This light, this life, this word is going to spread not light-lightening,

but by a million cold dead torches being ignited by the oxygen of the gospel,

that's the way the darkness will give way with a witness, a human witness.

A gospel's ability to defeat darkness through human witnesses truly is remarkable.

That's the reality that John Piper marvels over from John 1, 6-36 in this episode of light and truth.

This sermon was originally preached at Bethlehem Baptist Church on October 12th, 2008.

Verses 6 to 8. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness,

John the witness to bear witness, repeating himself, to bear witness about the light

that all might believe through him. Verses 8, he was not the light, but came to bear witness

about the light. Now notice several things. First, John was a man, a human.

It was a man. It was a man. Now this is important. Here's why. Up till now, Verses 1 to 5, he cut the word,

and the word was with God. This Jesus Christ was with God and He was God. He made everything.

And in him was life, and that life was the light of man. And if you stop there, you'd say,

not a problem. When God as life and light comes into the world, it's like lightning and everything

becomes bright. Why wouldn't you infer that? And what John does immediately by saying,

there was a human being named John who came to witness to the light. You see, whoa, this light

doesn't need a witness anymore than at night when lightning strikes, it needs a candle to help light

up the dark. And what he's saying is it ain't going to be like that. And he says it immediately.

This light, this life, this word is going to spread not like lightning.

But by a million cold dead torches being ignited by the oxygen of the gospel,

that's the way the darkness will give way with a witness, a human witness. There was a man.

There was a man, a person, and John presses it into the gospel right after saying all these

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