^“The Light shines on in the darkness, and the darkness did not understand it or overpower it or appropriate it or absorb it”

(John 1:5, AMP)

Jesus said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life" (John 8:12, NIV). That’s already an amazing promise! But Jesus also said, “You are the light of the world … let your light shine” (Matt. 5:14 &16, NIV).

How do we do that?!

In and of ourselves we cannot do it, of course – it is impossible. But God the Father has done it for us. He has swept us up into His Son and – in the process – He has flooded us with the light of Christ. We may not necessarily see it or feel it, but it is there, radiating within us and flowing out from us.

Light is the essence of our new, born-again nature. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus, God cut us free from the chains of darkness and lifted us out of our old-Adam life into a completely new realm of existence – into a realm of pure light. Scripture describes the specific outcome of this wondrous occurrence in these words: “He [God] … re-established us in the kingdom of his beloved Son, that is, in the kingdom of light” (Col. 1:13, PHILLIPS).

One of many amazing things about being endowed with the very light of Christ, is that His light is Uncreated Light. This can also be described as Creative Light (as opposed to created light; for example, the light of the sun is created. We know that the sun is an inferior source of light because it is temporary – not eternal. Look at this glorious verse describing the New Jerusalem (which represents the Kingdom of God): “The city has no need for the light of sun or moon, for the splendour of God fills it with light and its radiance is the Lamb” (Rev. 21:23, PHILLIPS). 

The radiance of Christ Himself indwells us and therefore we are hugely privileged to host and to release into the world the same the quality of light that He carries. It is awesome to meditate upon the following description of Jesus while, at the same time recalling His Presence within us and all around us: “He is the sole expression of the glory of God [the Light-being, the out-raying or radiance of the divine]” (Heb. 1:3, AMPC; brackets in original).

These are glorious and holy images to take into our prayers and meditations – in a very practical way. We can close our eyes, with focus and intention, and see Jesus out-raying His radiance into every cell of our bodies, bringing healing and new strength. We can see His Light bathing the different areas of our brains – our frontal lobes, our amygdala, our brain stem, and so forth, sanctifying and bringing peace to our memories, our nervous system and our thinking processes.

Then we, in turn, can impart that same Uncreated Light to people, circumstances and areas of the world that are so very much in need of the Light and Life of Christ. As we raise our hands into the atmosphere, in faith, or lay them physically upon someone, we can give thanks to God for the amazing privilege of being equipped to be a co-worker with Him, and to radiate His Light and His Life out into His beloved creation. 

By Ann Shakespeare 28 February 2023