Nothing good happens after midnight, or so the saying goes. And Ephesians 5:11 warns us, “Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness.” Darkness and wickedness go hand and hand…and they like it that way. For evil is more comfortable in the dark…because it naively thinks no one can see. That’s why men love darkness instead of light…it shines forth brightly with truth and all their deception, lies, and falsehoods are laid bare for all to see. The penetrating beacon of God’s truth is absolute, transcendent, and divinely revealed to those who willingly come into the light.
Tag: bringing light into the darkness
John 8:12 ” When Jesus spoke again to the people, He said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’ “
The question today is…are you walking in the light or in the darkness? Are you allowing panic, anxiety, and fear to rule and reign in your life or are you putting your trust and confidence in Jesus Christ? Proverbs 4:18 says, “The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day.” While verse 19 says, “But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they don’t know what makes them stumble.” If you’re allowing the fear of the unknown to over-ride good judgment today, I urge you to stop…take a really deep breath…and consider. A wonderful word out of the Psalms is Selah…to pause. Pause to consider what has been the driving force behind all your actions lately. Is it fear or faith…panic or peace…agitation or assurance?
Psalm 88:18 ” You have taken my companions and loved ones from me; the darkness is my closest friend.”
One of the realities of life is that we will lose people close to us. And as we get older and older it happens more often. We look around, and all our beloved friends and family are gone…and left in their place is this huge void. This Scripture actually reminded me of the first line of an old Simon and Garfunkel song, “Hello darkness, my old friend I’ve come to talk with you again…” And if you read this entire Psalm, you’ll recognize that dark place as grieving and loss. But within this darkness there’s also the hope of God, and the Writer of this Psalm knows this is where he needs to be.
Micah 7: 7-8 ” But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me. Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise. Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light.”
Christmas can be a very tough time for those who have lost loved ones. That empty chair at the Dinner table is a sad reminder of happier times and the flood of memories from Christmases past makes the day a little harder to bear. This week we attended a funeral of a friend and then this morning we got the call that a family member had just passed. So this verse is very special this Christmas Day, for there is always hope in Jesus…and though sorrow and loss come into all our lives and we sit in the darkness created by them…we have assurance that we can rise on the wings of hope into His blessed light.
Job 33: 29-30 ” God does all these things to a man – twice, even three times – to turn back his soul from the pit, that the light of life may shine on him.”
After Job’s three friends had been unable to win their argument that he, (Job), was being punished by God… a young man by the name of Elihu stood to speak. (Now you can read his entire speech in Chapters 32-37 of Job.) Elihu’s assertion was that God was instructing or teaching Job…that even in all the trials and suffering he was going through, Job was to trust God. (Interestingly enough, when God started to speak, He never condemned Elihu’s words like He did Job’s and his three friends!) Now the Lord allows righteous people to suffer and go through trials everyday…but it’s not out of punishment, but to strengthen their faith and trust in Him. And when we should wander from the truth, God faithfully keeps bringing us back, that we may see the error of our way and turn. (James 5:19)
Psalm 112:4 ” Even in darkness light dawns for the upright, for the gracious and compassionate and righteous man.”
In those times of obscurity and uncertainty there is only one light to seek out…for it will illuminate and give you the spiritual perspective you are searching for. It’s God Word. Not man’s word written about it, or feel good flowery prose that tend to water it down. No, the enlightenment you are seeking can only come from God’s Word and spending time in the Bible. Psalm 18:28 promises that God will turn my darkness into light, but I have to be willing to go to the source of that light…His Word.
Isaiah 29:15 ” Woe to those who go to great depths to hide their plans from the Lord, who do their work in darkness and think, ‘Who sees us? Who will know?’ “
Talk to someone who is struggling with a pornography addiction and sure enough they’ll use the excuse, “What I do in the privacy of my own home is my right.” And then they’ll follow it up with, “And I wasn’t hurting anyone with what I was doing alone at night.” They are rationalizing and attempting to explain away what they already know deep down in their heart is wrong. For we can’t hide anything from God’s sight. And no matter how dark it is…God still sees what we’re doing.
Jeremiah 8:15 ” We hoped for peace but no good has come, for a time of healing but there was only terror.”
In all our lives we will go through darkness…not the kind caused by sin or disobedience…but darkness that comes out of fear and confusion in this broken world. But while we are crouched down in the Valley of Despair, we need to listen…for the Lord will be speaking life-bringing truths into our soul. Precious truths of encouragement, and exhortation that will sustain us during illness, pain, and loss. Isaiah 50:10 tells us, ” Let him who walks in the dark, who has no light, trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God.”
Isaiah 5:20 ” Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.”
Even within my lifetime I’ve seen this huge shift of what we consider right and wrong. And with the advent of mass media, the Internet, Snap-Chat, YouTube, and Hollywood…we see our societal mores slowly morphing into something our Great-grandparents would be appalled at. But this blurring of ethical principles and practices didn’t happen overnight…for it relied on man’s pride, rebellion and apathy to flourish. So now we sit, so desensitized, we don’t even react anymore to what we know is wrong…but if we do, we’ll likely find ourselves being chastised for being intolerant and narrow-minded. Job 24:13 warns of this Spiritual blindness…of evildoers who rebel against the light, who don’t know its ways or stay in its path. I ask Heavenly Father, that we would be enlightened by Your Word, and that You would illuminate our minds with Your truth, that we may be able to discern right and wrong correctly. Amen.
Genesis 1:3 ” And God said, ‘Let there be light’, and there was light.”
God is associated with light, for He created it. But then in I John 1:5, God is called the Light. While in John 8:12, Jesus called Himself the Light of the world. This type of light defines life, salvation, prosperity, wisdom, and justice and something every Believer should be striving for. But how? II Corinthians 4:6 tells us, ” For God, Who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness’, made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” The answer is then easy…it’s Jesus. For when there’s more of Him and less of us that light can shine brightly from within.
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