Lighting up our dark world

Psalm 36:9 For with you (O, God) is the fountain of life; in your light do we see light.

I was reading a book this evening called Think About These Things by Ric Ergenbright. There is a photo on page 18 with the sunset (http://www.darrenolson.com/UWA-V0001.html).

As I was reading this I was struck by the depth of this statement and thought about it more and more. Before we come to know God we are walking around in spiritual darkness. It is by the Lord's Grace alone that we come to into a saving knowledge of his son Jesus Christ, through work of the Holy Spirit. When we are indwelt with the Holy Spirit God puts his light in us to shine before men. We are called, in Matthew 5:14-16 to be a city on a hill and to let our light shine.

Take a candle and light it. Once lit, one does not then take that precious light, which was used before electricity to provide light to a room, and hide it under a bowl. Instead, they let that light fill the room and provide light to everyone in it.

Let's take this information and add it to what was talked about previously in Genesis 4. God is light. The world is darkness. When one talks about light, how do we as people living in darkness even know what the word light means unless there was someone who was light before us. Psalm 36:9b says in your light do we see light. The "light" the psalmist is speaking about here is about Jesus, but one could also make the claim that he's referring to the Light of God's word, which reveals Jesus Christ and the gospel, to all peoples. The word 'your' is the one that is really interesting. It could have said "In the light do we see light" which would mean that when there is light around we can see. But no, the psalmist uses the pronoun 'your' which is an attributive adjective. The light being described had to come from somewhere, it has to be attributed to something, since light does not just come out of nowhere. If it's dark, light can't just be thought into existence by humans, it has to be fashioned by a source; enter Jesus!

Jesus is called the Light of the world. He is the one who shines His light into our hearts and souls and allows His light to be seen by men. We have no light unto ourselves that we have, nor that we can produce from the things of this world. This is the majesty that is in God our Creator. He, being outside of creation, made separated the light from the darkness. This implies that there was darkness prior to the light and when God decided in his providential timing he created the world, first by separating light from darkness (Genesis 1:2b-4).

"Father, I pray that we would let our light shine before those around us. Let us be instruments for your glory to take the saving gospel of Jesus to the dark world that we live in. I come to O God asking that you would help me to surrender to the Light of the Word of God. May it fill my heart and mind so that I can be more useful to your Kingdom. In Jesus mighty and life-giving name, Amen."