And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. John 1:5 (KJV).

REFLECT:
With so many discouraging situations we see going on in our world today, for many of us it is as though darkness seems to be gaining more and more ground and the light that once kept some semblance of sanity and hope alive is slowly ebbing away.

However, if we must reflect on this sad situation the world is facing, we have to do it by looking at it in the light of the truth. Let us be truthful to ourselves at this point, and with regards to the light we thought was in our world. Was it the true light that was being upheld? Or was it rather the light of self-righteousness, religiosity, self – enlightenment, and egoistic illumination?

Of course, these traits mentioned above can easily be confused and mistaken for the true light, the kind our Bible verse for today is talking about, however, if properly examined they are but mere sparks that are far from perfect and can never be associated with the true light.

These sparks are more associated with darkness, they can be likened to a case of when our eyes simply become adjusted when we are in a dark room, after a while we see little sparks that help us feel our way around the darkroom, basically, these sparks still coexist with the darkness.

On the other hand, when we make way for the true light to come, darkness does not stand a chance, it flees. This means, you cannot have darkness around you when the true light comes, both can never coexist together. Isaiah 60 gives us a clear picture of this scenario. It tells us that even with gross darkness covering the earth once the true light is allowed in it overpowers the darkness.

Hence, these questions: Do we know the true light? How have we allowed the true light to gain free and complete reign into our world and in the situations we face? Our Bible verse for today intends and seeks to help us to get to know who this true light is. It aims to allow us the opportunity to explore and dig deeper to obtain the right answers and solutions to the problems we face in our world.

So, to explore the questions in the paragraph above, it would be good to have a self-examination, to find out if we indeed know the true light and be certain that we do not mistake sparks for the true light.

If we read through the entire chapter of John 1, we will become acquainted with the true light, and find out that He is a person, and not an object, thing, force, energy, or a figment of our soulish imagination. Rather He is a person who is the embodiment of the ultimate, divine, supernatural power and essence of Almighty God. He is JESUS!

Thus, Jesus came into this world as the true light of God and His presence is the only thing that has the power to eliminate darkness. The good news is that we can also stand in the place of Jesus, and when we do so, we will not only rid ourselves of the confusion regarding the sparks but also our presence will eliminate darkness, why? Because we become one with the true light.

So, how do we become one with the true light? This will happen only when we accept Jesus into our lives and yield to the ways of God the Father and receive the power to walk in His light, thus becoming one with the light. Which means that wherever we go we become carriers of the true light, bringing Jesus into every dark situation around us in the world, and guess what happens? Darkness will have no choice but to evacuate and flee.

The only way we can see situations of despair, futility, wickedness, and chaos brought about by darkness and evil evicted out of our societies is to associate ourselves with the true light of God –Jesus Christ. We must, therefore, allow the true light to shine in us and through us the way it ought to by the will of God’s Glorious Presence!!

Ebimobo W. Obasi

PLEASE PRAY ALONG:

Help Me Become An Effective Carrier Of The True Light.

Dear LORD JESUS, thank You for becoming the Light that pierced the darkness. Thank You for saving me, rescuing me, and redeeming me. I am so grateful that I can always rely on You. When I start to feel anxious, afraid, alone, or overwhelmed, help me to remember that You are with me—and You have overcome the world. Therefore, because of You, I am safe. Please teach me how to become an effective carrier of your light, the true light, so that I also can make a difference wherever I go. Thank You! In JESUS MIGHTY NAME AMEN.