Look to God’s light

Look to God’s light

Let us read Matthew 6:22–23, John 8:12
22 “Your eye is like a lamp that provides light for your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is filled with light.
23 But when your eye is unhealthy, your whole body is filled with darkness. And if the light you think you have is actually darkness, how deep that darkness is! (Matthew 6:22-23)

12 Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.” (John 8:12)

In the chapter 6 of Matthew, Jesus continues his teaching on the Mount. He calls his listeners to give to the needy with a pure motive to please God and out of love only, and not to be seen and acclaimed. He also teaches about prayer, fasting, relationship with material possessions and money, encourages to seek the Kingdom of God and his righteousness first and not to worry about anything else.

And among these many teachings, there is this passage about the eye (eyesight) and light. Let us consider this passage together. In the preceding paragraph, Jesus talks about wealth and storing treasures in heaven and in the paragraph that follows, he talks about one’s devotion to either God or money. Why then talk about the eye in between? What if Jesus wanted his listeners to think about the way they look at things? Were they looking with a heavenly perspective or with a worldly one? When we look at things in a worldly perspective, with unhealthy eyes, we become ungenerous and are blinded by greed (a form of idolatry), by people’s acclaim and prestige, by worry of not having enough and we lose sight of God. Most importantly, we lose sight of the light because we focus too much on the dark.

In a much similar way, our days are dark. We will not name all the things that are not right around us but once again, Jesus invites us to change our focus. He teaches us to look with healthy eyes at the bright side of things, not in a carefree manner, but more with the assurance that God is who he says he is. God is good and nothing is impossible to him. He invites us to re read his Word and to believe that what it says is still true for us today.

Jesus, who healed lepers, forgave a woman for adultery, sat with the unwanted and unloved, is the same today. He still cares, he still loves, he is still present and more so by the power of his Holy Spirit. In our impossible situations, Jesus is there. Look to him and like we were encouraged to, wait on him and we will not have to walk into darkness. Cry out to him and expect him to act beyond our understanding. Thank him already for what he is doing and will do.

This is countercultural but is biblical. It is illogical but is powerful. Looking to Jesus, the light of the world, and not to darkness, removes any authority from the world and the enemy and gives it entirely to God.

Personal action
This week, I choose to look at my situation with God’s light and focus on him.

Prayer
Lord, it has been dark for so long on some of my situations. Come and shine your light in my life. Touch me and make me understand that you are there working even when I do not feel or see it. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.