Dark was the world before anything was. Dark was the world before the infant light cried. Dark is the world as it still waits for His voice. The last word, the last cry, the last sound until light. Because once the Word speaks, then Light is, as well.
In the beginning, was the Word. It was said, “Let there be light”. Flash and flame. Glow grew into something that won’t be ignored. That cannot be stopped. Spoken fire in the nothing. The darkness will not overcome.
The Word is the light. The light is the Word. The Word bespeaks light which bleeds over the darkness. Dripping in the spaces, that holds nothing before. The empty, enlightened. The hidden, revealed. When Word speaks His light, there is nowhere to hide.
In him was life, and the life was the light of men. (John 1:4)
Life. Bright. Breath. In Him was the inhale of creative blood and bone. In Him was the breath of the flesh that was life. In Him was humanity. The first light of all men. Burning the uterus of a young mother Mary. Scorched from the memory of Eve’s firstborn son. In Him was life. Re-lived every lie. Re-spoke every story. In Him was the life of all men.
Life. Light. Yet, dark always fights to paint over the light. Watery ink seeping over the sparks. Slipping deep into the darkness. Beyond our control. Where we cannot see. Where we can’t be seen. Tripping over the obstacles, the things that are and are not. This is our history. This is our fate. All people are strangers when we meet in the darkness. Clothed with black veils of shadows and voids.
Yet, Light speaks to the nothings. Enlighten what is! The wasteland. The lacking. The hungry. The parched. The silent. The pain-filled. The overwhelmed. The broken. The angry. The lonely. The ugly. The sickened. The improper. The smelly. The selfish. The wandering. The limping. The too-much-to-handle. The lazy. The infected. The totally dependent. The shamed. The drunk. The backsliding offender. The Light loves to shine on the worst. Exposing our empty.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. (John 1:5)
As the candle drips, it counts down her minutes of glory. Melting. Shrinking. Considering her end. The flame is enlightening. Burning fast to annihilation. A graceful destruction of her tower of wax. The Light lights her meaning. The Light speaks her purpose. She is overcome. She must be destroyed as the Light lights the world.
The darkness threatens. But the light threatens more. The Word will expose. And the Light shows too much. The Word lights up your failure so you see your need for a savior. The Light shines on your sorrow and brightens another path.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. (John 1:5)
Un-life in the dark, that’s what the light shows you. You don’t produce light nor life. It’s clearly illuminated. Nothing is hiding. On stage for the nations. There’s no more to fear. His life is the light. The Word makes it known.
You are disgusting
The light shines in the darkness
(Romans 3:10-18)
You stumble in shadows
The light shines in the darkness
(Proverbs 4:19)
You need a savior
The light shines in the darkness
(Romans 5:6-8)
The Word became flesh
The light shines in the darkness
(John 1:14)
The Word restores sinners
The light shines in the darkness
(Matthew 18:18-19)
The Word reigns forever
The light shines in the darkness
(Revelation 22:3-5)
And the darkness has not overcome it.
More Advent Resources:
“The Word Lives With Us” Family Style Theology Podcast Advent Devotion. Jesus arrives as the Light of the world in John 1:4-5. Cindy and the teens discuss how this Light changes everything! LISTEN NOW.
Enlightened: https://cindykochwrites.com/2021/12/19/enlightened/
Silent Night: https://cindykochwrites.com/2021/12/24/silent-night/
I love working through these with my girls after reading through them myself, little chunks each morning. While reading the Romans 3 passage today, I kept thinking back to Proverbs: those who lie in wait, the paths of the wicked, the crooked man, the evil couple, the honeyed tongue, these images are so vivid. It would be a very jarring one if Proverbs had a trailer.
That same Light that shines into the darkness where we were found, exposing our sin, then we can see and He keeps us from stumbling!
We went way over time during our devotion.