A person is usually identified with his outward appearance and his possessions, while what is inside of him and his behaviour towards others usually gets ignored. The real way for this would actually be his ways and deeds that would reveal the truth about him. A person walking and living in darkness or evil would try to hide behind a façade while the other who lives righteously hides his works due to humility. But God knows it all and judges accordingly.
What is the true meaning of darkness? As per Scripture, ‘In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth’ (Genesis 1:1-4). Before further works of creation could proceed, ‘darkness was on the face of the earth’. The smooth conduct of the process could only start after God commanded, ‘Let there be light’. God appreciated the goodness of light and ‘God separated light from the darkness’. Once light appeared, darkness should have automatically gotten removed but that did not happen and in God’s sight only light was ‘good’. Thus, darkness has a different identity and is not considered good as compared to light.
What is the origin and identity of this darkness, so that we can understand its effect also? While revealing the true identity of Lord Jesus, Apostle John termed Him as ‘the Word’ who was with God from the beginning (John 1:1-4). The whole creation process was conducted through Him, ‘and without Him nothing was made that was made’. To further confirm this, we are told, ‘In Him was life, and life was the light of men’. Till God released the power of His Word by saying, ‘Let there be’, nothing happened and the state of the earth was ‘formless and void’. Since darkness was already there, this emptiness of the earth could be due to its presence. Before this, God created the heavens with their own materials which revealed only the ‘light of God’s presence’, for God was and remains present there.
Once the Kingdom of God is established on the earth, there will be no need for the sun and the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb (the Son of God) is its light’ (Revelation 21:23). The light that appeared at God’s command on the earth ‘in the beginning’ was the same light of ‘The Lamb’ who is the Creator of everything. Since in Him is life, everything that exists is ‘of Him and through Him and to Him’ (Romans 11:36). In heaven all that was created reveals His glory and in heaven angels were created with Lucifer, Gabriel and Michael as the Archangels. Lucifer as worship leader tried to be like God and sought the angels to worship him and he was ‘cast to the ground’ (Ezekiel 28:17). Once removed from heaven, the glory that he had in the presence of God was lost and he became darkness.
The words of entrapment to Eve by the serpent, the devil’s agent, were about the effect or eating of the fruit of the ‘tree of knowledge of good and evil’ (Genesis 3:5). That her eyes will be opened and ‘you will be like God’, the same result that he himself expected from his rebellion in heaven. Just like the devil was removed from his high state in heaven, Adam and Eve were also removed from the Garden of Eden and denied access to the ‘tree of life’. Darkness was separated from the light and so were Adam and Eve and all of mankind in them. Darkness is the state of absence of glory of God. Since God is light, away from Him is darkness for both cannot be together.
As per the Jewish mystics, the initiation of the creation process was a little different from what is revealed in the Scripture. In the beginning God was over all the space that exists and nothing can be added to Him, for creation to take place, He decided to retract His Divine glory. An emptiness was thus created and, in the beginning, God released a ‘Beam of His Divine Glory’ into that. We see that light as the Son of God for, ‘by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him’ (Colossians 1:16 & 19). Since He has this great role of Creator, Sustainer and Redeemer of all things, ‘it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell’. Adam and Eve and with that all of mankind were supposed to be partakers of that light emanating from God and reflect that onto all other living beings. In this way the authority of God was to be used for ‘caring for and upkeep’ of all that God had created and Adam was to dominate and subdue.
Since Satan was clothed with absolute darkness after being removed from God’s presence, he desired to receive that light from God. He had no way to do this except to steal it from Adam and Eve through deceit. He could not have any sort of dominion rights in heaven but stole that from Adam on earth. He steals the power of glory from individuals through deception and falsehood. He attempted the same with the Son of God in the wilderness through deceit but failed to stand against the ‘Power of the Word of God’ in His Son. The devil is darkness and all his works are of and performed in the same state. After their sin Adam and Eve were ashamed of their state and tried to cover themselves with tree leaves (Genesis 3:7-9). This also brought fear of being found out and the tried to hide from the All-knowing God. They did not feel any shame nor fear of anyone else in their sinless state earlier (Genesis 2:25). Darkness causes fear and shame for the fact that all such acts cannot be exposed before others. But once darkness fills every aspect of people’s lives, this sense of fear and shame also disappears, as it is in the present society. In the end times when Satan’s agent the Antichrist will be present on the earth, this will be more so.
How to escape darkness – Lord Jesus taught about the comparison between His ways and of the devil, ‘(He) does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of lies’ (John 8:43-44). All lies start from him and he does not have to look anywhere else for this. The entire conversation with Eve in the Garden of Eden is about lies only (Genesis 3:1-5). Those who follow him identify with his ways and fully live as per his image. The one who thus links himself willingly to darkness is overwhelmed by darkness completely and seeks no way out. As per psychologists, a person who has been kidnapped, after sometime, starts finding his own life so aligned with the kidnapper, that those who try to rescue seem like enemies. The Israelites suffered greatly under the brutal control of the Egyptians over them and God rescued them with great wonders and miracles. Yet after some time on the way, they started complaining by saying, ‘we remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions and the garlic’ (Numbers 11:5). They identified so much with Egypt and not with the Promised Land, that even the slavery in Egypt seemed better. They even started planning to ‘select a leader and return to Egypt’ (Numbers 14:4). In his sinful state and living in perpetual darkness, one finally accepts that as his fate and except with occasional flapping, continues as it is.
God is truth and, in His absence, there are lies and a false narrative is created to glorify the one who is away and disconnected from God. The serpent, along with ‘every living thing that moves on the earth’, was put under the control of Adam (Genesis 1:28). Despite that the devil could manipulate it to reach out and deceive Eve to lead her into the sin of disobedience to God. In like manner, Eve was supposed to be Adam’s ‘helpmeet’, his guide, companion and strength, yet she decided to be away from him and converse with the serpent. The devil and his agents, the demonic spirits have no authority over anyone, despite our inherent nature to do evil, that Adam and Eve passed on to all mankind. As an interim measure God provided a temporary measure, which was an imitation of the final, a procedure of offering animal sacrifices through Moses. These offerings were repeated year after year and at the commission of some grievous sin to seek forgiveness from God.
An animal cannot be a real substitute for the death of a human being, that was the result of sin. It is to rescue such people from their darkness and lead them into light, ‘the Son of God, the Light of the world’ came. Lord Jesus told us all who believe, ‘you did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you’ (John 15:16). We could not have turned to Him from our darkness, for in our fallen state, even the ray of light would appear to be an illusion. Lord Jesus is the light that ‘shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it’ (John 1:5 & 9). However, from the beginning of creation, He is ‘the true light which gives light to every man coming into the world’. This light that He gives is the breath that was breathed into Adam at his creation.
Apostle Paul as Saul, before his conversion, was a Pharisee who persecuted the Christians. In hindsight, he could see the reason as being from the devil and he could say, ‘whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them’ (2 Corinthians 4:4). Since no one can save himself from this darkness, God sent His Son, ‘to seek and save that which was lost’ (Luke 19:10). He brings one out, inhabits him to guide, and sustains to walk in His ways of light and not revert back into darkness. In His love He picks up the fallen and trains them in grace and compassion to walk in His way.
Symptoms of those who walk in the Light – Apostle Paul advised all believers, ‘now you are light in the world. Walk as children of light’ (Ephesians 5:8-21). The moon reflects the light of the sun, but a milder and softer version of the light of the day, since it has no light of its own. We, as children of light, must reflect the life of ‘the Light’, the Son of God in all aspects. The sign is the fruit of the Holy Spirit in goodness, righteousness and truth, which must be visible in all our dealings with all who come in contact with us. Also under the guidance of the same Spirit and through meditating on the Word of God ‘find out what is acceptable to the Lord’ and do that. A child of light is blessed with the presence of the indwelling Holy Spirit and is being transformed into the ‘image and likeness’ of Lord Jesus. However, the full and final change will occur once one reaches His Divine presence. Behaviour of such a person must reflect ‘love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control’ (Galatians 5:22-23).
On the other side, the consolidated list of works of evil and darkness has the ‘cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars’ and all these will suffer ‘second death’ (Revelation 21:8). Such will suffer hell-fires for eternity with no respite.
In this state of mankind where everyone is born with an inherent nature to do evil, without being taught, only the One who initially was revealed on the earth as light, can lead one to freedom. Apostle Paul, spoke in agreement with Apostle John, who wrote his Gospel account almost forty years later. As per both, Lord Jesus, the Living Word, ‘is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation’ (Colossians 1:15). Before anything could come into existence, the Creator had to be revealed and so it is at the time of re-creation of mankind, through the sacrifice of the Redeemer on the cross. He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love’ (Colossians 1:13). God the Father and His Son have already finished their part in deliverance and now it is up to mankind to receive and walk in the light.
Our life patterns emerge from the mind, as our thoughts, over a period of time turn into desires and then into habits. Most people are more concerned with what they eat with rarely any care for what is entering their minds. A family or a community that has abnormality of behaviour in its members must assess their source of entertainment. Apostle Paul warns us about the day of Judgement, which is fast approaching, with a strict warning. We must, ‘cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light’ (Romans 13:12-14). We put on the ‘armour’, for the forces of darkness will not let us escape that easily and will keep on tempting us back. Finally, we must ‘put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh to fulfil its lusts’. The dress we put on urges us to behave in a like manner; a clown’s dress to behave in a silly manner, dress in a business suit and one walks in an orderly manner. Putting on Lord Jesus is to learn about Him from the Word of God, adopt His ways and live accordingly.
Darkness has great power to pull back into its fold all those who walk away from it, but the power of the Holy Spirit in us is much greater and so is the power of the ‘Blood of Lord Jesus Christ’ that was shed for us. Surrender to His power and let Him guide you in His ways.
An actor puts on the clothes suited to his role at that moment, but these clothes do not define his life or identity. Many people get so involved in their role, that they start identifying themselves with that only. All believers are made citizens of heaven by the blood of Lord Jesus Christ and are required to walk and live as that and not as per the ways of this world. This transformation does not happen suddenly but is the result of diligent hard work all the time on the earth. Our Lord and His spirit recognise such efforts and strengthen the ones who sacrifice. We must seek strength from the Lord and follow that path.
