“This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you. God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all.” 1 John 1:5
As I write this blog entry, it is the last week of January 2022, and it is very dark. This time of year always feels so dark and cold. The twinkling lights that shone during the Christmas season are gone, and the brighter days of Spring have yet to arrive. What is darkness anyway? There is really no definition for darkness on its own. If you search for the meaning, many sources, including scientific ones, define darkness as simply the absence of light. I find this definition so profound in relation to scripture. John tells us that in God, there is no darkness at all, and Jesus tells us He is the light of the world. Therefore, my logical conclusion is that a life lived without the light of Jesus shining in it is a wasted life, a life devoid of meaning, a life without definition.
“Dear friends, I am not writing a new commandment for you rather it is an old one you have had from the very beginning. This old commandment – to love one another – is the same message you heard before, yet it is also new. Jesus lived the truth of this commandment, and you are also living it. For the darkness is disappearing, and the true light is already shining.” 1 John 2:7-8 NLT
When I read this scripture passage back in September 2015, I had a vision that the world, before Jesus, was full of darkness. Then Jesus, the light, came into the world. There was a crack of light in that one geographical location on the earth. Then those who chose to pick up that light from Him, by following Him, each carried the light in them. Gradually the light grew to shine all over the world, pushing the darkness back. The darkness was slowly going away as the lights were shining on it.
I believe Jesus opened the door for everyone to live in the light rather than darkness. Even if they don’t believe in Him or know Him, He opened the door to light and life for them as well. The fact of that door being opened, and Jesus making the light available, is something Jesus accomplished by going to the cross. Whether anyone chooses to believe it or not doesn’t change the fact that it happened. Jesus conquered darkness for everyone! The way we can engage this truth is to believe in Jesus’ victory over darkness, begin to trust in God’s sovereignty over our lives, pick up that light and become light-bearers ourselves. When we choose to believe, our lives will start to change. Everyone starts off in the darkness. That’s why it’s important that everyone hear the Gospel message. They need to hear the Gospel so they will have an opening to receive this life of light that God fully intended for all of us to have!
Last June, during my morning prayer time, I had another vision relating to light. As I sat quietly, trying to still my mind and simply listen to what the Lord might speak to me, I had a vision of a small but brilliant light in the midst of complete darkness. It looked like a tiny star. I asked God what that light was; He told me it was His light shining in the dark. Then the light started growing and growing until it completely overtook all the darkness. He then said to me that His light grows brighter and brighter with each generation.
I definitely wrestled with this idea. Looking around our world, it seemed to me that as a people, we are moving further and further away from God. It seemed to me that fewer and fewer people were accepting this light and bringing it forward. But I felt the Lord assuring me that though it may seem this way in the natural world, in the spirit realm, His light is growing brighter with each new generation.
I praise you and thank you, God, for these visions of hope that you have given me! I am so thankful that you are a God of light. May Your light continue to grow exponentially until all the darkness of this world is completely eliminated.
“The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine.” Isaiah 9:2 NLT
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Elizabeth Purcell
Melissa, i absolutely love your blog. When I think of darkness, it covers, conceals, and often buries what is good that should be seen. As followers of Jesus, we are called to be the light of the world. How can we be light if we remain in the dark? Why do we cover ourselves when we should be uncovered for the world to see God’s goodness shining through us? Lord, continue to do the necessary work within me for your love to be a shining light through me in a dark world.
Glenda Paquin
Melissa, sister, this is profound. I am really drawn to light, meaning bright, beautiful arrays of light as I see God in every particle. This blog is so powerful. I think I will take parts of it to use in a bible group talking about evangelism, that we are to be the small beacons of light in this world that is dark. We are to be the lamp beam projections. People always ask, but how, I am scared, I don’t know what to do, people will reject me. Well honestly people don’t reject light, we all need light, so be a positive light even if it’s the smallest particle to open the hearts, minds and eyes to see to those around us. Thank you so much!