Darkness and Light

Today will be a dark day in Manchester, as the first funeral of the murdered police officers takes place in the Cathedral. Tomorrow will bring the darkness closer still. 

The disappearance of April Jones has brought deep darkness to the family and those closest to this little girl.

Again and again, we look around the world, or in our neighbourhoods, and sometimes into our own hearts, and see a heart of darkness. 

And then we wonder 'where is God?', or 'why doesn't somebody do something?'

As the days grow shorter and the nights longer, and darkness begins to rule our lives, we need to have answers for these questions.

The Bible is shot through with the battle between darkness and light, and at times we may wonder why darkness is so overwhelming.

In the Psalms, many appear to experience life in the shadows, and people cry out to the Lord in their hopelessness. Psalm 88 is the bleakest of all, and it ends with appalling resignation. 

'I have been sick and close to death since my youth. I stand helpless and desperate before your terrors.  

Your fierce anger has overwhelmed me. Your terrors have paralysed me.
¹⁷ They swirl around me like floodwaters all day long. They have engulfed me completely.
¹⁸ You have taken away my companions and loved ones. Darkness is my closest friend.' (Psalm 88.15-18)

John's Gospel opens with a statement about these opposing destinies. 'The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.' (John 1.4-5) This at last brings us hope, when the lights are being dowsed.

But the relationship between these two destinies is complex, as Jesus reveals. '“There is no judgement against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. And the judgement is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.” (John 3.18-21)

Because light brings exposure, we often withdraw, as we fear being seen for what we are. But God's light will bring life and healing for all that has been amiss. In his mercy, people's lives are turned round, and new directions discovered. 

My prayer is that we will all be changed by God love and light, so that we may carry that light to others.

Best wishes,

Richard