I want to talk to you about a power that has been given to every Born-Again Believer that could solve much of the trouble that we see in the world right now...if we were to learn how to use it. But the problem is that many Christians are not aware of this power, and many who are aware, they just don’t choose to use it.
Friends, sometimes I believe that we, as children of God…and especially as ministers of the Gospel, need to be convinced of the fact that we have the ONLY solution there is for a HUGE problem and we are seeing this problem becoming more and more prominent as we get closer to the return of our Lord. The problem that I am talking about is SPIRITUAL DARKNESS! I want you to understand the impact that darkness has on the lives of everyone we come in contact with in every city, every state in every country…and it happens every day!
You see, when we read scripture, darkness usually denotes something bad or evil is taking place, or it can mean a lack of the presence of God. When you read the newspapers or listen to the news, you will notice that MOST crime and violence takes place at night…and there is a reason for that. It is the nature of man to try to hide his evil deeds under the cloak of darkness.
When we read about the time when the earth was first created back in the book of Genesis, we read in verses 1-2, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” So we see that before God made the earth into a habitable place for mankind, there was nothing but darkness there. And we all know that God created the heavens and the earth and the sun and moon and stars for light. He said, “Let there be light” and light appeared into the darkness and here’s a clue…THE DARKNESS FLED.
And then, we read that on the day of the crucifixion, scripture tells us in Luke 23:44, “Now it was about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour.” So it was about 3 o’clock in the afternoon, but the whole earth became dark. What a terrible, horrible day it must have been that the whole earth went into utter and complete darkness for 3 hours!
And here is the ultimate purpose for darkness found in John 3:19-20, “And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.” Evil deeds are hidden under the shadow of darkness. In other words, darkness hides the evil deeds of men and this scripture tells us that “men LOVED darkness rather than light…because their deeds were evil”. And we are warned that evil will get worse and worse as we come nearer to the end of the age. That is why we are seeing so much evil in the world. The world has grown darker and darker in their deeds.
But I want to tell you today Friends, that there is Hope, and it’s found in Romans chapter 5 and the last part of verse 20. It says, “But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more”. Glory to God! Grace…that AMAZING Grace of God!
But this is the REALLY Amazing part…Jesus said in John 8:12, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” Jesus came to shine His light on the lost and dying world…and He is STILL doing that today. He came to light our path, but not only that, He came to EXPOSE the evil in the world. He came to shine His light on the deeds of darkness…He came to DISPEL DARKNESS! Jesus IS The Light! Glory to God!
But here’s the part I want you to see today Friends. It’s right there in Matthew chapter 5, beginning from verse 14. Jesus said, “You are the light of the world.”…Did you get that part…first He told us that He is the Light of the World…and now He is saying that YOU are the light of the world! He is saying that each one of us…that is YOU and me and every person who is truly walking with Him…we are His lights...our purpose is allow His light to shine through us. Let’s go on and read the rest of that scripture, “A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.” If you have ever driven from the country and entered into a large city, you know that you can see the lights of that city for miles before you ever get to it. And if that city is set up on a hill, it is visible for many miles away, because a city that is set upon a hill cannot be hidden. And the next verse 15 reads, “Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket”. If I were to light a candle and put something over it to cover it, then that light would be of no value to anybody, because it would be hidden and you wouldn’t be able to us it to see. But NO…Jesus said, “but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.” And so in verse 16, Jesus is giving us some very important instructions. He said, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”
And here’s another truth I want you to see. When Christians all come together, there is a lot of light shining in the place wherever we are, and that is a good thing. In fact, we tend to make each other shine more brightly. We reflect off of each other and if one of us has a flame that is growing dim or has gone out…the others of us are there to encourage and help that “light” to burn brightly again. We are supposed to encourage one another.
But, here is the problem that is happening. The world is full of darkness, and when God's people stay inside the confines of their church buildings, they are actually hiding the Light of Jesus, and then there is no light in the world to dispel the extreme gross darkness that Satan has used to blind the world. That becomes a huge problem because, while there is plenty of light INSIDE the church…there is NONE out in the world where the darkness is, and where Jesus told us to shine. We are in essence, hiding our candle under a bushel, and no one can see it except us. But when Christians begin to come out of hiding and we dare to walk out into the darkness that permeates the world, then the light that Jesus told us to be begins to shine and people begin to see the truth of God’s Word through us and then lives begin to change. Christians, if you are not letting your light shine so that all the world can see the Light of Jesus in you, then you must assume some responsibility for the darkness that covers the earth. It’s time for a change! We MUST make the difference that Jesus intended for us to make in the dark and sin filled world! Friends, it’s time for us to come out of our comfortable buildings and get out there into the world where the sin and darkness is so that we can make a difference. If you remember, most of the ministry that Jesus did while He was on the earth was OUTSIDE where the people were and He did that as an example for us to follow.
As we seek to follow Jesus more closely and to have an impact for the Kingdom of God in this dark and sin-filled world, We MUST take the Light of Christ out to the people and let them see that Jesus IS the answer and the hope they are looking for. Let your light so shine so that people will see your good works and seek to know your Father in Heaven. God bless you as you serve our Lord and Savior.
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