No Darkness

I was up with the sun this morning, after a restless hour or two lying in the darkness. Sitting on the porch with a cup of coffee, I was looking at this verse from the Apostle John: This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and Him there is no darkness at all.
(1 John 1:5)

John spent three years walking with Jesus. In the flesh. He heard every word of Jesus’s public ministry as well as many private conversations. He saw Jesus heal the sick, raise the dead, confront pharisees, clear the temple, cast out demons, walk on water. He saw Jesus transfigured, arrested, crucified. Dead. He ran to the empty tomb and met a resurrected Christ. He saw Jesus ascend to heaven with a promise to return.

John went on to live a long life, preaching the gospel and making disciples. He was arrested as an old man and exiled to the island of Patmos. It was there that he received his Revelation of what is to come. He saw how the story ends – with the restoration of Eden and the assembling of the saints.

John understood who Jesus is better than most. So when he starts his first letter by saying, “Listen, here’s the message that Jesus came to tell us,” we should pay attention. He distilled all of his experience with Jesus into this sentence: God is light, and in Him there is no darkness. Sit with that for a moment.

We all experience darkness. It comes from our own sin nature. Jesus opened a way to dispel the darkness of our own hearts. We come to Him, ask His forgiveness, and we are made new. The darkness is gone, forever.

Even so, sometimes darkness tries to come back. We experience hurt, disappointment, and rejection. We face health issues. Loss. Death. Through these things, it can be difficult to remember, but it is no less true, that in Him there is no darkness.

So I was watching the sun come up this morning, pondering this Truth. I was listening to a song by one of my favorites, David Crowder. The chorus goes like this: