our lives becomes to make us whole
and complete and like Him. He does this by leading us out of the darkness and leading
us into light. But in order to experience the peace and transformation that He offers we
must follow him in obedience. In John 8:31 Jesus says to those who had believed him
abide in my Word, know the truth, and the truth will set you free. The path that Jesus
laid out for us to follow was to make ourselves students of the Word. Through the Word
we will come to know and increasingly believe truth, which will in turn allow the light to
enter our lives and begin to dispel the darkness within. As students of the Word being
filled with truth, Jesus will continue to lead us and transform us until we are set free
from the bondage of our dark deeds and desires; and if the Son sets you free, you will
be free indeed (John 8:36). When we talk about dealing with the darkness within us we
typically feel resistance and are tempted to give fake answers to others in order to not
deal with our root problems. But we dont need to feel shameful that we have sin. In fact
1 John 1:8 says, If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in
us. God wants us to deal with our darkness and sin so we can become more full of
light like He is. His purpose in this is not to shame us but to bring us joy and freedom.
Study the relationship between darkness & light in these passages (have students look
them up in groups of 2-3, discuss amongst themselves to determine the relationship,
and then share with the group:
1 Peter 2:9, Romans 13:12, John 3:19, 2 Peter 1:19, 1 John 2:8
Truth brings freedom. Dont allow the hold of darkness, shame, fear, or insecurity keep
you from knowing and experiencing the light. It starts with abiding in the Word, allowing
the light to come into your life, and then trusting God as you begin to walk in obedience.


Response Questions
What happens if we dont deal with our sin & darkness?
How do we move from darkness into light?
Based on these truths (especially John 8:32 and 1 John 1:5-10) how do we walk
in the light?
What do we miss out on if we dont deal with the sin (darkness) within us? (1
John 1:4, John 8:32)
Going Deeper
Based on where you are today, how do you need the light of the gospel to come
into your life?
Do you have any unconfessed sin in your life? (maybe have this answer be
between them and God initially)
What steps towards walking in the light do you need to take? (think disciplines)
What should your walk with God look like (discuss Ephesians 5 walking in love)
If your group is open to it consider having a time of confession and repentance
(confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed.
The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working James 5:16) have the
students pair up one on one, confess a sin or struggle that they have been dealing with,
and then pray over one another.
To shine for Jesus we need to know that Jesus is the light and then begin (or continue
to) follow him by walking in the light
Key Terminology

Truth
Joy and Freedom

Session 3: they will have the light of life

Read Isaiah 49:6 and Acts 13:44-49

By knowing that Jesus is the light, preparing our lives to receive him continuously,
choosing to walk daily in the light instead of the darkness (through confession,
repentance, and pursuit of Him), and abiding in the Word, He will make us a light to be
used to reveal Himself to the world. Paul in Acts 13:47 references this passage in Isaiah
when he is sent to the Gentiles to explain to them why he is there. God had made Paul a
light to go into the world, to proclaim the gospel and bring many people to faith in
Jesus. This is the same calling on our lives as believers today. When we look at how
Jesus called his disciples in Matthew 4:19 and Mark 1:17 he uses the same language
Follow me and I will make you. Jesus ultimate desire for our lives is that we would
bring Him glory; that we would be people who know Him and desire to make Him known
to the world. However, in order for us to become those witnesses we need to follow
Jesus and allow Him to make us a light. The process through which He does this is
through the scripture that we have discussed this weekend in John 8:12
1. Know that Jesus is light and he is life.
2. Follow him in obedience. Turn from darkness. Walk in the light.
3. Follow him to have the light of life operating within you continuously, and allow Him
to make you into a new creation.
Read Matthew 5:14-16
When we share the gospel, the story of Jesus and what He has done in our lives, we
need to relay to others how we were walking in darkness, how we met the light (Jesus),
and how He has brought us hope and life that we had never known beforehand.
Darkness reigns wherever the light of Christ is not alive and active in the world. When
we look at Matthew 5:14 we see that it discusses how we should let our light shine
before men that they may see our good deeds. This is typically understood as
instruction to be really good people who do good things, and then people will see that
we are good and decide that they want to be good too. But maybe what this verse
means is that when we follow Jesus in obedience our lives will inevitably look different.
And then instead of trying to hide the fact that we live differently we should seek to live
the same life at school and around our friends as we do at home. Friday night we
discussed how Jesus is the light. This morning we talked about how the Word brings
the light into our lives. And tonight we want to end with what does it mean to truly be a
light for the gospel. Because how God ultimately wants to shine through your life is not
through your goodness but His. Not your righteousness but His. Not your attempts at
goodness but His perfection. We bring light into a dark world as we proclaim the truth of
the gospel through our words and our actions as we daily seek to live the life that God
has assigned to us.


Response Questions
What do you think it means to let your light shine before men?
How do you think God intended for people to see your good deeds but give
GOD glory and not you?
How do we avoid being a light so that WE shine? How do we keep this in check?
What are some ways that you can be a light in your school and to your friends?
Going Deeper
Break up in groups of 2 and pray Isaiah 49:6 over one another. Pray that God
would make that person full of light, that he would use their gifts and strengths
for His purposes, and that He would make them a light for the nations to spread
his salvation
Key Terminology

Glory
Righteousness