Knowing the Darkness by Living in the Light

I was doing my reading in "My Utmost for His Highest" (a devotional book by Oswald Chambers, if you haven't heard of it) this morning...and a sentence struck me. The passage in general was about us coming to REALLY know what sin is... The Scripture reference it used was 1 John 1:7 "If we walk in the light as He is in the light....the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son cleanses us from all sin." Today's devotion talked about how it is only through God's redemption (the exposure of our souls to the Light) that can expose to us the true nature of sin. And the line which most powerfully struck me was the last in the passage:

"To 'walk in the light' means that everything that is of the darkness actually drives me closer to the center of the light.'"

Thus it is that through knowledge of and exposure to the light, we come to know, recognize and accurately assess what it is that the darkness consists of implies, and leads to in us. And we come to know that the darkness in us is much more than merely outward "acts of sin." Prior to our rescue from the realm of darkness, the darkness is not only what we do, but who we are. At salvation, the POWER of the darkness is broken in us once and for all; however the habits of darkness still remain and it is only by deliberate exposure to the Light that they can be vanquished and defeated and removed. The Light brings us to a new place altogether. The more the light grows in us, the less the darkness is able to exist for the two cannot inhabit the same sphere at the same time.

God, the Father is the Light; the source of all Light and true illumination.

He reveal(s) the deep and secret things : he know(s) what is in the darkness, and the light dwell(s) with him. Dan 2:22 KJV {Modifications in () }

And Jesus walked in this light throughout his earthly life and inhabits that Light and in fact, IS that Light (see the references a bit further down) ...And according to 1 John 1:17, we are to walk (or live or inhabit) that light in the same way as Christ did.

How does this translate practically?
It is by deliberately exposing ourselves to the Light of God that the darkness in us is gradually ousted.

This world is a dark place...I think even the people who do NOT know the Lord would agree to that. However they fail to understand that the darkness is not only in the world around them but that it begins and thrives on a much more primary level. It possesses their souls. It is integral to their very being. And all the darkness in the world about us originates, not in the actions or hearts of "the bad guys" but in every one of us who is born on this earth.

And we cannot free ourselves from this darkness merely by being around good people, trying to be a "good person" ourselves, or by hanging out at church. The Light must be BORN in us. It must inhabit us. It needs to shine into the darkest corners of our souls and begin to work its way outward in us.

People have it backwards...They think that the Light can be brought to life in us from the outside in: that by "doing good thing" or "being good" we can conquer the darkness in us and in the world. This is the grave error made by philanthropists and people such as Oprah. They think their deeds of charity will change the nature of darkness in them. They think that it will divert them from the destiny to which that darkness inevitably will lead them.

The truth is that Light must be born in us--much in the way the Light was born on this earth 2000+ years ago. And that Light will grow as we are exposed to it more and more. We have then, the Source of Light in us and as it shines and reveals the dark things in us; it overpowers, conquers them and delivers us from their terrible consequences.

So back to the quote by Chambers...What did he mean by this? Simply that, the more we KNOW the light, the more we will LOVE the light and eschew and despise the darkness. We will shun it and shut it out from our beings. We will also no longer be fooled by the propaganda and lies of darkness. We are able to see it for what it truly is and know where it truly leads. We will understand that darkness and death go hand in hand and that Light is a thing that is tied to and linked with Life. And we will gain the ability to recognize and identify it in all its subtle and sneaky manifestations in our lives and in the world around us.

But we are not able to see any of this...until we have first seen and known the Light.
Jesus said,

1 John 1: 5 says this:

This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

Jesus said this in John 12:46:

"I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness.

Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, "I am the Light of the world ; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life." (John 8:12)

It is fascinating to go to an online concordance or Bible search engine and plug in the two words "light , " and "darkness" and then see what comes up. The Bible is replete with passages on this topic. The disciple, John, especially was fascinated with this idea. Both his gospel and his epistle are full of references to Jesus' words on it.

It must be a matter of our attention and focus..and gaze. Where do we spend our time? What do we think about? Whose opinion really matters and whose approval do we seek? Who do we emulate and desire to be like? On what do we spend our money? Who or what gets our FIRST attention in the morning?

This is not anything that can or should be accomplished by trying harder. It is a matter of allowing God to do it in us...HE will conquer darkness by his mere presence. But we must GIVE HIM ROOM TO OCCUPY if he is to be fully "present" in us. And we must be "present" with him.

How do we know Jesus more? Study and expose yourself to his words...Who we are is most clearly identifiable through what we say and do. And the only source (or the major source) of these word and deeds is in the Bible. Particularly in the New Testament Gospels which chronicle his life. Don't go there with a preconceived idea of who or what he is. Try to go with an open mind and heart. Read it as though you've never seen it before nor heard of him before. Read as a child hearing it for the very first time. And ask him to show you who he is.

And he will.