WHAT LIGHT?
On the first day of creation, in Genesis 1:4, God said, “Let there be light,” and instantly the whole world was aglow. But, where did that light come from? God did not create the great lights of the world - the sun, moon and stars until day 4, and it was only day 1. So, what lit up the world on the first day? People who study the Bible believe different things. Today we are going to focus on one answer, the one that says that it was God! He was the light that lit up the world on the first day.
GOD IS LIGHT
God tells us all throughout the Bible that He is light. Here are a few examples. In John 8:12 Jesus says, “I am the light of the world …” In John 1:9 Jesus is described as the “true light”. 1 John 1:5 declares, “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.”
But what is God telling us when He says that He is light? To understand this, let’s look at the meaning of the word, light.
WHAT IS LIGHT?
In our world and in the Bible light is and represents many things, and God is the Source of them all.
First, there’s the natural lights that God created, the sun, the moon and the stars. Second are the lights that man made from the things God made, like light bulbs and lamps. These are the lights that light up our homes, schools, offices, phones and computers - everything. These lights cut through the darkness to allow us to physically see things.
Light also represents everything that is good in the world, everything that is true, perfect and right. These things begin with God and come from God.
Next, light gives people the ability to know and understand something. This is when our minds and hearts believe and know that something is true. Have you ever heard of the expression, “The light came on in his head!”? That means that the person suddenly got an idea or understood something. The light was knowing.
The same way that physical light cuts through darkness to allow us to see physical things, spiritual light, God’s light, cuts through the darkness of sin to allow us to know and believe in God and all that He teaches us. In other words, God’s spiritual light opens our minds to understand and know what He wants us to know. We’ll learn more about this in a moment.
WHAT IS DARKNESS?
Now that we know what light is, let’s define darkness. Darkness is the absence of light. No light.
Have you ever heard the expression “in the dark”. It usually refers to someone who is unable to know the truth about something. It also suggests that someone is purposely keeping them from finding out the truth.
In the Bible, darkness is the opposite of light. It represents everything that is not good. Another word for darkness is sin. Sin came into the world when God’s enemy, Satan, tricked Adam and Eve into disobeying Him. That’s when sin entered bringing every kind of evil onto the earth - wickedness, sadness, sickness, and death. Sin separated mankind from God by covering men’s hearts with darkness, blocking God’s light, causing them to not believe in Him and His Word.
