BY GREG CRUM
“But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.” I Thessalonians 5:4-5
When God spoke “Let there be light” into this Universe, He wasn’t just creating a source to enable our optics and provide for biological growth processes; He was speaking an increased measure of His tangible self into the place we would reside. He was preparing a place suitable for our habitation with the most precious of elements—His presence. God is Light, Jesus is Light, and we are the children of that same light!
Last week we wrote of the declaration found in Hebrews 12 concerning our God being a consuming fire. As ominous as this sounds, we found that it’s nothing to be terrified about, rather something to be appreciated. This consuming fire attribute of God speaks to His ability to bring enlightenment into our lives that allows us to see how things really are in and around us. It brings a “reality check” and can motivate us to make changes, clean things up, and get things out of our lives that need gone.
We left off last week mentioning how we need to embrace God’s light in our lives and invite His consuming fire to burn in us. If we are going to truly follow Jesus, we are going to have to live in this light.
So, if you have ever had to get ready in the morning in a poorly lighted room, you know the dangers of relying on the flattery of shadows and softened edges to give you a true picture of appearance. Get into some natural light and what do you see? Yikes! How did I miss that? Darkness, though it will flatter our flaws, will deceive us, and in the end lead us into harm’s way.
As believers in Jesus, The Light, we should reject dark ways. John 11:9-10 reminds us that if we walk in the light of God we will avoid stumbling over the traps of the enemy in this life. Later in John 12:35-36 we read that if we choose to walk in darkness, we’ll end up living aimless lives, not knowing where we are going in life, no direction, no purpose. Sounds like a lot of people you know, right? Finally, in Acts 26:15-18 we see that the ways of darkness are equated with the power of Satan. Those who persist in dark ways yield power to Satan over their lives. You have enough to deal with in life; you do not want to add that to the mix, do you? Of course not! Solution? Choose to walk in the light!
Walking in the light of God, choosing to come closer and stay nearer to the Consuming Fire that is the Lord Jesus, is our best assurance of an abundant life.
As Christians, we should endeavor to “cast off the works of darkness” and “put on the armour of light.” (Romans 13:12) Sure, we used to live in various stages of darkness. At times those old ways whisper in our ear, but according to Ephesians 5:8 “…now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light.”
Friends, though at times God’s nature as a consuming fire can be uncomfortable to our flesh, it’s when we walk in His light and cease from dark deeds that we will truly wake up and never be duped by the enemy again. Our best life awaits when we pull a seat up to God’s consuming fire and allow it to bring the warmth of His presence and revelation of His light into our hearts and minds.
Greg Crum is the pastor of Calvary Temple in Lovely.