I grew up in a rural area, and that had some advantages. For example, when my older brother and I were just young kids, we would occasionally talk our parents into letting us “camp out” for the night. That meant taking sleeping bags out in the back yard and “roughing” it for the night.
On one of those “camp outs” my brother talked me into entering my sleeping bag head first. That sounded like an interesting idea to me, but once inside, I felt trapped. As I tried to back out of that very dark place, the sleeping bag just moved with me. The harder I tried, the less progress I made. My brother must have had pity on my panicked cries for help because he eventually grabbed the sleeping bag and pulled it off of me. I was so relieved!
Darkness is a bad thing, but feeling trapped in it takes that desperate feeling to a whole new level. I never made that mistake again, but I have learned since that life is filled with times of frightening darkness. Like it or not, we humans are very vulnerable. We live in a very dark and broken world, and we have no control over what is going to happen next. We need someone to strip away the darkness for us.
Where can we find light that gives direction to our lives and brings comfort to our hearts?
One popular and ancient teaching is that light comes from within ourselves. All we have to do is find the light that is buried somewhere down deep within us. Plato’s “Fire of the Eye” theory illustrates this idea. He taught that light came from the eye itself. When someone asked, “Why then can’t we see in the dark?” he admitted that his theory needed some work. Ya think?
God’s truth is very different, although it is not popular. The Bible says that “… nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh….” (Romans 7:18). Our hearts are filled with darkness, not light. “The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9). Because of this, we need to have an outside source of light.
Jesus is that light!
Jesus said, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life” (John 8:12). This is an awesome light! “ Almost anyone who has a choice between seeing where to go or stumbling in the dark will choose to walk in the light, right? The truth is not what we expect. Very few really want to follow the light that Christ gives. Many insist on trying to live life their own way, even when it means going from one failure to another. “Jesus said to them . . . he who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes” (John 12:35). If Jesus is a light that will keep us from wandering around in the dark, then why is it that so few want to come to Christ? Jesus gave us the answer in John chapter three: “This is the judgment, that the Light [i.e., Christ] has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed” (John 3:19-20). Sadly, we tend to love our own way so much that we will turn away from our only hope – fearing that Christ will show us how wrong we are. There is a good reason for turning away from our selfishness to the light of Christ, even though it takes a lot of humility. Jesus came to earth and died for the sins of mankind on the Cross, “to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins . . .” (Acts 26:18). Have you come to the place in life where you will admit your need for Christ’s light? When you “. . . believe in the Light,” Jesus transforms you “so that you may become sons of Light” (John 12:36). If I can help you in any way, please let me know. The living Word of God (Jesus Christ) shines clearly through the written Word of God (the Bible). I am happy to provide a free Bible study to anyone who asks. Your comments are always welcome.
Leave A Comment