Turn the Light On

“Mind and body don’t get along at all. It is the mind that says to the body, or to the hand, “Don’t turn that light on!” when you get up in the middle of the night and it’s pitch black. The hand says “What? Don’t turn that light on?! You should have more sense than that!” But the mind is really … egotistical. “I know my way around this house! Don’t turn the light on!” Meanwhile, the toe is saying, “No. Turn the light on. Turn the light on, will you please? I’m not going through this again!” -Bill Cosby

Light is not the absence of darkness.

Have you ever really thought about light? I mean, have you ever just pondered the miracle of what light is, what it does, how it works?

Look around you. At first glance, the world may seem static (unless you’re driving as you read this in which case I beg you to STOP READING).

Anyways, at this very moment, particles of light (photons) are zipping all around you at a fantastic rate of speed. Innumerable photons are bouncing off everything around you, and then hitting your retina, allowing you to “see”.

Light is not static. It is fluid and constantly in motion.

Light might as well be a verb instead of a noun.

Jesus often used the analogy of light when He described His Identity:

Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.” -John 8:12

“Jesus shouted to the crowds, “If you trust me, you are trusting not only me, but also God who sent me. For when you see me, you are seeing the one who sent me. I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark.” -John 12:44-46

For those who are followers of Jesus, there is no brighter moment in history than Easter morning.

He turned the lights up. Way up.

Easter is a time of celebration because Christ-followers believe that the power of death (darkness) was defeated by Jesus at the cross, and then utterly destroyed by His resurrection from the dead three days later.

His light continues to shine as those who follow His path continue to fix their gaze on Him.

This Easter, may we choose to walk in the light, and may His light and love reflect off us into a darkened world that hungers for Peace, Hope, and Joy.

HE IS RISEN!

Related Verses
John 20:1-10
Early on Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. She said, “They have taken the Lord’s body out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”
Peter and the other disciple started out for the tomb. They were both running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He stooped and looked in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he didn’t go in. Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there, while the cloth that had covered Jesus’ head was folded up and lying apart from the other wrappings. Then the disciple who had reached the tomb first also went in, and he saw and believed— for until then they still hadn’t understood the Scriptures that said Jesus must rise from the dead. Then they went home.

John 1:1-18
In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him. The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.
God sent a man, John the Baptist, to tell about the light so that everyone might believe because of his testimony. John himself was not the light; he was simply a witness to tell about the light. The one who is the true light, who gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.
He came into the very world he created, but the world didn’t recognize him. He came to his own people, and even they rejected him. But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God.
So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.
John testified about him when he shouted to the crowds, “This is the one I was talking about when I said, ‘Someone is coming after me who is far greater than I am, for he existed long before me.’ ”
From his abundance we have all received one gracious blessing after another. For the law was given through Moses, but God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. But the one and only Son is himself God and is near to the Father’s heart.
He has revealed God to us.