It’s easy to think you can do without light when your eyes have finally adjusted to the exposure of night. But what a shock it feels when the light comes on and your vision is stunned before it is normalized again to understand what you were missing all along. Maybe the Pharisees felt this way without realizing it, but just because they felt they were seeing just fine without the light Jesus offers in himself doesn’t mean that they were not jaded by dangerous law-drenched darkness. As Luke 8:17 states, “For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open.” The longer I live on this earth, the more I realize the need for Christ’s light everywhere, in every corner. I also realize that we were never designed to live lightless, for this reaction of slowly adjusting to the light, physically, mentally, and especially spiritually would not take place if we did not have the notion of a force that is made to illuminate what hides in shadows.

Jesus Christ is this very light that makes all things seen for what they are, ignites zoe into our souls, and shines eternal guidance on the path of our lives. From saying He is the bread to sustain mankind to declaring that He is also the illumination of the universe, I find that all symbols Christ uses to describe himself are multidimensional , versatile, deep, and complex. To follow the light of the world, who is Christ, is to walk in the assurance of eternal brightness. I think of a constant spotlight guiding each step of a traveler, so long as they look to it. If they were to look away, how could they expect their vision to stay the same? His words go a step deeper to say that we will have the light of life, which we can translate as the light inhabiting within us. The Holy Spirit is our internal lantern. Just as the sun brightens up the sky, so does His presence in our hearts light up every corner of our lives. 

One thing is to follow the light. However,  Jesus is not saying we will only be following a distant light as a guide but housing an everlasting light inside. There is no other light that we can follow so closely that also lives in us. May we always strive to follow Him so that the flame of our hearts may stay blazing with Zoe life, ready to extinguish any and all threats in the night. Psalms 139: 12 states, “even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.” Not even the dark is dark to God! With Jesus, we can always rest assured that even when we do walk through the shadows that we have a head and heart lamp burning throughout the night.

Your sister in Light,

Lexi