February
7, 2003
THE
LIGHT OF THE WORLD
"Then
Jesus spoke to them again, saying, 'I am the light of the
world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have
the light of life' " (John 8:12, NKJV).
Isaiah
had written, "It is too small a thing that You should
be My Servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore
the preserved ones of Israel; I will also give You as a light
to the Gentiles, that You should be My salvation to the ends
of the earth" (Isaiah 49:6). This prophecy was generally
understood as applying to the Messiah and When Jesus said,
"I am the light of the world," many people could
not fail to recognize His claim to be the Promised One.
John,
who had listened to Jesus' claim, long after reechoed the
thought, "In Him was life, and the life was the light
of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness
did not comprehend it... That was the true Light which gives
light to every man coming into the world" (John 1:4,
5, 9).
Light
has ever been a symbol of the presence of God to His people.
In the beginning, God created light and separated the light
from the darkness (Genesis 1:3, 4). In Israel's wilderness
journey, light had been enshrouded in the pillar of cloud
by day and the pillar of fire by night. Light blazed with
awful grandeur about the Lord on Mount Sinai. Light rested
over the mercy seat in the tabernacle. Light filled the temple
of Solomon at its dedication. Light shone on the hills of
Bethlehem when the angels brought the message of the Messiah's
birth to watching shepherds.
Jesus,
the source of literal and spiritual light, illumines the darkness
of the world. Paul stated, "For it is the God who commanded
light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts
to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in
the face of Jesus Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:6).
The "light
of life" is the salvation that Jesus has provided to
every man, woman and child that has ever been born into this
world. He is "the true Light which gives light to every
man" (John 1:9). Whereas, God does not force His will
or His way on any man, He is there for the one who will open
His senses to "the Light of life."
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