Jesus Our Light
Have you ever stumbled through a dark room, or tried to walk around at night when there were no lights? Maybe you ran into a wall or hit your foot on something.
Do you remember how great it was to turn on the light so you could see where you were walking?
God’s Word says that we similarly walk in the darkness. Life apart from Jesus is characterized by darkness. When we try to live life by our own sight, we inevitably fail.
Jesus is the light that shines within the darkness of the world around us, and within our own lives. He illuminates the truth so that we don’t have to remain captive to our old ways, but can be transformed by Jesus and His grace.
Without His light shining in the darkness, we would be lost and without hope.
Jesus is also the one who directs our paths. Just like how we stumble through darkness without a physical light, Jesus is the light that illuminates the way of life for us.
John 1:5 also tells us that the light of Jesus cannot be overcome by anything. There are no spiritual powers or world events that can overcome the light of Jesus. And there is nothing that anyone can do to separate us from the love and light of God.
Spend some time today in prayer, thanking Jesus for the salvation that you have, but also asking Him to continue to illuminate the path of life for you. Then, let the light of Jesus shine through you in the way you love those around you.
Responding to God at All Times
Throughout our lives, we will all experience both suffering and joy. We'll have times of great grief and times of overflowing happiness. Sometimes, they’ll be separate seasons—but other times, these experiences come together.
In either case and in any situation, James expected Christians to come to God. If someone was suffering, prayer was the call to action. If someone was cheerful, people were to pause and praise God.
This might seem obvious, but when suffering clouds our thinking, we can sometimes forget to prioritize prayer. And when things are going well and we're feeling cheerful, it’s easy to just enjoy our season and not stop long enough to praise God for it. But every season of life is actually just an opportunity to put into practice what James wrote about…
When we are suffering, let us pray. When those around us are suffering, let us pray. When we are cheerful or happy, let us praise God. When others are happy, let us praise God with ...