The light shines in the darkness

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

What happens when you turn on the light in a dark room? Does the darkness struggle with the light? Certainly not! As soon as you turn on the light, darkness disappears. Darkness is no match for the light. There is no fight, struggle or question about it. Please take a look at our main scripture above from John 1:5. It says the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness does not comprehend it. Darkness could not stand or contain it.

What is “light” in this verse? The context clearly tells us that the word “light” here is used for Jesus, the Word of God. Light can mean different things such as knowledge, good works, glory of God etc, but it is used in this verse for a PERSON, Jesus Christ. If you grasp this truth, the next question then is what is ‘darkness” in this verse? Similar to light, darkness is not just used in this verse to mean evil works, etc. It refers to the world, and especially the PEOPLE of the world under the INFLUENCE of demonic spirits. Eph. 5:8 says “ye were sometimes darkness”. He did not just say we were in the dark but He called us “darkness” in our former lost state.

So this verse is saying when Jesus came into the world, the darkness of the world, through the people He encountered could not annihilate or stop what He came to do. They could not contain Him. The darkness could not extinguish His light. Well, He now tells us “you are the light of the world”. In the same way darkness could not stand Jesus, so that darkness of this world cannot stand or contain you. We are living in perilous times when the darkness of sin might appear to be having the victory. Well, this is the truth. The darkness cannot overcome the light, and Satan knows it very well. Do not feel overwhelmed by what is happening around us. We are more than conquerors. Stand your ground, arise, and shine!

MEDITATE

Why are you called “light” as a believer? What does light do that God uses as a figure of your life in Christ?

APPLY THE WORD

It is easy to give up or even give in to the increasing darkness. Sin is being glorified in our days in a way that is beyond our comprehension. When sin increases, God increases grace, that is, He adds the electricity for the light to glow even brighter! Stand fast in the Lord, and do not be discouraged. Satan knows your light cannot be contained, so shine!