Could it be the problems in your life are caused by “bad lighting”?

Being a person of “light” is supposed to be an important reality about everyone claiming to be a Christian.

Why?

Because God is light, and Jesus is the light of the world, and as adopted children of God and disciples of Jesus, “light” is to play a significant role in our lives as well.

First, a few snippets pertaining to God and Jesus:

“This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all. So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth. But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin,” 1 John 1:5-7.

“Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, ‘I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life,'” John 8:12.

“I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark,” John 12:46.

The Apostle Paul writes about this “infusion of light” into our lives like this:

“For God, who said, ‘Let there be light in the darkness,’ has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves,” 2 Corinthians 4:6-7.

So it’s no surprise that Jesus took up this topic of light during His earthly ministry, providing us with some deeply profound insights for living. We begin in Luke 11 with something that should be wildly simplistic to grasp:

“No one lights a lamp and then hides it or puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where its light can be seen by all who enter the house,” Luke 11:33.

Most of us can immediately intellectually grasp and agree with what Jesus said. The problem is, that’s what we do and then move on.

Let’s not do that.

Instead, think it through a little more deeply. Perhaps with a more modern take. Imagine walking into a dark room, turning on a lamp … and then covering it with a basket. Now that would be utterly ridiculous! Why even turn on the lamp if you’re just going to cover it?

Exactly!

But isn’t that how we try to treat Jesus? We want certain things from Him, so we make a little room for the Light of the world to enter our lives, but we quickly cover that up with our greater desires of the flesh. Or we’re simply ashamed to be counted as one of those “Bible thumpers” … people of the light … so we don’t let the light of Christ shine through from our lives.

Another problem is how we pollute the light of Christ in us by what we give ourselves permission to take in:

“Your eye is like a lamp that provides light for your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is filled with light. But when it is unhealthy, your body is filled with darkness,” Luke 11:34.

Jesus becomes increasingly profound in His teaching when He helps us understand that maybe what we think is light really isn’t light at all. Ponder deeply these words:

“Make sure that the light you think you have is not actually darkness,” Luke 11:35.

Paul gave a similar warning of how false prophets, and even Satan himself, will try to disguise themselves as sources of light to deceive:

“But I will continue doing what I have always done. This will undercut those who are looking for an opportunity to boast that their work is just like ours. These people are false apostles. They are deceitful workers who disguise themselves as apostles of Christ. But I am not surprised! Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no wonder that his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. In the end they will get the punishment their wicked deeds deserve,” 2 Corinthians 11:12-15.

Okay, so the light of Christ is shining in your life but something that can cause you great trouble is if you allow yourself to keep some “dark corners”:

“If you are filled with light, with no dark corners, then your whole life will be radiant, as though a floodlight were filling you with light,” Luke 11:36.

To summarize some of these insights about light:

– Turn on the lamp and let it do its work of shining. Let the light of Christ in you do its work through you by being a light following in the steps of Jesus who came into this world as a light.

– Don’t pollute the light of Christ in you by what you take in. Guard your eyes.

– Make sure the light you think you have really is light.

– And so important, don’t allow for any dark corners in your life.

If you do these things?

“If you are filled with light, with no dark corners, then your whole life will be radiant, as though a floodlight were filling you with light,” Luke 11:36.

Sounds dazzling!

Scotty