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Bruised and injured I lay on the ground
My adversaries advance, closing in for the kill
I pull my belt tight around my waist, secure my breastplate
I see their angry faces as they move closer
They taunt me with their screams, “Where is your God now?!”
I try to pull myself up, my feet ready with the gospel of peace
My bones and muscles ache from countless skirmishes
I can barely stand, as I try to get a glimpse of my enemy
In the advancing darkness I see a line of archers form
Flaming arrows pierce the sky as bowstrings snap
I stumble and fall, as I raise my shield in faith
My muscles strain to steady the shield as arrows impact
Yet no harm comes to me, the evil one’s intent is smothered
I adjust my helmet and pull out my sword from its sheath
“Give up!” The enemy shouts as they continue to pursue me
Again I pull myself up, this tired old warrior presses on
Armed with the word of God, I place my hope in the Lord
I take refuge in my God, my strength and my shield
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.”
⁃Ephesians 6:12-13 (NIV)
After Jesus died on the cross and was buried, before Jesus rose from the dead, the disciples were hiding out of fear they might meet the same fate. All they knew was that Jesus was gone. They had yet to experience his resurrection. This was a period of fear and doubt, the time between Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
To live without salvation through Christ is to be caught between Good Friday and Easter morning. It is an eternal darkness without the hope offered by the resurrection of Christ. It is a place of constant night with only the fading light of a man-made lamp to illuminate the way. It is a state of hopelessness without any chance of salvation from sin. Yet because of God’s love for us we do not have to remain trapped between Good Friday and Easter.
Salvation is ours through faith in Christ. This Easter embrace the hope of the resurrection. Leave behind doubt and disbelief and run with Peter to see the strips of linen lying in the empty tomb (Luke 24:12). Share the joy of the women who saw the risen Lord and ran to tell the disciples (Matt. 28:8). 1 Peter 1:8-9 tells us, “Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls (NIV).”
My prayer is that the dawn of this Easter morning will dissipate the darkness of night with the radiant light of the risen Lord. May we express the joy of our salvation with the proclamation, “He has risen!”
As I walked in the darkness
With a lone candle in my hand
I happened upon a haggard man
Stumbling as he wandered the land
When I neared he covered his face
My small light too bright to bear
I offered to help, show him the way
But he screamed he did not care
“There’s no need to stumble along,” I said
“No need to be lost in the night.
Let this lone light be your guide
This light will forever burn bright.”
But he rejected the eternal flame
Told me the darkness was alright
Then he turned and walked away
Stumbling along, lost in the night
But my care for him did not cease
I bowed and prayed he would see
Christ’s light releases the grip of darkness
And puts us on the path to be free
“God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.” – 1 John 1:5
It hit me the other night that darkness in this world is not static, that evil is continually on the move. That means our prayers are not a one-time event; our prayers must be constant, continually praying for the Spirit of God to drive out the darkness with His light. We must remember that if we are not vigilant in our prayers, darkness can get a toehold in our lives and the church.
I think this is what Paul is telling the church in 1 Thessalonians 5:12-20. Paul writes in verse 16-18, “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances.” This reminds us that if we lose our focus on Christ Jesus and start grumbling about our circumstances, we leave a door open for darkness to move into our lives and the church. In verses 12-15 he cautions the church to guard against things that cause division. He urges the church to “live in peace with each other” and to “be patient with everyone.”
Continual prayer helps us to focus on Jesus Christ and the blessings he gives us. Prayer helps us to turn someone’s offense into an avenue of reconciliation. Prayer helps us to stop divisive actions and gives us the courage to pursue peace-making. Continual prayer, particularly as a body of believers, helps to stop darkness from seeping into our lives and the church. That is why Paul tells the church in verses 21-22 to “hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil.” Our prayers help us to tap into the power of the Spirit of God so that the light continues to advance over darkness.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. – John 1:5
It is hard for us to comprehend what the earth was like before God created light. In his book Riding Rockets, Space Shuttle astronaut Mike Mullane described how from space, the earth is “framed in a pre-Genesis black.” He goes on to explain: “There is no blackness on Earth to compare… not the blackest night, the blackest cave, or the abysmal depths of any sea ” Since I never made it into space, the blackest cave was the closest experience I had to seeing pre-Genesis black.
When I was a kid, my mom and dad took us on a tour inside a deep cave at Mammoth Caves National Park in Kentucky. Deep in the bowels of the earth, the park ranger stopped us in an expansive part of the cave with a large vaulted ceiling. With a few minutes warning, he had the lights turned off so we could experience total darkness. Instantly we were thrown into the formless and empty darkness of Genesis 1:2.
When the lights went out, it was impossible to see anything. I had no way of knowing what was next to me or around me. There was no form, no definition to the space where I stood. Suddenly a light appeared. The ranger struck a single match and suddenly the entire area and everyone in it came into view. It was astounding how that single match suddenly separated us from the darkness.
In Genesis 1:3-4 God says. “Let there be light.” Like that single act of striking a match, his command separated the light from the darkness. He brought form and shape to the world. It is the same light we can bring to this dark world. In the darkness of life, Christ is light that pierces the darkness, separating the darkness from the light. Even when we are in the midst of the deepest darkness of life, we can trust the light of Christ to bring form and shape to the void of a seemingly hopeless situation.
