November 20 – Nothing Will Be Left Undone

“I will lead the blind by a way they do not know, In paths they do not know I will guide them. I will make darkness into light before them And rugged places into plains. These are the things I will do, And I will not leave them undone.” -  Isaiah 42:16 (NASB)

 

The blind are promised a guide; He is God. Those who do not know the way He promises to guide them. These are the spiritually blind and they have no means or power or even will to seek and find this way to God. Only God can give them the sight to believe by faith and follow the right path. Our God is anxious to help us as we live our lives here on earth. Notice that He promises to lead us along unfamiliar paths. Is it dark in our life? God will provide the light we need because in Him there is no darkness. Are the circumstances of our lives make for rough going? God will smooth them out had help us through it.  Look at the last two lines, “These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them.” Our God shows us where to step and which way to turn. He is our guide through difficult times, lonely times, sorrowful times, and frightening times. During times of loss or when evil threatens us God is with us, He promises to not forsake us. He is the light on our dark and unfamiliar paths.

 

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June 16 – Guiding the Blind

“And I will lead the blind in a way that they do not know, in paths that they have not known I will guide them.  I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them.” -  Isaiah 42:16 (ESV)

There are times when things get so dark we lose our way and we are tempted to think that God is not aware of what we are going through. There are times when we do not see the path that He has set before us to walk in and we’re essentially blinded by our lack of understanding. There are times when our way in life seems to be too rough for us to sustain our walk. God gives us promises for times like that. He promises not to forsake His own. That means He will always be there. And what will He do He will guide us, turning darkness into light. He will help us make decisions we have never made before. And what about those times of difficulty because the path for our life is so rough? He will smooth them out. God’s sovereignty will be evident to all of us as He guides the blind over previously uncharted courses. Even the spiritually blind can be made to see the way because of what God does for them in opening their eyes to see.

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February 19 – When Darkness Is Not

“If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, And the light around me will be night,” Even the darkness is not dark to You, And the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You.”  - Psalm 139:11-12 (NASB)

I’m sure we all have heard someone say, “I was in a very dark place then.” We know they might mean that their spirit was not at peace with their world or have lost their way. We might use that metaphor to express our frame of mind sometimes. Circumstances may be so difficult we struggle with coping and it’s difficult to choose a better way. Our mood is overwhelming. King David understood such predicaments. We're promised here that even when our world is dark and we can’t see light, God can see it for us. When our light is dark as the night of a new moon that darkness is not dark to our God. When those time come over us like a monster wave coming suddenly and unexpectedly we can choose to trust God’s promise that it is not dark for Him. The darkest place we might be is bright as the day in God. Actually there is no difference between darkness and light in God for in him there is no darkness existing. He can see and watch over us during our darkest times and He promises to guide us with the light of His Word. 

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January 5 – He Who Takes Care

“They did not say, ‘Where is the Lord Who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, Who led us through the wilderness, Through a land of deserts and of pits, Through a land of drought and of deep darkness, Through a land that no one crossed And where no man dwelt?’” – Jeremiah 2:6 (NASB)

Might we question where is the promise from God in this verse? It’s there but we need the context. Jeremiah, was a prophet for God to the people of Israel in Jerusalem for 41 years, had the task of delivering judgment messages and warnings to God’s people who have forgotten Him. God accounts for how faithful He has been in taking care of his chosen people as he lead them out of Egypt to their promised land. Eight centuries later God’s provision and protection has been long ago forgotten. God asks for cause. Has God been less than absolutely just with them? No, it was their ingratitude as they departed from their first love. God reminds them of His faithfulness and His justice. It was a desolate place that God led them through and in that place confirmed His covenant and gave them His Law. The people had so forgotten God that they didn’t even ask after Him. They no longer had even a thought about who led them out of Egypt, through wilderness and deserts, through droughts and darkness. God leads us because we too are chosen by Him. Today let’s remember His promises and worship Him with thanksgiving.

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December 18 – Expelling the Darkness

“Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” -  John 8:12 (NASB)

 

The story we remember and celebrate at this time of the year is the birth of Jesus on Earth when he emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, being made in the likeness of men. He did so in order to offer redemption and salvation to all who believed in Him. Today’s promise comes from another of Jesus’ “I AM” statements recorded by the Holy Spirit through the Gospel of the Apostle John. Those who do like darkness do so to hide their actions. True darkness is the absence of light. Remove the light and what remains is darkness. We all understand this. If we want to expel the darkness from a room, we turn on the light switch that we have faith will cause energy to flow to a light source. In the same way Jesus says to us to follow Him because He is eternal light. In Him there is no darkness and from Him we have the Light of life, eternal life. Following is an act of faith and the Light is an act of Grace and the ability to do so, it a gift promised from God.

 

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November 27 – Our Light Within

“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) 

Our Father in heaven has done so very much for us. He is the God of light in many ways and our verse reminds us that He brings that light into our hearts. The Apostle Paul makes a direct reference to God as Creator, who commanded physical light into existence (Genesis 1:3). The God who created physical light in the universe creates supernatural light in the soul and bring believers from the kingdom of darkness to His kingdom of light (Colossians 1:13). The light is expressed as “the knowledge of the glory of God.” That means to know that Christ is God incarnate. To be saved, one must understand that the glory of God shone in Jesus Christ and He drives darkness from our lives. Isn't it wonderful to know that we don't have to live in that darkness or with it in our hearts? God has made his light shine in our hearts and it is a glorious light for us who have believed. Be encouraged today as you recognize that God is a God of glory and He wants us to know of His glory. It is a promise that will bring light to our hearts and to our lives.

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November 20 – Leading and Guiding

“I will lead the blind by a way they do not know, In paths they do not know I will guide them. I will make darkness into light before them And rugged places into plains. These are the things I will do, And I will not leave them undone.” -  Isaiah 42:16 (NASB) 

Remember observing how a blind person manages their way around their world? It’s amazing what one can do when it has to be done. In a very real sense we are all blinded by different things at times in our lives. We who believe in Jesus also need help understanding finding the right path in our lives. When we encounter strange paths God promises to help us. In the dark places He promises to guide us and He turns on the light we need. We all face situations which are new and different or are problematic and we especially need wisdom to navigate our decision process. Now and then we just can't see a way out and we need God to guide us, He opens our eyes and chases the darkness away. Our Father God promises to smooth out rough places and show us where to step. He promises to be our guide through times that are difficult, lonely, sorrowful, frightening times and when we have simply lost our way. During times of personal loss or when evil threatens us, God is with us. He will not forsake us. He is a lamp for our feet in the dark.

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October 28 – Following the Light out of Darkness

“Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” – John 8:12 (ESV)

In the Old Testament the coming age of Messiah was prophesied to be a time when the Lord God would be a light for His people (Isaiah 60:19–22) as well as for the whole earth (Isaiah 42:6; 49:6). This is the second “I am” statement. Previously Jesus declared Himself “I am the Bread of Life.” John used the “light” metaphor for Jesus in John 1:4; “In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.” The promise is for those who will follow the Light of the World. Follow Jesus and we will not walk in darkness. Follow Jesus and we will have the Light of Life because that is what Jesus is. Follow Jesus and have Jesus himself as our light in this life. We follow by knowing and understanding the Bible and what it teaches us about life. The promises of God come to life in the light of the world, Jesus Christ, Savior and Lord. Some choose to ignore this lite and remain in darkness because in truth, without Christ in our lives, there is only spiritual darkness. Let’s walk in the Light by choosing in faith to follow the Light of Life, Jesus our Savior. 

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May 4 – Ransom Paid Remission Secured

“ He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” – Colossians 1:13-14 (ESV)

In our previous verse (Colossians 1:12) we read the promise of a share in the inheritance of the saints in Light. That is why we must today look at the promise that springs from that one.  This inheritance is in the … light. “We” have been transplanted, and this not from liberty into slavery but from slavery into liberty. This  light is the spiritual sphere to which believers have been transferred from the dominion of darkness. From this dominion, power, or authority of darkness We as believers have been rescued, and therefore delivered. Through Christ they were brought from a rebel kingdom and placed under the sovereignty of their rightful King. The sovereign Christ is here called his beloved Son. Through Christ, God’s “Loved One,” Christians have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Let’s emphasize that “redemption” means “to rescue by ransom.” Christ paid that ransom for us on the cross and in His resurrection. And, “forgiveness” means “remission” by the Redeemer. This is our joyful emancipation from darkness which we possess in the Light of our Savior only because of the tremendous cost Christ paid on the cross. 

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March 26 - I AM The Light

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” - John 8:12 (ESV)

If we could travel through time and found ourselves in the past, the time of Genesis 1:1, we would not be able to see anything at all. The earth was formless with nothing but deep darkness covering it.  It was the Son of God, Creator of all things* who created light by speaking it into existence and separated the light from the darkness. If we understand this we’ll recognize that Jesus Christ, who spoke the promises in this verse for today, is the one and same Son of God who created all including light for the world. Christ is the Light of the world. God is light, and Christ is the visible image of God. One sun enlightens the whole world; so does one Christ, and there needs to be no more. What a dark dungeon would be the world without our sun! So would life be be without Jesus, by whom light came into the world. Those who follow Christ shall not walk in darkness. We shall are not left without THE TRUTHS necessary to keep us from destructive the path and provide directions in the way necessary to keep them from condemning sin. 

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*(John 1:1-5; Colossians 1:15-17)

March 11 – From Darkness to Light.

“For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” – Colossians 1:13-14  (NASB)

Recently many thousands of people in the United States were in darkness because of no electricity. Don’t we all prefer being in the light to being in darkness?  Being filled with spiritual wisdom and understanding of God, transforms our lives and rescues us from darkness. We are promised wonderful results by following God’s will.  Two outcomes from a God-pleasing life are bearing fruit and increasing in knowledge (Col 1:10). Spiritual strength can be considered a third factor that results from knowing God’s will and pleasing Him (Col 1:11). Thankfulness, a keynote in our spiritual life, is a fourth result (Col 1:12). Plus, the promises in today’s passage. God transfers us out of the dominion of darkness, which is the domain of Satan. It happens to us the moment we receive redemption and forgiveness from our life of sin and the stubborn rebellion which is sin itself.  We now possess inheritance reserved for us in the kingdom of light which is Jesus Christ. We like particularly this word in verse 13, ‘rescued,’ which gives us the picture of being snatched out of danger and assurance that we are out of peril and are now safe and secure in God’s family. 

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December 21 –– Light Makes a Difference

“Blessed are the people who know the festal shout, who walk, O Lord, in the light of your face,” Psalm 89:15 (ESV)

The subject of light is frequently in our discussions this time of the year. There is great light in the presence of the Lord. We think of the light which shone for the shepherds near Bethlehem that night that Jesus was born.  The Bible clearly shows us that rejection of God and His will results in darkness.  Darkness in this world is caused by denial of God's will and by sin. But with God there is great light which overcomes the darkness. The Gospel of John declares that in Jesus, was the light that was the life He brought to expose the darkness, (John 1:4-5.) That is what the lights of Christmas should remind us of.  When Jesus came to earth there were lights to demonstrate His purpose in coming. His presence in our lives does make such a big difference – like the difference between night and day. Our verse reminds us to walk in the light of His presence and promises a real blessing if we do.  Remember we have our festal shout out at Christmas. It was when Jesus came to be our Savior and His promise is to be with us daily. 

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December 20 – Light of Life

“Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; the one who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”  John 8:12 (NASB)

Lights are all around us these days. Houses, and trees are decorated with them because they are festive and bring good feelings to us.  These days we can let them remind us of what happened when Jesus was born. The light which the shepherds saw and the star which the wise men saw were also reminders of the real meaning of His coming.  Today's verse from the Gospel of John explains the real meaning in what Jesus said of Himself. In the Gospel of Luke 11:33-36 Jesus uses the light as an illustration of His promise of new life. There is so much darkness in this world and this has always been true. God sent His Son to bring us light. We have the promise of Jesus that if we believe His words and follow Him we will not be walking in the darkness. As we see lights at Christmas time, let them remind us how Jesus lights up things for us. And let's be sure to follow our Savior closely. He encourages us to fill our life with His Light – it obliterates the darkness and illuminates our heart and mind.

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November 20 – “It’s A Wrap!”

“For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober.”  1 Thessalonians 5:5-6 (ESV)

In these verses from Paul's letter to the believers in Thessalonica, he gives a direct warning. We might say stern warning as he does not want us to be unaware. “Let us keep awake and be sober.” Yes, sober as opposed to drunk. Also sober as in having control of our thoughts and mind. Being alert and not dull and unaware that The Day is coming. Paul compares those of us who believe as being ‘of the light’ and those who do not as being ‘of darkness’. So our promise is that because we are not of the night or the darkness, we are to not fall asleep on the watch but be awake and of sound mind. One day, God will call out to this world “It’s a wrap,” the call a crew heard when we were done with a production. But when God chooses to “wrap it up” that will be the day of fulfillment. For all who have believed in Jesus Christ and persevere in faith are saved. We will be spared the wrath coming to the unbelievers.  Just as it says in verse 11, “We encourage one another and build one another up.”

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October 22 – When Darkness is a Bright Day

“If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, And the light around me will be night,” Even the darkness is not dark to You, And the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You.”  Psalm 139:11–12 (NASB)

It is both normal and expected that we will encounter days of darkness, fear, depression, anxiety and feelings of hopelessness. Our enemy is constantly trying to sink us into such traps and pits. This Psalm of David is astounding when we think of what it says about our God. There is nowhere where God is not. In our verses today we have a promise that darkness, when we encounter it, is unable to separate us from God because God does not experience darkness and we are with Him as He is with us. When we are experiencing the worst of days and the darkest of emotions, God is with us able to turn that darkness into light as bright as a sun filled day. How? By being our Son-filled day. And because to God, darkness and light have no difference. This promises us that we can function and we can be thankful and we can praise God even in our darkest time. God is with us all the time and with Him our darkness is overcome and we are not overwhelmed by it. Our darkness is not dark to Him. 

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August 31 – Light Giver and Keeper

“For it is you who light my lamp; the Lord my God lightens my darkness.”  Psalm 18:28 (ESV)

A good number of the Psalms written by David expressed how he felt about what God had promised. Psalm 18 was written and spoken to the Lord in song when David was delivered by God from the hand of King Saul who wanted to kill him.  It reminds us of how much God is involved in our lives. There is so much darkness in this world and it seems to be getting darker. Our reaction might be despair and fear. We are challenged to not become lost in the darkness and when we become children of God by faith in His Son Jesus as our Savior.  We begin to see the difference and to see things in a different way, as God gives us light that overcomes darkness. Just as David realized that God continues to work in our lives – we learn it is day by day and year by year. When darkness tempts us to be overcome by the darkness around us and tempts us to give up, then we remember the promise that our Lord is the keeper of our light He keeps our lamp burning. Let's thank God today for the light he has given to us.

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August 19 – Out of Darkness and Into Light

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” 1 Peter 2:9 (ESV)

The Apostle Peter's first letter was sent to those who had believed in Christ and were living in the area called Anatolia Asia Minor which is mostly in modern day Turkey. He wanted to remind them what a great privilege they had. By His mercy God established a people for His possession, a people to call His own.  God has been merciful to all of us just as He was to the people whom Peter was writing. Whatever our personal background we must all admit that without the love of God we would never come to see the true light. We were living in a darkness but by believing in Jesus we have seen a great light and we are now a people belonging to God with all the abundant blessings. We no longer are bound to the darkness that binds those of this world but we have been called to be in His marvelous light. Our response is that we praise Him as we continue to learn through what His light reveals to us, each day. Let us declare his praises and proclaim the excellencies He reveals to us today.

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June 29 – We Proclaim and They Share

“This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.”  -1 John 1:5  (ESV)

Just a few days after the founding of the Church on the day of Pentecost, just fifty days after the resurrection of Jesus Christ, we find Peter and John (the John who wrote this epistle), in the Temple.  They were proclaiming this very message found in today’s verse.  The promise that God is light to the point that no darkness exists in Him, none at all. The disciples who scattered and fled and one who stuck around but denied knowing Jesus are now on the job of proclaiming the Good News about Jesus the Nazarene who was crucified, died, buried and resurrected by God. In the New Testament we read of how we share in the faith and blessings from God.  But we do not find where we are to “share” the Gospel with others, a modern colloquial term we use to reference evangelism and telling the Good News, the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Peter and John proclaimed Jesus Christ as Messiah every time they preached to the crowd. Those who believed shared in the receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit. They proclaimed Jesus so that others would hear and share in the blessings of salvation from Jesus. 

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December 26 – Guidance on the Way of Peace

“…because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”  Luke 1:78-79 (NASB)

These words are from a prophecy spoken by Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist a few months before the birth of Jesus.  Because of his disbelief in the promise of a son for his barren wife, God had made Zacharias mute until the birth of his son.  When John was born and Zacharias wrote down his name as the one God had given him, his ability to speak returned.  This was the first words out of his mouth.  Of course, Jesus was the Sunrise who came from on high. He has given light in our hearts replacing the darkness that was there before. I trust that He is shining in your heart today.  God promised this for all who believe in Jesus Christ. Without the light of Jesus, we would remain in darkness. Part of that darkness would be an uncertainty and a fear of death. Death would cause a shadow ahead of us but now we can look ahead to eternity in God’s presence. Instead of fear we have been promised guidance as we walk in the way of peace. 

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October 15 – Darkness Into Light

“You, Lord, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light.” Psalm 18:28 (NIV) 

David sang to the Lord in gratitude for His help during the dark periods of his life. Perhaps this has been our experience, too.  There may have been times in our life when the prospects were dark for us but then we have realized that our God is still with us and helping us?  How wonderful to know that when we go through dark hours our God is aware of what is going on in our thinking. Then we hear Him speaking words of assurance, reminding us of His presence. Our faith is renewed by these assurances and that is what David meant about keeping his lamp burning. It may still be dark around us but our lamps are burning and it is God at work in us. God is in the business of turning our darkness into His light for His glory and our blessings. 

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