Have you ever taken a walk at night in the woods, when the moon is not out and there are no stars to be seen? It can be so hard to see where you are going that you are bound to run into things. You could even get lost.
Many people today are stumbling around in the dark— with no direction, no vision, and no protection. I am not talking about literal darkness. I am talking about the darkness and the emptiness that you experience apart from Jesus Christ.
Now, if you are a believer, you might be saying, "This isn't for me. " But the truth is we all need to hear it. Even though we want to look like we are following Christ, some of us have taken the light of God's Word and reduced it down to a glimmer.
We as followers of Christ, are called to shine in the darkness. But we have gotten so afraid of offending the darkness, that we have turned off the light. Jesus said in Matthew 5:14-16, "You are the light of the world.
A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. " We are like flashlights with rechargeable batteries.
We go to church to get all charged up, but as soon as we leave church, we do not turn on the power button. So we are getting charged up for no reason. Because we are not turning on the light.
Then what happens is that we start valuing preachers who have a greater following over preachers who are teaching the greater truth: the Word of God. Why? Because we do not recognize the truth when we hear it.
We have been disconnected from the Word of God. Some of us are so afraid of offending others that we never get around to introducing them to Jesus Christ. The reason we do this is because we have stopped believing that the Good News really is good news.
This is because we are not This is because we are not living wholeheartedly in the light. You might say, "I really don't get into the Word as often as I should, but I know that if Jesus was standing here, that I would follow Him. " The thing about Jesus is: He did miracle after miracle and while He was doing this, the crowds gathered.
But as soon as He started teaching some hard truths, they soon dispersed. Because, even though He was demonstrating the power of God, he eventually offended those who hated the light. Jesus said in John 3:19, "This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.
" If you were afraid of the dark as a small child, you probably liked to sleep with a nightlight on. The thing about night lights is: they produce enough light to help you sleep comfortably, but not enough for you to do much else. A lot of us Christians are asleep.
The only light that can be seen is the light from a tiny nightlight. We do not want to turn any other lights on because then our deeds would be exposed for what they are. If this is you today, then I have got good news: The gospel of Jesus Christ is still for you.
It has not stopped being good news because it is still the truth. The good news is simply this: God loved the world so much that He sent His only Son to die on a cross in our place . So that, when we repent, we can be forgiven and made new in Christ.
If you are like me, and you have lately been asking God things like, "Lord, why is this stuff able to happen to me? why do I feel like I have no direction? Why do I feel so stuck and I do not have any way out?
" The answer is that we have let the light go out. It is time to wake up and it is time to turn the lights on. God still loves you.
God does not regret what He did for us on the cross. Jesus has not taken back the pain and the agony that He went through to save us. When Jesus died on the cross, it was once and for all.
When we repent, God is still faithful to forgive. It is time for you and I to admit what we have been hiding from God, and to turn from it, and to let Him make us new. Then it is time to take the good news to those who need to hear it.
Isaiah 52:7 says, "How lovely on the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who announces peace And brings good news of happiness, Who announces salvation, And says to Zion, 'Your God reigns! ' " In His Word, God has called you to be the one who takes the good news to those who need to hear it. He has called you to shine the light.
You and I need to get into God's Word every day so that we can develop a love for the light, so that when we are around others who are in the darkness, they cannot help but see Jesus Christ in us. If you are watching this and you are saying, "I do feel like I am stumbling in the darkness, but I have never known the truth. I have never experienced this light that you are talking about.
" Matthew 4:16 says, "The people who were sitting in darkness saw a great Light, And those who were sitting in the land and shadow of death, Upon them a Light dawned. " If you are tired of living in the darkness, and you are tired of having no direction, Then make Jesus Christ the Lord of your life today. Begin to follow Him with everything you have.
When you do this, a light will dawn in your life that will be so powerful and so bright that the darkness cannot stand against it. "For you were formerly darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of the light. " Ephesians 5:8 Hey everyone.
This is Troy Black. I am here to tell you about the release of my new book, Jacob and Sylvia. It is a Christian adventure fantasy novel about a young boy named Jacob and a beautiful princess named Sylvia.
Together, they travel through a fantastical world full of danger and mystery. Eventually, they are faced with a choice as big as life and death itself. Watch the trailer now and get your copy on JacobAndSylvia.
com. I hope you enjoy the read.
