Sparkling in the dark
“You are the light of the world…”
Matthew 5:14 (ESV)
In 1972 the Apollo 17 mission gave us the famous Blue Marble photo, the first clear picture of our beautiful world from outer space, a gorgeous orb in blue and white, spinning in a dark universe.
Yet the Biblical record tells us that at the beginning, as the Message version puts it: ‘Earth was a soup of nothingness, a bottomless emptiness, an inky blackness’ (Genesis 1:2). Then God created light, and the wonders of our earth began to emerge.
But instead of seeing it as it is: an orbiting jewel, now picture in our minds as it became spiritually – still in darkness. Now picture, about two thousand years ago, the coming of a great light, shining out of the darkness in Judea “…to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death…” (Luke 1:79 ESV). Some of those living there plotted to kill the light and they thought they had succeeded in extinguishing it. But not so. Shortly after his crucifixion, Christ, ‘the light of life’(John 1:4; 8:12), returned to life. And at Pentecost, the Spirit of Christ came to the first converts, the Jewish people, then, as the good news spread, to people all over the world.
From that time on, watch, in your mind’s eye, as on our earth more and more little lights appear, spreading inexorably through the spiritual darkness of our world, twinkling in that darkness. Not the blazing light of God incarnate, but the little lights of his people. All over the world, from north to south, and east to west, on every continent, from the mega-cities to the small remote islands in the world’s oceans, God’s little lights shine out in the darkness.
The powers of the world cannot extinguish these lights, however much they threaten and try. All attempts to snuff out these lights have failed and will fail. And we are part of the lighting of our earth – let’s go out and shine today.
Prayer
Our dearest Father, you who love our world in our darkest times, illuminate our inmost being with the light of Christ, that we may shine out with your love today. Amen.
|
Study by: Hilary Buck About the author: |
 |
Local congregation:
Grace Communion in Lewes
The House of Friendship
208 High Street
Lewes
BN7 2NS
Meeting time:
Sunday 11:00 am
Local congregational contact:
Hilary Buck
Email: lewes@gracecom.church
Like us on www.facebook.com/Grace Communion Lewes
Word of Life contact:
wordoflife@gracecom.church