Let There Be Light

The story of how God made the earth is also the story of how God makes a life. It begins in the most unpromising way imaginable.

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

Genesis 1:1-3

When God first showed up on the scene, the earth was without form and void. One paraphrase describes it as a soup of nothingness, a bottomless emptiness, an inky blackness. Can you imagine that description for the glorious earth we behold today, with its majestic mountains, its clear blue oceans, its peaceful skies filled with birds?

If someone had passed by the earth at the very beginning, before God moved, they would never have imagined that snow-capped mountains kissing a clear blue sky, or thundering waterfalls, or every living creature that now walks the earth, could ever come out of such emptiness. No one would have guessed that a planet written off as worthless was about to become the most beautiful place in creation.

A passage of hope

This is why the very first verses of the Bible are a passage of hope. Yes, the earth was in great disrepair. Notice that Scripture never even explains why. But here is the point: it was not beyond repair and restoration. And that means no matter how bad things may be, no matter how written off a situation may seem, none of that has the final word if God shows up.

Friend, I want to tell you that your circumstance is not beyond repair, because God has shown up in it. Your finances are not beyond repair. Your health is not beyond repair. Your home is not beyond repair. Your business is not beyond repair. Your life is not beyond repair. In the mighty name of Jesus.

Two things that changed everything

Two things happened that changed everything for planet earth, and they are the same two things that change everything for a human life.

The first was the manifestation of the supernatural power of God. The Bible says the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. Before anything was fixed, the Spirit was already brooding over the chaos. The second was the illumination of God's light: And God said, let there be light. Evil, confusion, and emptiness thrive in the abyss of darkness. But when God turned on his light, that marked the beginning of the earth's turnaround.

The formlessness and the emptiness did not vanish instantly. But now not only was the power to fix things present; the light had come to expose everything that needed to be fixed and to show exactly how it would be fixed. No matter how formless the situation, no matter how deep the emptiness, no matter how dark the blackness, when it comes under the supernatural power of God and the enlightenment of his wisdom, that situation cannot remain the same. It is bound to change for the better, forever.

Do not miss the order of it. The Spirit moved first, brooding over the waters while everything still looked hopeless. That is often how God works in a life: long before you see any change, his Spirit is already at work over your chaos. And the Bible says God is able to do exceedingly, abundantly above all we could ask or think, according to the power that works in us. Not merely according to the power God has, but according to the power that works in us, to the extent we yield ourselves to his Spirit. So the invitation is to give the Spirit more room, and to expect more of his power at work.

Where the light comes from

So where does the light come from? How do we receive light in the midst of our own darkness and emptiness? Do we rely on some dramatic supernatural experience, some vision, some extraordinary encounter? No, my friend. The light comes from the written word of God.

Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

Psalm 119:105

The commandment of God is a lamp, and his law is a light, says Proverbs. And John opens his Gospel by telling us that in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was God, and in him was life, and the life was the light of men. That light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has never been able to put it out.

Even the apostle Peter, who had stood on the mountain and seen Jesus transfigured and heard a voice from heaven, pointed us to something even more certain than his own experience.

We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts.

2 Peter 1:19

That is remarkable. Peter had a miraculous experience, yet he says the Scriptures are even more sure than what he saw and heard. So hold on to the word until it breaks forth as light in the dark place of your life. Keep looking at it, keep believing it, do not move from it. And sooner than later it will burst upon you like the dawn, like the day star rising in your heart.

Look into the mirror and stay there

James gives us a practical picture of how the word does its work. He says a person who hears the word but does not act on it is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and then walks away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the one who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, being not a forgetful hearer but a doer, will be blessed in what he does.

None of us has ever seen our own face directly. We rely on a mirror. No matter how we feel or what we think, we go by what the mirror tells us. James is saying: let the word of God be the mirror that tells you who you really are. If a person does not forget what the mirror says but lives in line with it, that person will be blessed.

So decide today to stick with what the mirror of God's word says about you, not what you feel about yourself, not what others think of you. The mirror says you are the apple of God's eye. The mirror says you are a sinner whom the Lord has declared righteous. The mirror says he loves you with an everlasting love and will never turn his anger against you. Hold on to that word until his light shines upon your darkness.

Arise and shine

Physical darkness is a terrible thing. When a room is dark, unless someone turns on the light, you will trip and stumble and hurt yourself. If physical darkness is that dangerous, how much more spiritual and mental darkness? That is why the Lord has called us to arise and shine, for our light has come. Gross darkness may cover the earth, but the promise is that the nations shall walk in your light.

Tonight your life, your family, your children, your finances, your health, everything that concerns you, is coming not only under the supernatural power of God but also under the magnificent light of his word. Out of the soup of nothingness and the inky blackness of your life, God is able to bring a bright and glorious future, a future that will bring honor and praise to his name.

So begin to bless the Lord, because it is not over for you. Say to him, Lord, let your light shine upon my heart. Let the eyes of my understanding be enlightened. Where there is darkness, let your light shine; where there is confusion, give me a sound and clear mind. Every ignorance, every darkness that breeds more darkness, let the light of your word bring illumination. God said, Let there be light, and there was light. He is saying it over your life right now.