And the Light Shines Bright!

Text: John 1:1-5

Focus: “And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.”  —John 1:5

It is the wee hours of the morning. You have been startled out of your deep slumber by a ringing phone or a crying baby. You stumble through the darkness when it hits you . . . or, more accurately, you hit it! Pain shoots like a bullet through your big toe, races up your leg, and escapes out of your mouth—followed by the thankless, cold-hearted glares of those you woke with your scream. Darkness can be dangerous!

Darkness in a person’s life can take many forms. It can range from a lack of knowledge of God’s wondrous grace to the bald-faced rebellion of a world gone mad. Whatever the source, spiritual darkness is a byproduct of sin, and the end result is destruction.  

There is good news, though. What a light switch will do for you as you stumble about your house at 2:00 in the morning, God’s Word—both His written Word and Jesus, the living Word—will do for a life groping about in the darkness of sin. And, His Word is a light that will never burn out. John wrote, “The light shines in the darkness, yet the darkness did not overcome it” (John 1:5). That is a fancy way of saying, the harder Satan tries to snuff out the Light of the World, the brighter Jesus shines.     

In Eden Satan tried to extinguish the light. Adam and Eve sinned, but God covered their sin, promised a Savior . . . and the Light shone bright! Satan moved the heart of Pharaoh to destroy God’s people by killing Hebrew babies. God moved the heart of a faithful mom to spare Moses so that years later he could deliver the Israelites from Egypt and lead them to the edge of the Promised Land . . . and the Light shone bright! Satan led a paranoid king to murder newborn boys born in Bethlehem. He missed the One he was looking for . . . and the Light shone bright!

In the wilderness the enemy tempted Jesus to turn His back on the Father’s plan. He “sifted” (Luke 22:31) one of Jesus’ closest friends, moving him to deny the Master. He entered the heart of another to betray Jesus (John 13:27). In the Garden of Gethsemane, Satan made one last attempt to lead Jesus to turn back . . . but he failed . . . and the Light shone bright!     

The psalmist looked to His Creator and cried out with grateful joy, “Your Word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path” (Psalm 119:105). Wherever the Light shines, it lights the way to life. So, the next time you make your way through the early morning darkness, turn on the light. Then thank God for His Word, the Light that still shines bright!

From all your servants here at the Dakota Baptist Convention, have a blessed Christmas and a Christ-filled 2025!

“Darkness in a person’s life can take many forms. It can range from a lack of knowledge of God’s wondrous grace to the bald-faced rebellion of a world gone mad. Whatever the source, spiritual darkness is a byproduct of sin, and the end result is destruction.”