Light and Darkness

John 8:12 And Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Here in interior Alaska, light and darkness have very tangible meaning. While the darkness creeps in beginning in June, it doesn’t really become noticeable until around September. The darkness rapidly overshadows the light and dominates the hours of the day. Awake in darkness, work in darkness, breathe a sigh of relief for a couple of short hours, then back home in darkness, asleep in darkness and the cycle begins again. Darkness has long been a metaphor for sin, chaos, all that is corrupt and broken in the world. And this metaphor is more real, for myself, living in a land that is dominated by either light or darkness.

Sin creeps in to our lives. It isn’t noticeable at first. A little bit here, a little bit there and we feel like we can deal with it. As corrupt human beings, living in a world that has been broken by sin, we become addicted to sin in all of it’s tangible grip. That darkness rapidly takes over and we find that we live most of our lives in darkness and sin. And those few short hours of light, perhaps that is on Sunday, when we spend time in God’s house, in worship.

Jesus said that He is the light of the world. In the Gospel of John, John says that the darkness can not overcome the light, understand the light or comprehend the light. The light is mysterious and wonderful, even in the midst of the darkness there is light.

The Aurora Borealis, the Northern lights, are the perfect metaphor for that mysterious light in the midst of the darkness. Here in Alaska, those lights are wondrous. In the coldest months, in the darkest months, the green, purple, red curtains of light dance across the sky. It’s as if God Himself is sending a physical, and yet very spiritual reminder of His eternal presence. Jesus uses words, “I am the light of the world.” Look to me, he says, and you will not spend your days in darkness.

Just as the darkness crept in from summer to winter, so too the light creeps in from winter to summer. Beginning in December, the light comes back. Slowly at first, but then seemingly more rapidly as the spring break up approaches. You begin to notice light as you sit at the breakfast table and that you can still see the sky after dinner. The light has returned and the joy with it.

Jesus is the light of life. Jesus is the light of joy. Jesus is the light of hope. Come June, the sun shines nearly twenty-four hours at a time. The sun warms the earth and the vegetables grow to record sizes. It is a foretaste of the eternal sunshine of the heavenly kingdom, I think. Only then, Jesus will be the sun and the Son.

For those who are struggling in the darkness, myself included, Jesus is the hope for light. Jesus is the only hope for light. Even in the midst of the physical darkness, hold on. Don’t let the darkness of night or the darkness of sin bring you to despair. Hold on. The light is coming and has now come. “The people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light!” Isaiah 9:2.

Heavenly Father, thank you for sending your Son to be the light of the world, the light of life. Help us in the darkness to see the light. By the Holy Spirit, help us to share the light of life, Jesus, with those who still sit in darkness. In Jesus’ name, Amen.