We woke this morning to the horrifying news of another shooting. I was planning on writing today about the darkness that seems to be permeating our world. Now it seems even more urgent.
What is happening?
I heard a message at church Wednesday from Joe Ewing, a pastor and Bible teacher from Scotland. His words stirred me and have been ringing in my mind and heart ever since.
“Don’t despair as the world around us gets darker and darker. We as Christians have the Light of the World! The light shines brightest when it is dark. Let your light shine, Church!”
Instead of wringing my hands, and lamenting the sad state of our world (which indeed is very bad) I need to let my light shine.
What does this mean?
Pastor Ewing shared from Isaiah 60:1-5 which says –
“Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
2 See, darkness covers the earth
and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you
and his glory appears over you.
3 Nations will come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawn.
The context of this passage is a very dark time in Israel. The prophet Isaiah wants Israel to know that their hope is in God.
But where is God in the midst of the darkness?
The Light is Jesus, our hope of salvation. Jesus is the Light the world needs. Jesus told us to let our light shine in darkness. Jesus taught us to
- love instead of hate
- forgive instead of retaliate
- give instead of take
- share instead of selfishness
Paul says the following at a time he has been beaten and thrown in prison. It was a dark time. II Corinthians 4:5-7
5 For what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. 6 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 God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.
7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.
I don’t understand the darkness, but I do know the Light. In this time of darkness, I MUST let my light shine. I will keep my eyes on Jesus. Jesus is the Light, the hope of the world.
The darker this world gets, the brighter the LIGHT will shine.
Arise, let our Light shine!
Our Father's Daughters 