Daily Devotions
(Jesus said) “I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in Me may not remain in darkness.” John 12:46
Years ago, a little girl was spending the night at her grandma’s house.
Grandma had put the five-year-old to bed and turned off the light. It didn’t take long before grandma heard her name being called. Investigating, she was asked, “Would you turn on a night light? I’m afraid of the dark.”
Doing as she was asked, grandma replied, “Honey, I’m glad to do that for you, but I don’t understand. At home you don’t sleep with the light on. At home you sleep in the dark.”
The little girl replied, “But, Grandma, when I’m at home, that’s my darkness.”
Like the little girl, all of us have our own type of darkness.
My fears are not yours and your sins are probably not mine. The temptations Satan uses so successfully to trip up someone else might leave me cold and indifferent. Amazingly, the Lord Jesus does something only the omnipotent Lord can do: He comes and brings light to our very own, unique form of darkness.
To those who are alone, He shares the assurance that He is with them always. To those who are lost, He says, “I am the way” (see John 14:6). To those who feel nobody cares about them, Jesus, with his life, suffering, death and third-day resurrection from the grave shows them that their Heavenly Father cares.
And, to those who feel overwhelmed by the darkness of sin, who feel they never can be washed clean of past or present transgressions, Jesus says that His lifelong battle will bring us an all-conquering, all-encompassing forgiveness.
Search other religions and you will see no other faith can make such a claim.
Indeed, while every other faith says you must try to reconcile yourself to the Lord, Christianity says the Savior has done all that was necessary to save you. At Jesus’ birth, at Jesus’ resurrection, the angels deliver a consistent message to the world. They say they have joyful news (see Luke 2).
God’s promise to send a Savior has been fulfilled, and now all who are brought to faith by the Holy Spirit’s power are moved from their own darkness into God’s marvelous light.
This is why I especially encourage you to join with the shepherds and in your church worship services, “Go to Bethlehem and see this thing which the Lord has done” (see Luke 2:15). Go to Bethlehem and see God’s Son, the divine Light for your particular darkness.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, our lives, troubled by sin, are filled with darkness. I give thanks You have kept Your Promise. Jesus has come and — because of all He has done — the darkness of sin and the fear of death can never again control my heart or life. In Jesus I give thanks. Amen.