Our nation--and our world--is in a very dark place right now. Everywhere you turn, you see chaos, confusion, fear, despair, loss, and hopelessness. People are lost. People are broken. People are living with shame and regret, desperate to hide the parts of themselves they are afraid for other people to see. In their desperation to hide, they are running toward the darkness...
"Still some people preferred the darkness over the light
because their actions were dark.
Some of humankind hated the light.
They scampered hurriedly back into the darkness
where vices thrive and wickedness flourishes."
(John 3:19b & 20)
When people are ashamed of their actions, they hide them in the dark. They don't want them exposed to the world--it would be embarrassing, humiliating for people to see all the things better left hidden. They cling to the darkness because they are afraid of what will happen if light shines on the things they are ashamed of.
People fear things they don't know or understand, and people who are stuck hiding in the darkness don't know the Light.
"Why does God allow for judgment and condemnation?
Because the Light, sent from God, pierced through the world’s darkness
to expose ill motives, hatred, gossip, greed, violence, and the like.
Still some people preferred the darkness over the light
because their actions were dark. Some of humankind hated the light.
They scampered hurriedly back into the darkness
where vices thrive and wickedness flourishes.
Those who abandon deceit and embrace what is true,
they will enter into the light where it will be clear that all their deeds come from God."
(John 3:19-21)
According to the world's standards, it's a bad thing when deeds done in the darkness get exposed. People hiding in the darkness question what would happen if they were exposed to the True Light. Their minds roll with questions:
~What would God do if He knew what I've done?
~What would God think of me if He truly knew me?
~What would happen to me if all my shame was exposed?
~What if people really saw the real me?
As followers of Christ, we are in the unique position to show people just exactly how Jesus answered those questions:
"Thankfully, God does not punish us for our sins and depravity as we deserve.
In His mercy, He tempers justice with peace.
Measure how high heaven is above the earth;
God’s wide, loving, kind heart is greater for those who revere Him.
You see, God takes all our crimes
—our seemingly inexhaustible sins—
and removes them.
As far as east is from the west,
He removes them from us."
(Psalm 103:10-12)
"When the time was right,
the Anointed One died for all of us who were far from God, powerless, and weak.
Now
it is rare to find someone willing to die for an upright person,
although it’s possible that someone may give up his life for one who is
truly good.
But think about this: while we were wasting our lives in sin,
God revealed His powerful love to us in a tangible display—
the Anointed One died for us."
(Romans 5:6-8)
"Here’s the point. God didn’t send His Son into the world to condemn it;
instead, He is here to rescue a world headed toward certain destruction."
(John 3:17)
"Therefore, if anyone is
united with the Anointed One, that person is a new creation. The old
life is gone—and see—a new life has begun!"
(2 Corinthians 5:17)
Life in the True Light is not a shameful, humiliating thing. The God who created us knows our weaknesses and faults--and He loves us anyway. He sees all the things we try to hide in the dark, and He shines His light on them to show us how much we are hurting and how He can heal us. His Light brings healing and hope, not condemnation and confusion.
So when the world is in darkness, show people the Light.
