Just a little heads up. Today’s post is a bit more like a Bible study, which I don’t really do too much here, but stick with me! 

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The other day, I began reading the Bible from the beginning once again. Though I intended to read a solid chunk that first day, I failed to move past the second paragraph as I was astounded by new insights I hadn’t recognized before. I read,

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

Genesis 1:1-5

And then it hit me. God brings light into the darkness.

Now, I understand this is not news to most of us. It is a truth most of us have understood since our first days as Christ followers, but when reading Genesis the other day, I understood this truth more deeply than I ever had before.

Bringing light to darkness is something God did in the beginning, it’s what He’s done ever since, and it’s what He will continue to do throughout eternity. For the Light referred to is God, Himself.

Check this out. In Genesis, we see God create:

• light and dark, day and night on day one.
• a separation between the sky and the waters below on day two.
• a separation between land and sea as well as the plants of the earth on day three.

Yet, it wasn’t until day four that God created the sun, moon, and stars. 

Light was created before the sun. It was the Light of God that sustained the earth (including vegetation) before the sun’s creation, and it is His light that continues to sustain to this day.

After creation, came the fall of mankind which ushered in darkness, yet even then, God continued to cast away darkness by His mere presence.

When God’s people, enslaved by the Egyptians, cried out for freedom, it was God’s light that brought them out of their darkness. And as Moses led the Israelites to freedom in Exodus, we’re told God “went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light…” (13:21), and the pillar “did not depart from before the people” (13:22).

God’s light goes before us, leading the way in which we should go.

Despite being ruthlessly pursued by enemies, David––well acquainted with darkness––said, “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?” (Psalm 27:1).

God’s light brings courage in the midst of trouble.

Understanding that God’s ways were not his own, Job––greatly afflicted emotionally and physically––continued to take comfort in the Lord when he said, “[God] uncovers the deeps out of darkness and brings deep darkness to light“ (Job 12:22).

God’s light bring comfort and peace in our pain.

The prophet Isaiah continually called for God’s people to return to the Lord, saying “O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the Lord” (Isaiah 2:5), confidently proclaiming the Word of the Lord who said, “I will lead the blind in a way that they do not know, in paths that they have not known I will guide them. I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them” (Isaiah 42:16).

God’s light calls us to draw near and walk in His righteousness.

When Daniel was brought before the pagan king, the king said, “You are that Daniel…. I have heard of you that the spirit of the gods is in you, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found in you” (Daniel 5:13-14).

Time and again, throughout the Old Testament, we see God’s light shining in the midst of darkness. Yet, it isn’t until the birth of Jesus that we see God’s light fully.

Let’s turn to the Gospel of John (which is my favorite Gospel, by the way!), which begins by echoing the words of Genesis:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

John 1:1-5

Once again, God enters into creation as Light into the darkness. If we read a bit further, we see John was speaking of Jesus in this text. Here, John refers to Jesus as the Word, as God, and as the Light of the World. And in fact, Jesus confirms John’s assessment by saying, “I am the Light of the world. Whoever follows Me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12).

Darkness flees in the presence of Light.

And just as He’s always done, God brought Light to a dark world, but this time it was different. This time, He entered into our darkness. This time, He defeated darkness and came with an invitation to share in His Light. It was the presence of God, in human form, that ultimately called us “out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9). “For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6).

But it all began in the beginning when God shone His light upon His creation.