Thursday, August 25, 2016

Darkness Will Not—CANNOT Comprehend His Light



Darkness Will Not—CANNOT                     
                 Comprehend His Light

Do you ever feel like there’s lots of darkness in our world?
It often seems like we’re surrounded by darkness and sometimes that it’s closing in. Doesn’t it?

Notice, I said “seems like.” Seems like is not the reality for those of us who are in Christ. Yes, there’s a lot of darkness out there. But we don’t have to let it penetrate. Let’s never forget the encouraging words of the apostle, John.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing that was made was made. In Him was life and the life was the light of men. And the Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it” (John 1:1-5 NKJV).

We who are in Christ have Christ in us. Therefore, His light is in us and cannot be overpowered by darkness. (Read those two sentences again.)

Look at the word used here in the New King James Version in verse 5—comprehend. “And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” Other translations use such words as overcome and understand. 

According to Strong’s (#2638), comprehend, katalambano (kat-al-am-ban-oh), has three interpretations:
1- To seize, lay hold of, overcome. As such, verse 5 could read, “The darkness could not gain control of it.”
2- To perceive, attain, lay hold of with the mind; to apprehend with mental or moral effort. As such, verse 5 could read, “The darkness is unreceptive and does not understand it.” [WOW! We could camp out there for a while because lost people cannot understand why we think the way we think and do the things we do.]
3- To quench, extinguish, snuff out the light by stifling it. With this, verse 5 could read, “The darkness will never be able to eliminate it.”*

SO—
“Light and darkness essentially are antagonistic. The Christian’s joy is in knowing that light is not only greater than darkness but will also outlast the darkness.”*

Therefore—
As we are very aware of the many facets of darkness, both near and far, we must guard against allowing it to penetrate us. And we have the means by which to do so.
We have the full armor of God—it’s our responsibility to wear it and wield it.
We have the Holy Spirit—each of us has the responsibility of giving Him full access to our spirit and soul.

I’d like to close with these words from Isaiah:

Then they will look to the earth, and see trouble and darkness, gloom of anguish; and they will be driven into darkness.
 

Nevertheless the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed, ...
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined.
You have multiplied the nation and increased its joy; They rejoice before You according to the joy of harvest, as men rejoice when they divide the spoil.
For You have broken the yoke of his burden and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, as in the day of Midian.
For every warrior’s sandal from the noisy battle, and garments rolled in blood, will be used for burning and fuel of fire.
For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.  –Isaiah 8:22; 9:1a, 2-7

In the midst of widespread darkness, let us not forget that we once walked in darkness but we have seen a great Light—for unto us a Child is born. He is the Light which no darkness can comprehend in any sense of the word. Hallelujah! –Amen.

Your comments are welcome.

*Spirit Filled Life Bible, Thomas Nelson Publishing, Word Wealth, p 1573
©Connie Wohlford 2016

Thursday, August 18, 2016

Alone in the DARK



Alone in the DARK                                              

We were born into sin. 

That’s what Psalm 51:5 says. Ugh! 

Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me. -Psalm 51:5

Its author, King David, had acknowledged his own sin with Bathsheba and was recognizing our propensity to sin, even with the first intake of oxygen into our tiny lungs. We’re also reminded that Adam and Eve’s original sin brought about the curse of pain in childbirth. So in sin we were born and into a sin darkened world we arrived.

That was our pathetic beginning—each one of us.

But our Creator was not shocked by this dilemma nor was He content with our destructive situation—so He sent His Son. Jesus came to bring life and light and hope into a dark world and the hopeless state of mankind.

God didn’t just decide one day that he would reconcile the world. It was all planned out all along. 

The apostle, John, gives a glimpse of God’s redemptive plan with these words: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ... In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it” (John 1:1, 4 & 5).

Throughout John’s Gospel, he declares the work and the glory of Jesus the Christ so that all, through Him, might believe and have the life and light as well as the eternal destination of Heaven.


  

Are you alone in the dark? If you have not received Jesus as your personal Savior, your soul is in darkness.  
 
Step out into the light and walk in the Light by believing and receiving Jesus right now.

Photo by Mayur Gala - From UnSplash
Simply trust that Jesus is the only Son of God, just as the Bible says, and pray this prayer: Father God, I believe Jesus is Your only Son and that You sent Him to bring salvation to me. I receive Him now into my heart. I ask that You forgive me of my sins and help me live for You. In Jesus name—Amen. 

Praise God, for those who believe and receive His gift of Salvation today!

Thank you for stopping by my blog. Do stop in again next week for a continuation of God’s remedy for darkness. 

Please feel free to comment below.

©Connie Wohlford 2016

Wednesday, August 10, 2016

Days to Pray



Days to Pray

Last week my blog post focused on our need to pray for our government leaders and specifically for the upcoming elections.
I also mentioned the moral downward spiral we seem to be caught up in and cited the famous quote by the Frenchman, Alexis de Tocqueville: “America is great because she is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, she will cease to be great.” 

Today, I want to suggest a helpful website titled, “Intercessors for America.”   It contains a wealth of information, including prayer alerts, event information, prayer groups to join, and more. 

One of my favorite features is the “30 Ways to Pray for People in Authority.”  It gives 30 different brief prayers, using scripture passages as a guide for each one. We can repeat these month after month.

For instance, prayers #9-11, go as follows: “9. That they value and regard the Ten Commandments and the teachings of Christ. (Psalm 19:7-11, John 8:31-32) 10. That they respect and honor their own parents if living. (Ephesians 6:2-3) 11. That they respect authority and practice accountability. (Romans 13:1-7)” 

If you (or your church) are interested in additional information about this guide and the other features, simply go to the web address and find the link for “30 Ways to Pray for People in Authority.” It’s located under, “Prayer Guides and Resources.” Here is the website: ”http://www.ifapray.org/ .
No matter what country you live in, you can certainly pray these prayers. We’re all instructed to pray for those in authority wherever we live. 

In an article titled, “Praying for Those in Authority is a Biblical Command,” Franklin Graham wrote, ”Should we not be diligently praying that God would give our president, Congress and military leaders wisdom? Our senators and governors and council members need our prayers—even if they are not the candidates we voted for. ... When the Scripture says that the ‘kings heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of water’ (Proverbs 21:1), it means that a Sovereign God can turn the heart of a king at any time and in any way. If there are policies and platforms that don’t conform to biblical ethics, the intercession of Christians can be used in a powerful, transforming way.”*

We’ve heard it said that the US 2016 Presidential Election may be the most important ever. Here are some compelling reasons** to pray for the upcoming elections:
1. The Bible commands us to pray for those who are in leadership. This should certainly include those who are vying to become leaders.
2. Godly leaders can help slow the erosion of religious liberties in our land. This can provide an increased window of opportunity for the Church to pray and evangelize.
3. According to Scripture, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people” (Prov. 14:34, NASB). The selection of leaders who understand and lead according to God’s righteous standards can bring great blessing to a nation.
4. Scripture also says, “For lack of guidance a nation falls, but victory is won through many advisors” (Proverbs 11:14, NIV). The determination of who leads our nation will also determine who advises that leader and how we are guided.   

We only have 89 more days to pray for Election 2016.

Let’s just do it! 












 
©Connie Wohlford 2016