Light symbolizes Christmas. We hang Christmas stars and we have trees that are lit up. It’s a good symbol because there was light when the angels came and said, “I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

Light speaks of life. Light speaks of God. Light speaks of freedom. Light speaks of a clear conscience. And light speaks of forgiveness of sins. The Bible says that “God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all.”

God is light. If you know Him today, then you never need to be in darkness. If you do not know Him, will you surrender to Him today? He wants to come into your life. He wants to forgive you. He wants to call you His child. This Christmas will you give your heart to Jesus Christ? Will you do it today? Right now?

Pray with me, “Lord Jesus Christ. I surrender my life to you. I believe in my heart you are the son of God. I know you died on the cross to get rid of all my sins. I believe you’re alive. So I open my heart to you. With your power, I will serve you and follow you. I am yours forever because Christ lives in me. Amen.”

For many years, Bob Tebow and his family preached the message of Jesus Christ throughout the Philippines. They planted churches, ran an orphanage, and educated pastors. Even today, no matter where they go, the Tebow family is committed to evangelism.

This recently came to light for the rest of the world when Bob’s son, Tim Tebow, accepted the Heisman trophy in New York City. It’s college football’s biggest honor, and yet Tim didn’t take the credit for his amazing talents.

The first words out of his mouth were: “I’d just like to start off by thanking my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave me the ability to play football.”

Isn’t that great? Tim Tebow grew up with parents who modeled a passion for evangelism. And now their son has a huge platform to speak up about his own relationship with Jesus Christ.

Paul says in Philippians 6, “Pray for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel.” This verse should be the cry of our heart! Remember, our children are watching us. And as they do, they’ll be learning how to reach their world with the Good News Gospel. Isn’t that exciting to think about?

Daniel Naulty was a former major league baseball player who was a powerful pitcher. But Daniel also used performance-enhancing drugs during his career. A few years ago, he admitted his crime and left baseball for good. But, that’s only part of his story.

The other part of the story happened seven years ago when Naulty’s team won the World Series. What should have been the highlight of his life was instead one of his lowest points. “I thought the World Series was going to be God,” Naulty said. “But I realized after we won that it wasn’t salvation.” He began spiraling into a deep depression. Then Daniel began thinking back to what his Christian teammates had shared with him over the years.

They had told Naulty about God’s story of redemption and love through the cross and resurrection of Christ. Daniel finally realized the truth about what was missing from his life. So he asked forgiveness for his sins, and received Jesus into his life.

Jesus told his disciples in Matthew 5, “You are the salt of the earth… you are the light of the world.” Like Daniel’s faithful teammates, you and I can also be salt and light to those around us. Even when we don’t see immediate results, God is at work! Just like he was with Daniel Naulty.

An interesting survey was recently done by the Barna Group. They asked young people to share what kind of perceptions came to mind when the word ’Christianity’ was mentioned. The top three observations that came to mind about Christians were: anti-homosexual, judgmental, and hypocritical. That’s pretty sad, isn’t it?

Now, I’m not saying that all Christians exhibit these kinds of attitudes. But it’s important to realize that there’s a reason many people have very negative perceptions of Christianity. That’s why I believe each one of us should examine our own hearts and minds in light of this topic.

We need to remember that we’re all sinners. Even the apostle Paul said in First Timothy, “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners - of whom I am the worst!” You and I don’t need to point out people’s sins to them - that’s the Holy Spirit’s job!

Think about how Jesus treated the lost. He loved people right where they were at. And because of that, sinners’ lives were changed. They believed. They wanted to follow the Lord.

Christ’s perfect balance of love, grace, and truth is a great example for us all to follow.