darkness

The verdict

/ EllieJ

This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved the darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done was been done through God.

John 3:19-21 (NIV)

A verdict, according to Noah Webster, is a decision, a judgment, an opinion pronounced. Jesus proclaimed a verdict. He declared that something like no other had come into the world. Webster also said this of light:

This word furnishes a full and distinct explanation of the original sense of light, to throw, to dart, shoot or break forth. [Light is] that ethereal agent or matter which makes objects perceptible to the sense of seeing, but the particles of which are separately invisible. It is now generally believed that light is a fluid, or real matter, existing independent of other substances, with properties peculiar to itself.

I was sitting in a meeting with my pastor the other day and the power went out. For a while we were able to continue using our laptops and tablets on battery, but as evening progressed, the room got darker and darker. The atmosphere changed in the absence of light. We looked at things differently as we continued our discussion in the dark.

The detection of light is a very powerful tool for probing the universe around us. As light interacts with matter it can be become altered and by studying light that has originated or interacted with matter, many of the properties of that matter can be determined.

What is Light, www.andor.com

Isn’t it amazing how a scientific explanation reaffirms what the Bible said thousands of years ago? When light interacts with matter, we can learn stuff about that matter. When the Light interacts with people, it says something about us.

When God introduced light into the universe, it was not the sun or any other star. He introduced His own Son, and in him was life, and that light was the light of men (John 1:4). Without Jesus first being sent out, life would not exist. We cannot exist without light.

Naturally speaking, a person may not die strictly due to a lack of light, but other issues caused by perpetual darkness can lead to serious illness or death. Benefits of natural light include:

  • boosting vitamin D storage, which helps absorb calcium and can aid in the prevention of certain types of cancer;
  • higher productivity;
  • healthier vision;
  • better sleep;
  • mood improvement.

If our physical bodies were created with a need for natural light, wouldn’t it stand to reason that our spiritual bodies were also created with a need for Light? Our bodies thrive when the sun comes out. Our spirits thrive when the Son comes out.

So what’s your verdict? Do you hate the Light and do evil or do you love the Light and do good? Like a trial in the court of law, there can only be two choices when it comes to a verdict, guilty or innocent. Evil or good? Dark or Light?

Read: 1 Kings 21-22, John 3:1-21

That is the way to know

/ EllieJ / Leave a comment

I believe that there’s more wisdom in Disney movies than we give credit for. In the 2007 movie, Enchanted, the displaced Giselle breaks out into song and dance with That’s How You Know—a song all about how you can tell if a man truly loves a woman. In the end (and after a lot of lyrics), the gist of the number is that he’ll find a way to show the girl.

You’ve got to show her you need her
Don’t treat her like a mind reader
Each day do something to lead her
To believe you love her

Imagine that. The way to make sure that someone knows that you love them and that you belong to them is to do things for them—to show them.

And how can we be sure that we belong to him? By obeying his commandments. If someone says, “I belong to God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and does not live in the truth. But those who obey God’s word really do love him. That is the way to know whether or not we live in him. Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Christ did.

1 John 2:3-6 (NLT)

As Christians, we should never have to go around telling people who and what we are. Our actions, our obedience to the Word of God, should give us away. While God knows your every thought, He shouldn’t have to read your mind to assure Himself that you belong to Him. Your words and actions should tell the world.

What words? What actions?

Dear friends, I am not writing a new commandment, for it is an old one you have always had, right from the beginning. This commandment—to love one another—is the same message you heard before.

1 John 2:7 (NLT)

There is no excuse a believer can make for living a life outside of love. For if God—who is love—lives within us, there is no room for hate. And if we hate while claiming to love, we are liars because both darkness and light cannot exist in the same space.

You either love or you don’t. You either belong to God or you don’t. There is no place in between. No grey area. You’re one or the other and that is the way to know whether or not we live in him.

Daily Bible reading: Daniel 1-2, 1 John 2

The fellowship

/ EllieJ / Leave a comment

I have heard many Christians who have walked away from one church, or the church altogether, blame other Christians for their spiritual state. The church didn’t do enough for them. The other members didn’t include them enough. No place was made for them. May excuses are given, but no responsibility is taken. Their cold spiritual climate is blamed on everyone but themselves.

This is the message he has given us to announce to you: God is light and there is no darkness in him at all. So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness. We are not living in the truth. But if we are living in the light of God’s presence, just as Christ is, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from every sin.

1 John 1:5-7 (NLT)

This passage puts the responsibility on the individual to be a part of the body, not the body to make the individual a part of them. If we are living in the light… then we have fellowship with each other. Fellowship with the rest of the church is a natural part of a healthy relationship with Christ. Expecting that the church tend to your personal relationship with Jesus is backwards. Jesus first. Church second.

It is ignorant of us to put thing in the wrong order and then try to pass the blame around without ever accepting the responsibility we have to keep ourselves in the light. No one else can do that for you.

Instead of spending so much time looking for someone or something you can blame, why not use all that energy and put it toward your relationship with God? If we all put as much effort into our spiritual lives as we do placing blame, the church would be a much happier place and we wouldn’t have to worry about where the blame goes because there would be no reason for it.

Get into the light. Then get into fellowship. In that order. The church can help you, but they can’t do it all for you.

Daily Bible reading: Ezekiel 47-48, 1 John 1

Children of the Light

/ EllieJ / Leave a comment

There are many definitions for the word light. It’s meaning goes far beyond that of simple illumination:

  • life
  • day
  • means of knowing
  • a window
  • God
  • Christ
  • joy
  • comfort
  • deliverance
  • the Gospel
  • a true Christian
  • favour

All of these things exemplify light.

For you are all children of the light and of the day; we don’t belong to darkness and night.

1 Thessalonians 5:5 (NLT)

When we claim the title child of God, it means so much more than belonging to God. And that is a wondrous thing! When Paul says that, as Christians, we are children of the light, we have life, we have a way of knowing, we have joy, comfort, deliverance, favour. And, if we have anything other than these things in our lives, we have allowed ourselves to be pulled back into the darkness that Jesus died to save us from.

DARKNESS: absence of light; obscurity; want of clarity; that quality or state which renders any thing difficult to understand; a state of being intellectually clouded; great trouble and distress

These characteristics are unbecoming of a Christian. They have no place in our lives. Do we live in a dark world that would see us all brought back into that darkness? Yes. But that is why we are called to let our light shine. Let our joy, our clarity, our comfort, our deliverance, and our favour overflow and overcome the darkness that surrounds us.

But let us who live in the light think clearly, protected by the body armor of faith and love, wearing as our helmet the confidence of our salvation.

1 Thessalonians 5:8 (NLT)

The close we get to God and the longer we remain in His presence, the more clarity we will find and the more confident we will be in our salvation. Darkness will become a distant memory that no longer has a hold on us because we are protected by these gifts from our Father.

So let us live as we are meant to, as children of the light. Let us cast all darkness from our lives and walk in the close comfort that comes with our salvation.

Daily Bible reading: Isaiah 62-64, 1 Thessalonians 5

Give to the light

/ EllieJ / Leave a comment

Did you know that in many Latin-based languages, there is no specific word to describe the term to give birth? In Spanish, the term is dar a luz. Directly translated, it means to give to the light. If you’re familiar with any of the languages that use this term, perhaps it is of no great revelation to you. But what if we put it in the context that Jesus used?

Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.”

John 3:3 (NLT)

Unless you are given to the light…

Believe in the light while there is still time; then you will become children of the light.

John 12:36 (NLT)

When we are born again—accept the free gift of salvation and accept Jesus into our lives as Lord and Saviour—we are given to the light. We become children of the light. We are then able to see through the darkness and no longer have to stumble around because we cannot see where we are going.

I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the darkness.

John 12:46 (NLT)

When we stop trying to put our trust in ourselves or those around us and put our trust in Jesus, we are no longer in the dark. We give ourselves to the Light. The Light of the world. The Light that gives life. The Light that illuminates our path. And then that Light shines in and through us so that we can guide the way for others.

Daily Bible reading: 2 Chronicles 4-6, John 12:20-50

Shine a light

/ EllieJ / Leave a comment

Have you ever been camping in a place where there are no lights? Have you been so far away from the city that the lights can no longer be seen on the horizon? On nights when the moon is just a sliver and clouds obstruct the stars, it’s dark. Really dark. Just one flashlight can go a long way on a night light that. One light can prevent an entire group of people from stumbling. With every light that’s added, more people can safely traverse an area.

Now imagine your campground away from the city is the world. Christians are the light. If there are no Christians—those who reflect the light of Christ—people are left to stumble. But the more people there are who reflect Jesus, the brighter the path becomes.

Jesus replied, “There are twelve hours of daylight every day. As long as it is light, people can walk safely. They can see because they have the light of this world. Only at night is there danger of stumbling because there is no light.”

John 11:9-10 (NLT)

Instead of complaining about how dark the world is, why not do something about it? Why not go out there and shine a light for those whom you see stumbling along in the darkness. The more the Church pulls back from the world, not wanting to associate with it, the darker it becomes. The more we get out there into the world, the brighter it will be.

If you’re the one in the dark with a flashlight, you aren’t going to keep it hidden and let your friends trip and fall. Let’s all shine a light and remove the danger of stumbling.

Daily Bible reading: 1 Chronicles 23-25, John 11:1-17

Preparation

/ EllieJ / Leave a comment

First off, if you’re an email follower of this blog, please excuse the multiple posts in a day while I play catch up. I have good reason for missing a few days, but now I’m back and we’ll continue on while catching up at the same time.

In some ways, I like to prepare. In other ways, I hate it. When I’m heading out on a long trip across the country or overseas, I have a standard spreadsheet for everything I always bring with me and extra worksheets for each type of trip I go on. My list is very different for a one week cross-Canada road trip than it is for a two week trip down the Amazon. I prepare for my expected journey.

But there are some journeys that are more difficult to prepare for. And some yet that are nearly impossible to prepare for.

In Exodus, God is preparing Israel for a big trip. A really big trip. They’d been occupying and enslaved in a foreign country for 430 years and now it was time to go home. Their numbers had increased greatly along with their belongings and livestock. An open invitation and blessing had become oppression.

Every time Moses approached Pharaoh and said, “Let my people go” while Pharaoh responded, “no” was preparation.

For every negative response, God was preparing Israel for a greater miracle.

Every time they were turned away, God was working in the heart of the king toward a greater show of His might.

The darker the situation became for Israel, the greater the potential for a miracle became—and that’s exactly what happened.

Not only was Egypt destroyed and Israel allowed to leave, but they were encouraged to leave and blessed in their going out. They were blessed in and they were blessed going out.

In what may seem to be a great time of anger and frustration, God may be preparing for an even greater miracle.

Daily Bible reading: Exodus 11-12, Matthew 18:21-35

Light

/ EllieJ / Leave a comment

Have you ever seen a believer fall into sin? If you haven’t, chances are you’re not a very observant person. Even un-churched, non-believers see Christians stumble on a regular basis.

Have you ever seen followers of that person then also fall into sin? Unfortunately, it happens all too often. So-and-so did it, so I can, too.

I believe that people are drawn into darkness by the sin of others often because it is not the Light they are following, but the person from which the light shines. They’ve failed to differentiate the two and, when the light dims, rather than continuing to follow the Light, they continue to follow the person.

For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 4:5-6 (ESV)

It is not our job to promote ourselves, but to promote Jesus in us. If we are true stewards of the Gospel, we will direct people to Jesus and away from ourselves. Not only are we showing others how to be stewards of the Light, but we remove ourselves from the equation should we happen to stumble.

Daily Bible reading: Proverbs 21-22, 2 Corinthians 4

Grace

/ EllieJ / Leave a comment

What is grace? To some, it is the Get Our of Jail Free card because, after all, God will always forgive me, right? It would mean that we can do anything and, as long as we ask forgiveness, we’re good. But if you’re never truly repentant, can there ever be true forgiveness?

What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?

Romans 6:1-2 (ESV)

The doctrine of grace is this: we are born into sin because of Adam’s sinfulness in the Garden. Because of that sin, we are ever separated from God and can never be reconciled with Him. Grace is what we have been offered through Jesus’ blood as a way to come to God. One of my Bible school teachers put it this way:

Faith is our grip on God.
Grace is God’s grip on us.

Grace is not an excuse to sin, but rather an excuse to stay away from sin. We can either be alive in Christ and dead to sin or alive in sin and dead to Christ. We cannot be both alive to sin and alive in Christ. If Christ, the light of the world, be in us, darkness cannot also dwell there.

In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

John 1:4-5 (ESV)

Daily Bible reading: Psalm 75-77; Romans 6

Night is coming

/ EllieJ / Leave a comment

For most of us, the voice of Jon Snow is in our heads telling us that winter is coming. In a way, it is. That is if we, the Church, don’t stop it.

We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.

John 9:4-5 (ESV)

Can anyone work in the dark? This isn’t a philosophical question. Can you actually do your job in complete darkness? I can’t, off the top of my head, think of a single vocation that would require anyone to work in complete darkness. And any job that takes place at night or in dark places requires light. The more light the better.

Taking a very practical approach to what Jesus said regarding the coming of night, we need to get to work, Church! And we need light to do it. If Jesus is the light of the world and Jesus is in us, that means that we are the light of the world. That light seems to be dimming in many places. This Little Light of Mine isn’t sung as loudly as it used to be. In fact, many people filling the pews of churches have no idea that they are supposed to be a light in the darkness.

The principle is simple. Much like kinetic energy, once you get going, it’s easy to keep going. So long as we are doing the work God called us to do, the light keeps shining. It’s when the work dwindles that the light fades.

In the passage we read today in John 9, Jesus comes upon a blind man. The disciples, thinking as the rabbis were teaching at the time, assumed that the man or his parents had sinned resulting in the man’s affliction.

Jesus answered, “It was not this man’s sin or his parents’ sin that made him blind. This man was born blind to that God’s power could be shown in him.”

John 9:3 (NCV)

What would happen if the Church stopped trying to reason out why things happen and started doing what we were meant to do – show God’s glory and power? I imagine that our little lights would become glowing beacons lighting up the night pushing the power of darkness back. One miracle would lead to another miracle and soon it would snowball and the world wouldn’t be able to help but take notice. It’s difficult to ignore a spotlight in your eyes.

Let your light shine. Let it shine. Let it shine. Let it shine.

Daily Bible reading: 1 Chronicles 11-13; John 9:1-23