DARKNESS AND LIGHT

By Michael K. Farrar, O.D.

© God’s Breath Publications

 

John 12:46

“I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.”

 

I was amazed at a picture I saw recently on a national news program. The news report dealt with North Korea and its current military build up and their testing of rockets capable of carrying nuclear warheads. On the screen before my eyes was the most dramatic picture representing darkness, oppression, selfishness and evil. Below is the picture I viewed of North Korea and South Korea at night.

 

As you can see North Korea is totally dark due to the lack of industrial and residential development. South Korea explodes with light from its cities as people living in freedom are allowed to grow, progress and multiply.

 

Kim Jong-un or who is called “Dear Leader” is the supreme ruler of North Korea. He has continued the legacy of his family by oppressing the North Korean people significantly to serve his own selfish desires as well as to pursue his development of a huge military machine. Kim Jong-un possesses over 10,000 bottles of wine in his wine cellar, has a library of hundreds of cookbooks, flies in chefs from around the world to cook for him, has hundreds of doctors who take care of him, imports all types of food delicacies from all over the world his personal consumption, has numerous female workers that inspect each grain of rice he eats to make sure it is perfect and has his cooks use a ruler to measure the distance between the olives on his pizza to make sure they are correctly placed. He also is a movie fanatic and has thousands of movies in his private collection. He has developed his military machine by draining the economy of his country and people. He has a 1.1+ million-man army that is the fourth largest in the world. His researchers are pursuing nuclear arms at a fast pace which threatens world peace. Recently in the news it was revealed that several rockets were tested which have intercontinental range and therefore threatens Japan and other countries. North Korea also has numerous sites where chemical and biological weapons are very likely in development. All of these efforts are going on while the people of North Korea suffer and starve. There are widespread food shortages. The people of North Korea are exhorted to eat only two meals a day. A bowl of rice is considered a luxury. There are also reports of a “Killing Compound” called Camp 22 that serves as an experimental facility for the chemical and biological weapons. Men, women, children and babies are used as test subjects for the effectiveness of these horrible weapons.

 

So why am I sharing all this about a selfish government leader and the darkness at night of the North Korean landscape? We should pray for government leaders to hold this dictator accountable for his acts and for those that he oppresses in his country. But the main reason I share this information is because it reminds me so much of the spiritual domain in which we live. I believe there are many parallels in the contrast between the living conditions in North and South Korea and the forces of darkness and God’s children of the light, we who are known as Christians or Disciples of Christ.

 

There are many references to light and darkness in the Holy Scriptures. Darkness refers to evil deeds that the unrighteous participate in when sin is committed. Darkness represents Satan and his demonic forces that fight against our Heavenly Father and we who are His servants. Darkness represents the life led by those who are blinded by the god of this age (Satan) (2 Corinthians 4:4).            

 

John 1:1-5 states, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.”

 

Here we see that Christ, the Word, was and is the light of men. This scripture tells us that the purity and light of Christ shines in the midst of the darkness of the world. This light stands for holiness and perfection. Here in John we are told that the darkness cannot comprehend or understand such truth and light. Why can’t the darkness understand the light?

 

In John 3:19-21 we have the answer, “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.”

 

So here we see that those who can’t comprehend the light are blinded by their desires for evil deeds that are done in such darkness. Have you ever been in a pitch-black cave or room without any light at all for some amount of time? What happens when you come out into the daylight or the lights come on? You squint, cringe and cower. It almost hurts to look around you. You have become so accustomed to the darkness that it is difficult to experience the light. Believe it or not the world is a spiritually dark place and before anyone is a Believer in Christ they are accustomed to darkness. Unless the Holy Spirit uses the Word of God and Christians to intervene into a person’s heart they prefer to dwell in this blackness.

 

Jesus is the light that gives life to those who live in the darkness of this world. John 8:12 says, “When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’” This is the hope that Christ offers to those living in the darkness of the world. This hope is not only one of eternal life but also salvation from a life of sin surrounded by spiritual darkness.

 

While God offers this hope through Christ that illuminates our lives, there are those who will choose darkness over light. There will come a time when even these individuals will be exposed to the light. When Christ returns to earth to judge the living and the dead He will expose everything to the bright light of His purity. The motives of every individual’s heart will be exposed. 1 Corinthians 4:5 speaks of this when it says, “Wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.”

 

While it is horrible that people in North Korea have to live under the oppression of Kim Jong-un, God will expose his motives and selfish behavior in the end and reward him accordingly. Satan who is the god of this world and rules over the dark spiritual realm will also be punished for his deeds as well. While he has already been defeated by Christ’s sacrifice on the cross and resurrection from the grave, in time he will suffer for his rebellion against God, his deception of those living in darkness and his attacks on the followers and servants of Christ.

 

There are numerous scriptures that speak of our life in Christ and compare it to living in the light. With this privilege of living in the light of Christ and the Word comes a responsibility to live according to righteousness.

 

One such scripture is 2 Corinthians 4:6 that says, “For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” God’s light of truth shines in our hearts and can be seen by others to see when we accept Christ as our Savior and live obedient to His Word. Is each of us living according to the Word and letting God’s light within us shine?

 

Ephesians 5:8-14 continues with this instruction when it states, “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for it is light that makes everything visible.”

 

1 Thessalonians 5:5-8 also commands us to behave in the same manner, “You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet.”

 

1 Peter 2:9-10 raises our awareness to the responsibility we have as Christians. We have been called to a specific spiritual calling, a privileged position. It states, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”

 

Romans 13:12 tells us to “put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.” So even though we are Christians we can at times let our flesh to take control and sin through deeds of darkness. Such actions dishonor our Lord.

 

The most important decision each person has in their life is whether they will choose to live in the Kingdom of Light or the Kingdom of Darkness. People living in North Korea are trapped by circumstances and Kim Jong-un to remain forever in bondage. People living in spiritual darkness are trapped by their sin and the deception of Satan to remain in bondage forever as well, unless they see the light of Christ Jesus.

 

When viewing this picture of North and South Korea, it convicts me to be more aware of how to help those locked in spiritual bondage and living in the darkness that Satan loves and Christ hates. Will you make yourself available to live as a child of light and to let Christ use you to liberate those blinded by the god of this world? I pray that you do.