Light And Darkness

In the New Testament book of John, we are introduced right away to the idea that there is a battle taking place on this earth. That battle is described in terms of light and darkness.

John 1:5

“The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

That verse is talking about Jesus making His entrance into the world. Jesus came into a dark world and He was Light in the darkness. That Light was God and He came to end the darkness for us: the darkness of evil, of sin, of rebellion against God, of self, of pride, of confusion and lostness.

God brought Light and left His church to be light for Him. The church is supposed to be the Light of God to the world. Let that sink in for a moment. Now, read these 2 verses:

2 Corinthians 4:6

“For God, who said, ‘Light shall shine out of darkness,’ is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.’”

1 John 1:5

“God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.”

Those words describe the purpose and mission of the church. The word for church in the Bible is the Greek word ekklesia. “Ek” means “out of” and “klesia” comes from the word that means “to call.” Ekklesia, then, means to be called out of something.

You and I are that church. What are we being called out from? Are we being called to come out of the world? Out of our families? Out of our societies, our cultures, our politics?

No. We are called to come out of the darkness. The church is the people of God who have been saved from the darkness of the world. Why, then, would the church ever allow darkness to be a part of what it does? Darkness is the enemy of Light. What would happen to the church if it ever compromised on its mission of shining Light in the midst of the darkness?

You are seeing it happen right now. The church has become weak, ineffective and lukewarm. It is our greatest obligation to keep darkness from overtaking the Light of the church. Hold your ground, church! The dark world needs you to shine that Light. We exist for the very purpose of leading others out of the dark. We can’t do that if we are dark ourselves.

2 Corinthians 6:14

“Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness?”