Let There Be Light!

“The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world.” John 1:9

One rainy May night, Blake and I went to see our new house for the first time. We had purchased it sight unseen, relying only on a virtual tour and pictures online (we don’t recommend this to anyone 😉). Our initial thought: “What on earth have we done?” Between the brown carpet and the dim pendant lights casting shadows on the dark tan walls…we felt like we had just bought a cave.

Thankfully, my husband is very handy. Slowly but surely, Blake brought the light in - starting with a coat of white paint on the walls. We couldn’t refrain from celebrating when he successfully wired the recessed lights. Next, the kitchen wall came down. The brown carpet went bye bye. Blake added a second light over our dining room table. Our house became brighter and brighter until it was unrecognizable from that first dingy encounter. “Wow, it’s like a whole new house!” people would say when they saw the before and after transformation.

And this is what Jesus does for us - our God who split darkness with spoken Word at the beginning of time does the same in our lives (Genesis 1:3). Piece by piece, through a process of demolition and restoration, Jesus pushes back the darkness within us and lets the light in. He who calls Himself “The Light of the World” declares: “...whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12).

The light of Jesus is like the sun - it penetrates any form of darkness and renders all other light dim in comparison. God illuminates every shadow of our lives, causing us to dwell completely in the light - for “God is light, in Him there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). He calls us out of our lostness, brokenness, shame, sin, and isolation into “his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9).

And God’s light is not distant or hidden - He is near and wants us to experience Him. This is the very reason He came in the form of flesh - to make Himself known to us who live in this “land of deep darkness” (Isaiah 9:2), and to provide “true light” to everyone on earth (John 1:9). And over the course of our lives, like the rising of the sun, God reveals Himself to us - enlightening us through His Word and by His Spirit to see and understand and live in His light.

Even as God comes to us, we go looking for our own sources of light - comfort, ease, affluence, status, security… these things that claim to provide “the good life.” And don’t we look silly? We attempt to scrounge up light from the glow of our phones and temporary fixes all while the Light of the World beckons us near. It would be like Blake trying to remedy the light problem in our house with flashlights or candles. We’d be fumbling with batteries and faulty lighters, tending to less-than light and fighting off the darkness on our own. We need Jesus to save us from ourselves and our hearts, which often deceive us as we go looking for meaning and happiness and “light” in all the wrong places.

Light is our ultimate destiny - one day, we will live in a city where there is “no sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp” (Revelation 21:23). At that time, we will gaze on the face of Jesus, which is “like the sun shining in all its brilliance,” and we will be enveloped in light forever (Revelation 1:16).

As for our house - we still crave more light. We discuss and dream about adding windows, skylights…ANYTHING to bring more light in (especially sunlight!). We don’t ever want to feel like cave-dwellers again. And I pray we feel the same with our lives, too. May we always be craving more light, allowing the Light of the World to flood every part of our hearts and every facet of our lives.