Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not grasp it

John 1:1-28 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was in the beginning with God. ³ All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him not even one thing came into being that has come into being. ⁴ In Him was life, and the life was the Light of mankind. ⁵ And the Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not grasp it.

⁶ A man came, one sent from God, and his name was John. ⁷ He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him. ⁸ He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light.

⁹ This was the true Light that, coming into the world, enlightens every person. ¹⁰ He was in the world, and the world came into being through Him, and yet the world did not know Him. ¹¹ He came to His own, and His own people did not accept Him. ¹² But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name, ¹³ who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of a man, but of God.

¹⁴ And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us; and we saw His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. ¹⁵ John testified about Him and called out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who is coming after me has proved to be my superior, because He existed before me.’” ¹⁶ For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. ¹⁷ For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. ¹⁸ No one has seen God at any time; God the only Son, who is in the arms of the Father, He has explained Him.

¹⁹ This is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites to him from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” ²⁰ And he confessed and did not deny; and this is what he confessed: “I am not the Christ.” ²¹ And so they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” And he said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” ²² Then they said to him, “Who are you? Tell us, so that we may give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” ²³ He said, “I am the voice of one calling out in the wilderness, ‘Make the way of the Lord straight,’ as Isaiah the prophet said.”

²⁴ And the messengers had been sent from the Pharisees. ²⁵ They asked him, and said to him, “Why then are you baptizing, if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” ²⁶ John answered them, saying, “I baptize in water, but among you stands One whom you do not know. ²⁷ It is He who comes after me, of whom I am not worthy even to untie the strap of His sandal.” ²⁸ These things took place in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing people.

Today’s text says: 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 came into being through Him, and apart from Him not even one thing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of mankind. And the Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not grasp it… This was the true Light that, coming into the world, enlightens every person. He was in the world, and the world came into being through Him, and yet the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own people did not accept Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of a man, but of God. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us; and we saw His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. It is no wonder that we see increasing darkness in our society and culture today. They have rejected the Word and so they cannot grasp the true Light. They have rejected His grace and truth. In Matthew 7:1-2 Jesus says: “Do not judge, so that you will not be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you.” Having rejected grace and truth, they judge and will be judged by their own standard.  They believe they are enlightened but in truth they have become darkened.

The text says: A man came, one sent from God, and his name was John. He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light… This is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites to him from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” And he confessed and did not deny; and this is what he confessed: “I am not the Christ.” And so they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” And he said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” Then they said to him, “Who are you? Tell us, so that we may give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” He said, “I am the voice of one calling out in the wilderness, ‘Make the way of the Lord straight,’ as Isaiah the prophet said.” John came as a witness sent from God, to testify about the Light. He came to prepare the way for the coming Christ. In Acts 1:8 Jesus says: “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and Samaria, and as far as the remotest part of the earth.”  We are to testify of Christ, that He is as He says in Revelation 1:8 “…the Alpha and the Omega, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” We too have been sent by God.  We are to be voices calling out in the chaos of the world, preparing the way for His coming. Our testimony though is more than about the Light. In Matthew 5:14-16 Jesus says: “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Your light must shine before people in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” Our greatest testimony of Christ is not what we say, but rather it is His Light shining in us and through us, that they may see His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Kathy Troccoli- Go light your world (Lyrics) - YouTube

Amen