Lesson 6 - Light

In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. (John 1:4-5)

You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:14-16)

 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord.  And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. (Ephesians 5: 8-11)  

 The analogies of light and darkness in the Bible have to do with the love of Christ versus the lusts of the world.  The light (which is love, truth, righteousness) exposes the darkness of worldy lust and selfishness.  For this lesson though, I am going to focus primarily on the open, revealing nature of light versus the hiding, secretive nature of darkness. 

 Jesus calls us the light of the world.  Paul tells us to walk in the light.  In my own walk, there have been many times I have put my light under a basket.  I am not a very open individual and my natural inclination is to hide.  In so doing, people do not always see the light within me from the Lord.  In Guatemala, people are more open about their faith in God.  A part of it may be because it is more socially acceptable and there is no doubt some people who "fake" their faith.  In the United States, you do not see many people praising God in a public setting.  Believers tend to live in two worlds, their Christian world and the secular world.  They do not praise God in the secular world or proclaim His truth.  At church, however, they do not hesitate.  They talk to other church members saying "Praise God for this!"  Then, talking to their coworkers of the same event, they make no mention of their Creator at all.  I mention this only because I am guilty of the same thing.  I live in fear of man, of what they will think of me in giving God the glory, and forget that God desires us to fear Him alone.

What does this have to do with light?  Light is visible.  You can see it.  Our natural inclination is to hide.  That is what Adam and Eve did after sin entered the world.  In darkness, you try to cover up your sin or your imperfections.  You put on a facade.  In light, you lay out your whole life before men without fear in truth.  That does not mean you are perfect, but you are honest about your imperfections, because you do not seek glory for yourself, but for God.  We want people to believe we are better or more holy than we are or in some contexts maybe we want people to believe we are worse than we are, either way it is a facade.  Walking in true light means walking in complete truth.  Your walk with God may not be perfect but it should be honest.


In a book I recently read by Phillip Yancey, he describes a situation of a bible study group.  They would never get too personal or go too deep in talking about their relationship with God.  Then one day, one woman just laid out her heart.  She described her disapointment with God, her areas of struggle, and just became completely vulnerable before them.  Her testimony stirred their hearts and others began to share as well.  The group had been operating in darkness but their facades had been exposed by the light of that woman's testimony. 


Lord, as we walk with you, help us to be bold and vulnerable.  Let our walks be honest with no self seeking motive. Your name be glorified.  A men.