“Children of Light”
These are DARK DAYS…literally. The sun is shining for the shortest amount of time. This means the opposite also true…darkness prevails for the longest amount of time. When all we see is darkness it is easy to forget what it is to live in the light.
When we find ourselves living through these DARK DAYS we tend to suffer from a type of claustrophobia. It surrounds us from every side. Everywhere we turn there is darkness. And eventually, the hopelessness of the struggle begins to close in from every side. Before long hope is suffocated right out of our hearts.
Darkness is the prelude to advent. We read in John 1:5 that “Light shines in the darkness.”It is because we live in DARK DAYS that Jesus, the Light of the World, came. We read in Matthew 5:14 that “We are the Light of the World…” Christmas is more than light shining into our darkness. Christmas is about us being the light even in our darkness.
In 1 Thessalonians 5:5 Paul reminds us: “For you are all children of light…” InEphesians 5:8 he instructs us similarly to…“live as children of the light.” It is one thing to be the light for others when they are in the darkness. It is another thing entirely to live as children of the light while we are the ones in the dark.
As Christ followers, we are people of advent. This means we are people of the light even as we walk in the darkness. To live as the children of the light is to follow the light even though we cannot see it. We are reminded that even the Light of the Worldhad some dark days. Ultimately, it was not the absence of darkness that proved the power of His light. It was the presence of it that did.
The best way to shine our light is not by standing on the outside of darkness. It is by being on the inside of it. Advent is about Christstepping into the darkness. It was only after Jesus was in the darkness that his light began to shine. When it did…the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:1).
If you find yourself on the outside of the darkness looking in, be the light of the world to someone else. If, however, you find yourself on the inside looking out, HOLD on to hope, hold on to the light, hold on to Jesus for the darkness has not won! Jesus is still holding on to you. And one day His light will overwhelm our darkness. Until it does, keep following the Light of the World, and as you do, you will be the light to the world.
Following in the Dark,
Pastor Jonathan, Sara & Emerson