Punching Holes in the Darkness

Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever. The land of Zebulun and Naphtali will be humbled, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles, which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be filled with glory. The people who walk in darkness

will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine. — (Isaiah 9.1-2, NLT)

Treasure Island… Kidnapped… The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde… New Arabian Nights… Prince Otto ... A Child's Garden of Verses – those are just some of the literary classics written by Robert Louis Stevenson. Well he must have had a way with words from the time he was a little boy. Anne Graham Lotz, in her book, “Just Give Me Jesus,” tells of a night in his boyhood when his nanny just couldn't get him to bed. Young Robert just kept staring out the window, oblivious to her talking to him. Finally, she said, "Robert, what in the world are you looking at out there?" As she pulled back the curtain, she realized he was watching the lamplighter making his way down the street, lighting one street lamp after another. Young Robert Louis Stevenson saw something more. He said, "Look at that man! He's punching holes in the darkness!"

Now that is an awesome description of what light does – isn’t it?! Punching holes in the darkness – light has a way of doing that – no matter how small, how dim or how far away. A little light will pierce the darkness.

We like light – don’t we?! We need light to live. If we didn’t have light we would die. There is no life without light. Without the sun’s light – planet earth would not be able to support and sustain life – it would be a cold, dark, dead, barren ball.

Well, we need light physically – and we need light spiritually to live in eternal splendor. Otherwise we are walking in darkness – dying in darkness, really. Our key Scripture text is found in the Old Testament book of Isaiah, chapter nine, verse two, which says, “The people who walk in darkness will see a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness, a light will shine.” That’s a pretty apt description of Christ’s coming into this dark world! Through the sending of His Son – Jesus the Messiah – God punched a hole in this world’s spiritual darkness. This story, His story, blazes with light. The prophet Isaiah speaks of the coming Messiah when foretells, “And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken" – (Isaiah 40.5) Jesus brings into our world the light of the glory of God.

When we turn over to the New Testament, Luke records in his Gospel, chapter 2, verses 8-16, this story of glory and light punching holes in the darkness:

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom His favor rests."

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about." So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, Who was lying in the manger.

John’s Gospel tells the Advent story this way:

In Him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not overcome it… The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world… The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, Who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” – (John 1.4-5, 9, 14)

Talk about punching holes in the darkness! Here’s how the Amplified Bible renders John chapter 1, verse 5, “And the Light shines on in the darkness, for the darkness has never overpowered it [put it out or absorbed it or appropriated it, and is unreceptive to it].” The light isn’t just coming from Jesus – The Light is Jesus (read John 8.12; 9.5) and He came into this world, our world, your world, my world – to punch a hole in the darkness. And the light pierces the darkness and overcomes the darkness – every time, all the time! It’s always been that way from the very beginning (Genesis 1.1-3), because God says so.

Now, let’s take a moment to probe this world of darkness…

You know there are people that look great on the outside and even all religious, but they have problems on the inside. It could be true of a marriage, a church, an organization, a leader, or maybe even you.

The Word of God in Matthew 23.25-28 says:

“Woe to you, Pharisees, and you religious leaders—hypocrites! You are so careful to polish the outside of the cup, but the inside is foul with extortion and greed. Blind Pharisees! First cleanse the inside of the cup, and then the whole cup will be clean… Woe to you, Pharisees, and you religious leaders! You are like beautiful mausoleums—full of dead men’s bones, and of foulness and corruption. You try to look like saintly men, but underneath those pious robes of yours are hearts besmirched with every sort of hypocrisy and sin.” – (NLT)

We live in a world where external image and outward appearance are everything, don’t we?!. Why, we work on our fitness, our hair, and our wardrobe, making good comments, making good impressions, looking like we have it all together. I look at job resumes frequently and it is amazing how good we can make ourselves look on paper – and then when the interview comes around… well, it’s totally like another person.

Maybe there might be another you… maybe when you're alone and when you're thinking honestly, you can feel that emptiness and hollowness inside. You can't explain it or deny it. Beneath that image you work so hard to maintain and protect you know the darkness and sense the sin. You know the struggle. Like one young woman said, "There's a darkness inside me that scares me." Mickey Mantle said not long before his death, "I filled my emptiness with alcohol." What are you doing or using to fill the darkness in your life?

Jesus said in John 8.12, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness." Jesus wants to be invited into that deep inner darkness and emptiness so He can fill it with the light of the glory of His Presence. He said later in Matthew 23, "How often I had longed to gather your children together, but you were not willing."

Jesus has been knocking on the door of your life. It's time to give the emptiness and the darkness to the One who knows all about you. He sees past the image and can forgive that sin. He can cleanse you from the sin and punch holes in that darkness and make you free from it.

Don’t let the darkness bring you to depression, but to the cow stall in Bethlehem where God entered this world of darkness as one of us and then on to the cross where He died knowing the sin inside of you and wanting to set you free. Jesus builds people from the inside out. Open the door of your heart and let The Light in. He will make you strong inside and you can finally have that hollow, dark place in your heart filled.

So, through the sending of His Son, Jesus the Messiah, God is punching a hole in this world’s spiritual darkness – and through us, God wants to continue punching holes in the darkness. God wants to enter your world and punch holes in your darkness so you, in turn, can punch holes in the darkness in the lives of those in the world around you.

Here’s what the apostle Paul writes in Ephesians 5.8-14:

For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for it is light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said:
   

"Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you."

Did you catch that? “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light… and Christ will shine on you.”

And Christ will shine on you… and in you and through you.

And what an awesome description of the reason God has placed you where you are! You're not there to shake your head and bemoan how dark it is where you work or go to school or whatever your environment. You're there to punch holes in the darkness! So, how are you doing so far?

Just listen to what Jesus said in Matthew 5.14-16, to those who belong to Him, (He's including you in this) – “You are the light of the world." Think of your personal world and the people in your world. Jesus says you are their light. "A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp or put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its' stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."

Yeah, we live in a pretty dark world. But it is not a world without light – unless the follower of Jesus, in a situation, fails to punch holes in the darkness by living like Jesus would live there, treating people like Jesus would treat people, and handling situations and temptations as Jesus would handle them. So many of Jesus' followers don't realize who they are – His ambassadors… His personal representative in their personal world.

You punch another hole in the darkness every time you show up with joy instead of gloom on your face, with good things to say instead of griping, every time you stop for someone who's struggling, when you consciously put someone else ahead of you, when you insist on taking the high road when it's tempting to cut corners, every time you weep with someone who's weeping, rejoice with someone who's rejoicing, and reach out to someone who is acting very unlovable.

The folks around you, who are still walking in darkness, probably won't be all that impressed with your do’s and don'ts or all the religious meetings you go to. They need to see meaningful differences in you because Christ is shining in you.

But it isn't enough that they just see that you're different. They need to know why, or they'll never be able to get out of the darkness themselves. They need The Light – they need Jesus. And He put you in their life so they could find out what Jesus did for them by coming into this dark world of sin and dying for them on the cross; so they could find out from someone who's living proof that Jesus is alive and how they, too, can have a life-changing relationship with Him. Have you told them about your Jesus yet? Humanly speaking, you may very well be their best chance of heaven.

I want you to remember – every morning, before your Lord, agree with Him by telling yourself, "I am the light of my world." And then you go out there, showing a harsh and lonely and self-serving world that there's another way to be. Defy the darkness wherever you go. Allow the reality of the Christmas story to live in you all year round – punching holes in the darkness with the brilliant light of Jesus Christ! After all, that’s why He came, and that’s why you and I are still here!

“Hail, the heav’n-born Prince of Peace! Hail the Sun of Righteousness!

Light and life to all He brings, Ris’n with healing in His wings.

Mild He lays His glory by, Born that men no more may die,

Born to raise the sons of earth, Born to give them second birth.

Hark! The herald angels sing, Glory to the newborn king!”

"Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the LORD rises upon you and His glory appears over you” – (Isaiah 60.1-2)

For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ. – (2 Corinthians 4.6, NIV)

In a nutshell – a very Merry Christmas to you and a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year – in Him,

Web Shepherd