Read the transcript from today's video devotional.
Today's Verse of the Day comes from one of my favorite books of the Bible, 1 John. One of the reasons why I love this book so much is when you look at the life of John, you see a guy who started following Jesus, likely in his teenage years, and he walked faithfully with the Messiah for three years, hearing Him teach, watching Him do miracles, but most importantly, just building a relationship with Him.
An Elderly John Writes to the Church
In his old age, he writes to the church one of three letters we call the Book of 1 John. As he opens up this letter, he's encouraging the church to continue to follow Jesus. He uses his own personal testimony of having lived this life with Jesus during His earthly ministry. He goes on to encourage the church.
Let's read how he does that in our Verse of the Day. It's 1 John chapter 1, verse 5. "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."
A Camping Memory With My Dad
Growing up, my family went camping all the time. When I say all the time, I mean like all the time. Just about every other weekend we were taking a trip somewhere, even if it was just a 15-minute drive to the coast to sleep on the beach for a night or two. We owned an RV. But in a family of six, this RV was very cramped.
It wasn't one of those big tour bus ones. It was just enough to get our family to where we were going. I don't remember when, but at some point it was decided that me and my dad were the ones who were getting booted from the RV at nights and were going to sleep in the tents.
Honestly, I didn't mind it because very quickly, some of my fondest memories happened when it was just me and my dad outside after everybody had gone to bed. I can vividly picture now standing with him in the campsite.
The Campfire in the Darkness
Darkness would have settled in all around us. It was quiet except for rustles here and there. You couldn't see more than ten feet outside of the campsite, and for a moment fear settled into my young heart. But I would turn my eyes back to the campfire in front of us, because here was a warm glow that lit the circle that we were sitting around.
It would let me see the face of my dad as he smiled at me. As I got to listen to him tell stories and point out the constellations in the sky. It provided warmth as we sat there as the temperatures dropped. It was the essence of safety and security in these moments.
God Is Light
That's why I love how John describes God here, that God is light. He's not simply describing physical light. He's talking about the nature and character of God—how He is pure, how He is perfect, how He is good. He is the epitome of love. He provides comfort and warmth to His people. He is safety and security and protection when it feels like darkness is surrounding us.
I want to encourage you that if you're feeling that darkness, God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. He is driving that away. I want you to abide in His presence. Find security in Him.
We Are the Light of the World
Beyond that, what I love about this idea is that John's not simply describing God. As we go on in the passage, he actually explains that because God is light and there's no darkness in Him, if we say that we are in the light, then we should also not have darkness in our lives.
It's the kind of idea that Jesus talks about in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew chapter 5—that we are the light of the world, a city on a hill that cannot be hidden. That we should go out and shine God's light to the world.
Be Light Bearers
I encourage us. I exhort us to enjoy God in His light, to allow it to drive out all the darkness. As we do that, I want to urge us all to be light-bearers—to go into a world that desperately needs the hope of the Gospel so that others might see the light that we shine and glorify our Father in heaven.
