All depends on the light...

Today's Thought:

John 8:12, "When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

You saw it around every corner of Facebook, but could there be a deeper truth behind "the dress?". A recent cellphone snapshot of a dress went viral in the last week of February, going crazy on social media, and even being picked up by huge global news outlets like the BBC and The New York Times. 

The controversy that drew in celebrities and senators, "melting the internet" was simple at first—was "the dress" blue and black, or white and gold? A simple question, but one that quickly divided the globe. (White and gold won in the polls, but in reality the dress in question is blue and black.) 

Even scientists couldn't agree on the phenomenon of vision that caused such stark visual differences. The consensus now, though is that how we perceive the color of the dress is much more related to how our minds process the "meaning" of the surrounding light—the calculations that our brains make to judge the effect that light has on color can create an optical illusion, in this case, fooling the tens of millions of people who saw the blue and black dress as white and gold. It's a bit like how the way that we interpret the light of Jesus makes all the difference for how we judge and value everything else. If we understand the light, we can see things as they really are (this is, as Christ taught, a minority). But if we don't understand the light, black can look white. Just like #thedress.

For the ancient Jews light was an ultimate ideal. For the Jews, light was a metaphor for truth and understanding that leads to life. That's why the Psalmist wrote, "Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path" (Psalm 119:105). So, when John wanted to describe the coming of the truth, Jesus Christ, he said, "In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." Jesus himself used the metaphor often. He said, "I am the light of the world." Jesus is the truth and understanding that leads to life. By His light we see. Without His light we are blind to the truth. This is the understanding of what Jesus said of the Pharisees, the religious leaders of His day, "Leave them; they are blind guides. If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit" (Matthew 15:14). All depends of the Light.

What do you see? Blue and black or white and gold? Which is the truth and which is a lie? To know you must have the right light.

1 Peter 2:9, "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."

Prayer: Our Father we thank you that though we once walked in darkness your glorious light has shinned into our dark hearts to change how we see everything in our world. We thank you that, "if we walk in the light, as [You are] in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, [Your] Son, purifies us from all sin" (1 John 1:7). We praise You for the glorious light, the true understanding and eternal life in Jesus, our Savior, in whose name we pray, amen.

Watch me!

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Today's thought:

Matthew 5:14-16, "You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven."

Christians are meant to be seen. Many of us would rather not be but God creates us as His banner proclaiming His existence, power and amazing grace. As we follow the precepts of Christ, following him by the power of the Holy Spirit, our lives become a beacon, a lighthouse that shows there is more in our lives than meets the eye.

But we can hide that light, put it under a basket. We do that when we retreat from the world, disengage from the people around us. The light is still there but it is confined by the walls of our Church or our comfortable protected lives of faith. This passage is a call to evangelism but not the spoken kind. The first evangelism is always evangelism of sight. It is evangelism of the eye. It is what can be seen in us.

This leaves us with an important question. Could someone come to know God and his truth simply by watching our lives? If someone wants to know Jesus could you say to them, "watch me"?

As an under-graduate, theologian/author D.A. Carson co-led an evangelistic Bible study. He confessed that whenever he felt out of his depths, he would take skeptics and doubters to a bold witness on campus named Dave. On one such occasion, a young man who was brought to Dave said, "I came from a family that doesn't believe in a literal resurrection and all that stuff. That's a bit much for us. But we're a fine family—a good, church-going family. We love each other, care for each other, and we do good in the community. We're a stable family. So what have you got that we don't have?"

Dave looked at the young man and said, "Watch me. Move in with me. I have an extra bed. Just follow me around. You see how I behave, what's important to me, what I do with my time, the way I talk. You watch me, and at the end of three months you tell me there's no difference."

The young man didn't take Dave up on that offer, but he did keep coming back to watch how Dave lived his Christian life. Eventually the young man came to Christ and went on to become a medical missionary. Carson concluded what he learned from Dave's challenge:

"A Christian is saying in effect: "I'm one poor beggar telling another poor beggar where there's bread. I drank deeply from the wellsprings of grace. God knows I need more of it. If you watch me you'll see some glimmerings of the Savior, and ultimately you'll want to fasten on him. Watch me."" [Van Morris, Mt. Washington, Kentucky; source: Based on D.A. Carson's sermon titled "Biblical Authority: The Exclusive Authority of Scripture for Faith and Practice" (2008)]

Prayer: Our Father, we are amazed by how You work in us changing us to be like You. Help us to radiate Your presence by our love to others. May others look at us and see You working in and through us. Thank you that we may participate in this great Gospel You have given us. In Jesus name, amen.

The elephant and the light...

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Today's thought:

Hebrews 1:1-2, "In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe."

Do you remember the famous story about the six blind men and the elephant? One blind man touches the belly of the animal and thinks it's a wall. Another grabs the elephant's ear and thinks he's touching a fan. A third blind man touches the tail and thinks he's holding a rope. On they go, each grabbing a part of the elephant without any one of them knowing what it is they really feel.

What's the point of the story? We are all blind men when it comes to God. We know part of him, but we don't know really know who he is, we are all just grasping in the dark, thinking we know more than we do.

But there are two major problems with this analogy. First, the whole story is told from the vantage point of someone who clearly knows that the elephant is an elephant. For the story to make its point, the narrator has to have clear and accurate knowledge of the elephant. The second flaw with this story is even more serious. The story is a perfectly good description of human inability to know God by our own devices. But the story never considers this paradigm-shattering question: What if the elephant talks? What if he tells the blind men: "That wall-like structure is my side. That fan is really my ear. And that's not a rope; it's a tail." If the elephant were to say all this, would the six blind me be considered humble for ignoring his word?

God has spoken. To ignore or neglect His words is like a man dying of thirst in the desert, coming upon and oasis with a clear running stream, and passing on. When I read one of my favorite books like "Mere Christianity," by CS Lewis, something almost mystical is happening. The thoughts of a man now long gone are living in my mind. I am thinking his thoughts after him. When I pick up my Bible and begin to read I am thinking the very thoughts of the infinite Mind after Him. This is the power of the written word. It has the power to transform our thoughts and influence our minds for good or evil. When those thoughts are God's thoughts they have the power to save (Romans 10:17), to sanctify or make holy (John 17:17), to transform (Hebrews 4:12), and to bless our lives as James tells us in James 1:22-25, "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do."

Can such a little thing as reading a book really make a difference in my life? Yes! A life transforming difference. If your new to Bible reading start with the book of John in the New Testament. Then read it asking God to reveal Himself through those words. He will! Read it. Do it. Be blessed in all you do. "Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path" (Psalm 119:105). May the path before you be revealed by the light of His word.

Prayer: Father, You could have been distant but You came near. Your Word came to heal us, forgive us, save us, and change us. We thank You and praise You for the Word, Your Son Jesus, and Your word, the Bible. What a privilege to think Your thoughts after You. May we not just hear but also do. In Jesus name, amen.