How do you define darkness? When thinking of darkness, things like oppression, evil, addictive behaviors, sin, demonic influence, dictatorship, persecution, poverty, and bondage may come to mind. But darkness can also be fear, sickness, pain, depression, hard circumstances, loss, and death. No matter how we have personally experienced darkness or seen it in our World, there is Good News.
In John 8:12, Jesus says, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” That means that if we have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior, His light lives in us and we can therefore live in freedom (Galatians 2:20, Romans 6:22-23)! This is an incredible truth: because Jesus is God and died to give us life, we can also have freedom from all darkness. The Bible teaches us that in Jesus, there is no darkness (1 John 1:5). In Jesus, there is freedom (John 8:36). In Jesus, there is abundant life (John 10:10). In Jesus, we are rescued from darkness (Colossians 1:13-14). And in Jesus, we have the Holy Spirit to help us continue to resist darkness (2 Corinthians 3:17, John 14:16-17).
Freedom from darkness is ours for the taking because of Jesus!
Jesus has authority over all things (Matthew 28:18; Colossians 2:15). Therefore, if Jesus is in us, we have the same authority (Ephesians 1:18-23, Romans 8:35-39). And Jesus’ authority allows us to be free from:
- Guilt & shame (Romans 8:1-2)
- The bondage of sin and its consequences, which is death (Galatians 5:1, Romans 3:22-23; Romans 6:6-7, 14)
- Temptation (1 Corinthians 10:13)
- Fear (2 Timothy 1:7)
- Worry (Matthew 6:33-34)
- An unproductive life (John 15:4-5)
- People-pleasing (Galatians 1:10)
This is just a small picture of what we have because Jesus loves us and wants us to live free. But we must CHOOSE freedom. We must WANT freedom. We need to daily surrender ourselves to God’s will for us and choose not to copy the behaviors and customs of the world. We must let God transform us into a new person by changing the way we think (Romans 12:1-2 paraphrased). Ephesians 5:8 says, “For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So, live as people of light!”
How do we do that? We must…
- Walk in God’s Truth, not the world's (John 8:31, Colossians 2:6-10)
- Always Wear God’s protective armor (Ephesians 6:10-17)
- Submit to God and resist the devil (James 4:7)
- Trust in God and keep our thoughts on Him (Isaiah 26:3)
- Choose to use our freedom for good, to benefit others (Galatians 5:13)
- Ask God for spiritual wisdom and insight (Ephesians 1:17)
- Remember our identity is in Christ and nothing else! (1 Peter 2:9, Ephesians 2:19-22)
Freedom from darkness is ours for the taking because of Jesus! Now is the time to accept this freedom, to live a life of purpose and love, to allow His power to work in and through us, and to use this freedom to draw others to the Light of Jesus.
