Jesus’ words in John chapter three are not easy to hear. They speak to the tumultuous time to which He first came, but they also speak to our own days of deep division and a wayward culture:
“And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God” (John 3:19-21).
The year from which we are about to happily emerge was challenging to say the least. Whether political turmoil and accusations of corruption from all sides, a virus that has taken many lives and angered many at its existence, to a very palpable sense of weariness of it all and feelings of dread, uncertainty, and hopelessness at what may come next. The darkness, if I may use that term, is something very many people may be living through and feeling deeply.
What we need is some light.
The Minor Prophet Micah lived during a very dark and doubtful time that sounds very much like our own. Mistrust of government, the judiciary, the religious leadership, and even friends and family who may have held a differing political view was everywhere (7:1-7). Micah was not shaken to his core, however. He was strengthened by one great hope: God was his salvation and heard him when he cried out to Him. Even if the world around him collapsed under the weight of the ever-growing cultural darkness, Micah never lost hope, and the next verse shows us why. In a defiant tone, with shoulders set back and and eyes fixed with a piercing gaze, Micah boldly declared:
“Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me (7:8).
Micah was not afraid of the darkness and doubt that a godless culture could introduce into every home. He knew something that King David declared of God from personal experience in the timeless 139th Psalm: “the darkness is not dark to you; the night is bright as the day, for darkness is as light with you” (139:12). What makes us afraid does not cause God any fear at all. What brings us uncertainty and anxiety at what we can’t understand does not perplex or mystify God one bit. What is dark to us is as light to Him. He sees the end from the beginning. And what men might contrive thinking darkness will hide them is plainly seen by God Almighty. Micah knew that. And the illumination God brought that prophet from within was all he needed to take confident breaths of hope during a time of trembling.
John opened his gospel with a stunning statement about Jesus. In Him was life…and light (1:4). And on top of that, John added this: “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (1:5). The hopeful words of Micah are made true for us all who trust in Jesus. In Him is light, and the darkness has not and will not overcome it. As crazy as the days may be and as dark as the times may seem to grow, the Light will always shine for and in those who trust in the victorious Christ. What this world needs more than anything is for we who carry that Light in our hearts to shine Him out with confidence and boldness, knowing that the darkness will never overcome the hope and redemption He brings. So shine!
by Parker Bradley, author of The Twelve: A Transformational Journey Through The Minor Prophets
