Stephen spoke from 1 John 1:4-10 this morning about the light of God. Light can be dazzling and dominating, but it can also be subdued (think of candlelight and how this ‘sets the tone’ for romantic meals!) Sometimes dimmed lighting is necessary (eg to protect the tapestries in the stately home Stephen visited this week), but that makes it difficult to see the splendour and grandeur of the works on display.
In God, there is no darkness at all; He is light. Are we walking in the benefit of God’s light or do we have a dim vision, in shadow, of glory concealed? In a light box, different shades of colours are revealed more clearly and we see colour and light in all their fulness. How much of God’s light are we in? How many shades can we see?
God’s light illuminates the path we take (Ps 119:105) and enables us to walk through darkness (“when His lamp shone on my head…by His light I walked through darkness”, Job 29:3). We need to know God personally so that we can walk in the light, as He is in the light, and so that our fellowship with Him and others is untainted.