November 8, 2015 CHASING AWAY THE NIGHT
Romans 13:12: “The night is almost gone, and the day is at hand. Let us therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.” Where I live, we have had many days with no sunshine, and the ten day forecast gives no promise of any change. I find myself longing for sunshine. As is often the case, the “natural” has applications in the “spiritual”-and so it is with the weather. In scripture, we are called to “walk in the light as He is in the light” (1 John 1:7); meaning that our life should resemble the life that Jesus demonstrated when He lived on earth. It is evident that many, including believers, often succumb to the darkness that is so prevalent. The ever increasing number of people who are addicted to, or dependent on drugs or alcohol, or who suffer with depression, is sufficient evidence that living in darkness is not limited to a small segment of the population. The good news of the gospel is that to live and walk in the light-in the midst of a dark world-is our heritage as a child of God, as promised in Colossians 1:13: “For He delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,”. 1 John 1:5-7 gives more insight into walking in the light: “And this is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.” There is a line in a song that speaks volumes: “I’m coming out of darkness-gonna chase the night away.” When I hear this, I have the picture in my mind of a dog running off the porch, barking and growling at the sight of a stray dog in the yard-chasing it away. As the people of God, just as the dog chases off the stray dog, we can chase the darkness away! The idea of chasing away the night, the darkness, is a powerful idea and it is something that we as believers have the ability to do. To realize, to know that we do not have to live with, or put up with the darkness, is indeed liberating. This in no way implies that we as believers will not encounter trials, or that we are immune to difficulty, or that we never experience some darkness. But it does mean that we do not have to live with, or walk in darkness as a way of life because God has given us the power to “chase the darkness away.” Chasing the darkness away calls for action on our part; we are to be aggressive when it comes to dispelling darkness. Rejecting, or repelling darkness is a spiritual battle, and the battleground is normally the mind and the heart. 2 Corinthians 10:5 instructs us to take “every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” In other words, we or to think like Christ if we are to live in the light. The scripture is abundantly clear that we have been given a new heart and a new mind; but we must make the choice to live out of our new heart and new mind. The battle is practically won when we realize deep within that we have been made new; that we are in Christ; that we now have the mind of Christ; that we are in the light as He is in the light; that we have been fully equipped to live life as an overcomer. So, let us not allow darkness of any degree rule in our lives; but let us be the children of light that we are. And, don’t forget the barking, growling dog-be quick to chase away any darkness that tries to set one foot in your yard!
Ephesians 5:8-10: “for you were formally darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light (for the fruit of light consist in all goodness and righteousness and truth), trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord.”
John 8:12: “Again therefore Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life.’”
Blessings, Buddy
Romans 13:12: “The night is almost gone, and the day is at hand. Let us therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.” Where I live, we have had many days with no sunshine, and the ten day forecast gives no promise of any change. I find myself longing for sunshine. As is often the case, the “natural” has applications in the “spiritual”-and so it is with the weather. In scripture, we are called to “walk in the light as He is in the light” (1 John 1:7); meaning that our life should resemble the life that Jesus demonstrated when He lived on earth. It is evident that many, including believers, often succumb to the darkness that is so prevalent. The ever increasing number of people who are addicted to, or dependent on drugs or alcohol, or who suffer with depression, is sufficient evidence that living in darkness is not limited to a small segment of the population. The good news of the gospel is that to live and walk in the light-in the midst of a dark world-is our heritage as a child of God, as promised in Colossians 1:13: “For He delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,”. 1 John 1:5-7 gives more insight into walking in the light: “And this is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.” There is a line in a song that speaks volumes: “I’m coming out of darkness-gonna chase the night away.” When I hear this, I have the picture in my mind of a dog running off the porch, barking and growling at the sight of a stray dog in the yard-chasing it away. As the people of God, just as the dog chases off the stray dog, we can chase the darkness away! The idea of chasing away the night, the darkness, is a powerful idea and it is something that we as believers have the ability to do. To realize, to know that we do not have to live with, or put up with the darkness, is indeed liberating. This in no way implies that we as believers will not encounter trials, or that we are immune to difficulty, or that we never experience some darkness. But it does mean that we do not have to live with, or walk in darkness as a way of life because God has given us the power to “chase the darkness away.” Chasing the darkness away calls for action on our part; we are to be aggressive when it comes to dispelling darkness. Rejecting, or repelling darkness is a spiritual battle, and the battleground is normally the mind and the heart. 2 Corinthians 10:5 instructs us to take “every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” In other words, we or to think like Christ if we are to live in the light. The scripture is abundantly clear that we have been given a new heart and a new mind; but we must make the choice to live out of our new heart and new mind. The battle is practically won when we realize deep within that we have been made new; that we are in Christ; that we now have the mind of Christ; that we are in the light as He is in the light; that we have been fully equipped to live life as an overcomer. So, let us not allow darkness of any degree rule in our lives; but let us be the children of light that we are. And, don’t forget the barking, growling dog-be quick to chase away any darkness that tries to set one foot in your yard!
Ephesians 5:8-10: “for you were formally darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light (for the fruit of light consist in all goodness and righteousness and truth), trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord.”
John 8:12: “Again therefore Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life.’”
Blessings, Buddy
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