This week God really laid on my heart to research the word light and what it means to be a light. The Bible tells us to let our light shine. I was listening to Planetshakers sermon this week from Russell Evans and he said, “We’re not going to be dictated by darkness. We’re going to bring the light. Light is more powerful than darkness. So many people worried about the darkness. Just turn the light on.”
This is so powerful. So many times people get worried about going into the darkness. We want to stay in our nice little comfortable Jesus area. But the truth is the only thing that can change the darkness is light. If we don’t go to those places and shine the light, how can we expect them to change. These can be physical places or these can be spiritual places.
If we run from the dark places in our lives, they are just going to stay dark. Hiding them and closing them off doesn’t change them. If we avoid the “dark” places in the world are we really loving the people that are in them?
So what exactly are we to do? Everyone look at your bracelet and ask what would Jesus do?
“Later, Levi invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. (There were many people of this kind among Jesus’ followers.) But when the teachers of religious law who were Pharisees saw him eating with tax collectors and other sinners, they asked his disciples, “Why does he eat with such scum? ” When Jesus heard this, he told them, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.”
Mark 2:15-17 NLT
Jesus walked right into the darkness and let His light shine. We can’t be afraid to live life with “those who know they are sinners.” The Bible says there were many people like that who were following Jesus. We can still build relationships with them, eat with them, and show them the love on Christ. The Bible says that it is the goodness of God that leads men to repentance. If we are keep arms length away from non-believers, they won’t see that goodness.
John 1:5 says, ““The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.” When we walk in the light, we don’t have to worry about the darkness. For the dark places in our lives, Jesus tells us, in John 8:12, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”
Our calling is simple. We just have to follow Jesus. Whether it is dealing with things in our own lives or reaching out to others, just follow Jesus. Neither will be pretty or comfortable but it’s what we are called to do. Light expels the darkness. Just think of when you first turn on a light in the morning. When you turn on the light, it kills your eyes for a second, but once they adjust everything is clear. When we allow the light of Christ to expel the darkness in our lives, we will have the clarity we so desperately search for.
until next time…