Skip to main content

Light Shrouded by Darkness


Light came into the world:

“The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.”  (John 1:9)

So Jesus said to them, “The light is among you for a little while longer.  Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you.  The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going.  While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.”  (John 12:35-36)


The Light of the World:

Again 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.” (John 8:12)

“I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.”  (John 12:26)


Darkness covered the earth:  

“And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.” (Mark 15:33)

And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My god, my God, why have you forsaken me?”  (Mark 15:34)

“And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last.”  (Mark 15:37)

In a purely speculative mode, my imagination runs deep with the thought that when darkness covered the earth, maybe the enemies of God thought that the light of the world had been extinguished and perhaps even conquered by darkness.   

But many believe the darkness was from God to shroud (cover, screen, conceal) the inconceivable sufferings that Jesus went through as He bore the sins of mankind while on the cross.

If the enemies of God had done a little “victory dance” while the light of the world was briefly shrouded, victory clearly slipped through their fingers when Jesus rose from the dead. Perhaps it could even be said that the Light of the World shone even brighter as He triumphed over sin and death!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

New Year Trash or Treasure?

You probably know the old saying:  “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure”.  I am not going to try to prove or disprove it, just look at it from a different angle. Cheryl and I were recently walking on a beach in Florida .  A man was walking along with a bag and was picking up trash and putting it in the bag.  Was he picking up things of value? We also saw a different man walking along the same beach with a metal detector.  He would swing it back and forth and would occasionally stop and dig in the sand.  Was he looking for things of value? Both were intent.  Both were focused.  Both were diligent. I’m guessing that the one picking up trash was not looking for things of value.  I’m also guessing that, by picking up trash, he was valuing the beauty of the beach and didn’t want the trash to mar it.  The one with the metal detector, I’m guessing that he was not looking for metallic items of trash but was looking for...
1 comment
Read more

Beyond Understanding - It's a Wonderful Thing!

In my last post, I wrote that that God keeps certain things hidden (Deut 29:29).  In some cases, these hidden things are beyond our understanding.  In response to that, one Psalmist wrote that he did not occupy himself with things too great and too wonderful for him (Ps 131:1).  That’s a healthy response as we, as humans, are finite and cannot completely know everything about an infinite God. A quote attributed to American novelists, Philip Roth, speaks volumes on this:  “All that we don’t know is astonishing.  Even more astonishing is what passes for knowing.” From a more spiritual perspective, one commentator put it this way:  "What God has thought proper to reveal, he has revealed what is essential to the well-being of man, and this revelation is intended not for the present time merely, nor for one people, but for all succeeding generations. The things which he has not revealed concern not man but God alone, and are therefore not to be inquired af...
Post a Comment
Read more

Don't Get Tripped Up

I do enjoy traveling and I keep an eye out for good prices. I also enjoy looking at trends in travel. For a while, the travel industry focused their advertising on taking those trips that might be on your bucket list.   That faded a bit and I started seeing ads about taking the trip of a lifetime. I guess both those campaigns have been waning since I’ve been seeing information about taking an “epic” trip.   Recently I noticed the phrase “unforgettable trip” in advertising.   More recently, I’ve been seeing promotions about taking “sustainable” trips and even “reconnecting to our roots” trips. As I’ve been pondering these advertising campaigns, I thought I’d consider what their ideas encompass and then look at them from a spiritual perspective: 1.   “ Bucket list trips ” are based on a list of the experiences a person might hope to have before they “kick the bucket” (i.e. die).   While I can certainly come up with a bucket list of trips, I’m thinking a bu...
Post a Comment
Read more