Since I write my blog posts two weeks out, I’m writing this one just a few days after the horrific events of September 10, 2025, when a man was shot because of words. It comes twenty-four years after the horrific events of September 11, 2001, another day the world watched on phones and televisions. With our ability to see things in real-time or on a later video uploaded to social media or YouTube, little can be hidden or later denied.
Evil is out there for everyone to see.
So, what do we who claim to follow Christ do with what our eyes cannot unsee or what our ears cannot unhear?
Lean into the Light of the World.
The darkness we see is nothing new. It seems to us to have increased because of the 24/7 news cycle and ever-present social media on our handheld devices. When I look back at the days of the early church, I cannot imagine how those first Christians lived. They were surrounded by pagan images, idols, and sexual immorality that was sponsored by both state and religion. Anything and everything was allowed in the Roman Empire. I mean, Christians were thrown in front of wild beasts for sport. Debauchery was widespread.
Who could stand up to such evil?
In a time that went from one extreme of anything goes to the Pharisaical line of strict adherence to Jewish law, the Light of the World stepped onto the scene and created quite a stir. It was after dealing with such a group accusing a woman of adultery that he made his world-changing declaration.
“I am the light of the world. Anyone who follows me will never walk in the darkness but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12 CSB)
He had previously spoken about this light during a conversation with a religious seeker named Nicodemus.
“This is the judgment: The light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the light and avoids it, so that his deeds may not be exposed. But anyone who lives by the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be shown to be accomplished by God.” (John 3:19-21)
So, what do we know from these verses? Jesus Christ is the light that has come into the world. Those who choose to follow him receive that same light which is life eternal, hope of a future in the presence of God. But we also learn that the light has not been welcomed by the world. The majority prefer to live in dark places and avoid having their actions exposed.
Those who live by the truth live in the light.
Those who live by lies live in the darkness.
When evil happens, remember who you once were.
The longer we live by the light of Christ, the easier it is for the memories of what we once were to fade, sometimes leading us to become complacent about the evil around us. When Paul wrote to Christians living among pagan nations, like those in Ephesus, he wanted to remind them of the need to stand firm as children of the Light.
Let no one deceive you with empty arguments, for God’s wrath is coming on the disobedient because of these things. Therefore, do not become their partners. For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light—for the fruit of the light consists of all goodness, righteousness, and truth—testing what is pleasing to the Lord. (Ephesians 5:6-9)
Before knowing Christ, we all walked in the same darkness of mind and heart that we witness in our world today. No one is immune to the evil to which the Prince of Darkness can lure a person who enjoys living in the shadows. But now we are in the light of the presence of the King of kings and Lord of lords, and his Spirit lives in us. Our call is to live according to that light.
What is our point of distinction between those living in the dark? Our good works and words. Our actions of righteous behavior, as we live in line with the commands of Christ. And finally, the truth we speak that comes from the truth of the Word of God.
If people look at your life, what do they see? Acts and words of darkness or light? There is no gray, shadowy middle ground. We are either in the light or in the darkness, living by truth or by lies.
Let your light shine.
Light has to do very little to expose darkness. “It only takes a spark,” as the song says, to get a fire going. Paul urged believers to keep a distance from anything linked to the work of Satan in this world.
Don’t participate in the fruitless works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what is done by them in secret. Everything exposed by the light is made visible, for what makes everything visible is light. Therefore it is said: Get up, sleeper, and rise up from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.
Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk—not as unwise people but as wise—making the most of the time, because the days are evil. (Ephesians 5:11-16, emphasis added)
This is our call as Christ-followers in the days when evil overwhelms and breaks our hearts and spirits. Fighting fire with fire only leads to everything getting burned to a crisp. The more we live according to the light of Christ, the more visible the works of darkness are exposed and seen for what they are. When I see people come together to pray in response to the murder of Charlie Kirk, it exposes the darkness behind the horrific act. When a young woman decides to pack her Bible along with her clothes for an upcoming trip, that exposes darkness, because she’s turning to the truth. When people go to church on Sunday instead of rioting in the streets, that displaces hatred with prayer and forgiveness.
Satan hates all this, to be sure. He’s going to be upset that more drastic, darkness-driven acts are not employed, so Christians must not let down their guard. Instead, we should heed the words of Paul and continue to be careful how we walk, seeking the wisdom of the Lord in all things, and using our time to the fullest for his glory. Yes, the days are evil, but in the end, light will have the final say as darkness will be no more.
My prayer is that those who claim Christ as Lord will stand strong in the light of Christ and his Word, knowing that when we live according to the light, many will turn from darkness and be drawn to the One we proclaim.
Grace and Peace
If you missed the last Wednesday Wisdom, click HERE, or check out these other posts about light and darkness: We’re Fighting a Battle, The Light Shines in the Darkness, A Glimpse of His Wrath, Why Is There So Much Evil?, and Gracious Uncertainty.
thank you. well said.
Thank you, Angela