A Light in the Darkness

A couple of years ago the kids and I did a brief study of the life of Benjamin Franklin, and we were appropriately awed by his many inventions (bifocals, swim fins, the odometer, the lightning rod and the Franklin stove, to name a few) and his contributions to civic life: he established the first library, hospital, fire brigade and insurance company, as well as many other organizations and creature comforts that we so often take for granted in our society.

Recently I came across a little kernel of information I had not previously heard. According to what I read, near the first part of the 18th century Benjamin Franklin wanted to beautify the streets of Philadelphia and make the city safer for its citizens, and he decided that one way to bring this about was to install gas lanterns. This much I knew, but what I did not know was that Franklin declined to send around a petition to the citizens of Philadelphia, asking for their support of his proposal. He didn’t bother to go down to City Hall and get a permit to put a lantern in his yard. Instead, Franklin allegedly bought a rather large, ornate lantern and mounted it in front of his home. He took meticulous care of the lantern and dutifully illuminated the flame each evening, providing a glimmering, shimmery light to his residence.

It didn’t take long for the neighbors to notice the difference at the Franklin home, and before long the street was filled with the luminous glow of incandescent light. No threats, no coercion, no bullying tactics—he was a light in his community simply by his example.

As Christians, we are surrounded by darkness. We look around and see death and destruction, abuse and neglect, evil and sin. Some days we read the morning headlines and want to bury our heads under the covers to block out the bad news that bombards us. But make no mistake, as children of God we are not called to close our eyes to the darkness around us. Rather, we are called to bring light to the darkness. Jesus tells us in Matthew 5:14-16, “You are the light of the world. A city 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 men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

What does that mean for us today? How can we bring light to the darkness? First, we need to immerse ourselves in God’s word. We can’t share the Good News if we don’t know what that News is. And as Matt. 5:15 tells us, we can’t hide our light under a bowl by keeping the News to ourselves. We bring light to the world when we share the hope and the promise that we have in Christ Jesus with our friends, our neighbors, our co-workers and our community. We bring light to the world when we are patient when others are not, when we sacrifice our time to help others, when we love the unlovable, when we hold fast to our faith even in the midst of doubt.

Yes, we live in a fallen world where the darkness pervades every facet of our life; but if we are walking with God, we are filled with His light and we reflect that light to everyone around us.

God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 1 John 1:5