Living in his light

The Upward Look, by Jon Forrest

Living in His Light

The first act of creation in Genesis 1 came from the spoken word when it says, “And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light? (Genesis 1:3)

Why do you think he created light so early? We don’t know for certain, but it is obvious that it was high on his priority list. Light is very important to the existence of life. Without it, darkness prevails. Throughout Scripture light is representative of life, truth and hope. John wrote of Jesus, “In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

When we join together in Advent season, we celebrate the coming of the Son of God. An important aspect is the lighting of the Advent candles. It is a season of light.

John tells us how that darkness cannot overcome the light. Light wipes out darkness. Darkness is nothing. Darkness represents the opposite of light.

When God created light, darkness disappeared. Sadly, after light was created, after the creation of mankind, mankind pushed light out of the picture through sin, disobedience to God. Sin brought the darkness of falsehood, sorrow, hopelessness and all sorts of evil into the lives of all mankind.

Jesus created light along with his Father in the beginning. So, when the darkness of sin came, God needed to repair the situation. He did so through sending his only Son into the world as the light of life and all mankind.

Ultimately, Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection brought rebirth, life, truth and hope into the lives of all who would embrace that light through faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

In his sermon on the Mount, Jesus referred to his followers as “the light of the world.” If you are a Christ follower, it is your responsibility to shine his light everywhere you go. This is not your light, but his light emanated through your life and testimony to others.

As we move through the Advent season and beyond, let us shine his light everywhere we go.

This Sunday, I will share the second message in our Advent series titled “The Light of the World” based on John 1:4-5 and other Scripture. I hope you will join us for this celebration of God’s light to us.

Living in His Light,

Jon