"I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in
darkness, but will have the light of life." John 8:12
We have been talking about salt and
light this week. Here is a little more
information on light.
It is a Needed Light
In scripture, darkness is seen as negative and representative of sin and
death. Walking in "darkness"
is seen as detrimental to our lives. Proverbs 4:19 says
"But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness;
they do not know what makes them stumble."
The oppressiveness and defeat of sin is a darkness for
which many turn to counseling for "light". God,
Christ and salvation are all seen as "light" in the Word.
Jesus said in John 3:19, "This is the verdict: Light has come
into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds
were evil." Man
still enjoys his darkness. Face it, we
all struggle with sin and have sins we don’t want to give up. In the dark are the feelings of insecurity,
fear and isolation. So, many need light
for security and peace.
It is a Reflected Light
Christ was light by His own nature and brilliance. One of the greatest illustrations on this
point that I have heard was often used by Dr. Donald Grey Barnhouse. He used to say that when Christ was in the
world He was a bit like the sun which is here by day and gone at night. But when the sun goes down the moon comes up,
and the moon is a picture of the Church — of Christians. It shines, but it does not shine by its own
light. Christians shine only because
they reflect the light of the SON. And
that is why the world is in such darkness today. At times the Church is a full moon, in the
midst of revival when a man like Luther or Calvin or Wesley is here. And at other times the Church is a new moon
and you can barely see it. But whether
it is a full moon or a new moon, or only a waxing or a waning quarter, it glows
because of the sun. In the same way, you
and I can show forth light only if we reflect the real light of the Lord Jesus.
We reflect whatever we stand before.
If the wisdom of men is what we receive, then that is what we will
reflect. The Christian will be as
effective in shining as he is in maintaining his purity and cleanliness before
God. Our brilliance is not dependent on
our knowledge, but our purity.
It is a Visible Light
A lamp was lit to be used. The
only reason a lamp would be hidden would be to preserve it from loss or
waste. But in such a position it would
not be performing its functional duty.
Light is meant to be placed in the area where light is needed. Light illuminates whatever it shines on. The inside of the bushel is still
lighted. The light is not put out
because it is under the bushel. Our
light is not lost when hidden, merely limited in its influence.
We can only cover our lives by failing to be the example that Christ has
made us. When we fail to express our
Christian faith by standing against sin and the darkness it brings, we are
"busheling our bulb".
It is a Revealing Light
Light displays whatever is present.
It reveals truth. That is why
Jesus said in John 3:19 that men hate the light. Sin in our life can only remain as long as we
accept the lie that it will bring peace, happiness or possibly fulfillment to
us.
Light does not create darkness, it dispels it. Light does not just reveal evil and sin, but
good, honesty, beauty and wisdom.
Darkness in our lives is the picture of the life without the light of
Christ. For wherever the light comes in
there can be no more darkness. The more
light that is allowed into our lives, the better we see the things of darkness
that have ensnared us. Sometimes we
discover that it is the things that we have found so precious that are creating
the greatest occasion of defeat.
Revealing light creates the problem of whether or not we will "clean
up" the exposed dirt. We don't like
those kinds of decisions.
The Christian who walks reflecting the light of Christ will find that
others do not really like to have them around because they are constantly
revealing the dirt in the dark spots that the rest of the world does not
reveal. If God is exposing some “dirt”
in your life, He is giving you an opportunity to make it right, to clean it up
before it causes you or someone you love a lot of pain. Listen to His voice, take heed and appreciate
the light He shines in your life.
Scripture to Claim:
For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. 2 Corinthians 4:6
For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. 2 Corinthians 4:6
