Darkness
by Shirley D. Tingle
Darkness—it’s not for the timid, the squeamish, or those easily frightened. It’s the thing of which nightmares are made, in which fear lives, and in which nefarious deeds are done. And “total darkness” is what we generally refer to as being “pitch black” darkness. Now that’s pretty dark!
Have you ever experienced total darkness? You have if you’ve been to our local attraction, Ruby Falls. You may remember that when you get all the way down below the mountain’s surface (that’s 1,120 feet), the guide announces that all the lights will be turned off. When this happened to me, I felt a little anxious. I looked around trying to find the tiniest speck of light, but there was none. I couldn’t see my hand in front of my face, and I didn’t want to move for fear I’d bump into something or fall. I longed for the light, and I was so glad when the lights were finally turned back on!
If you think that’s darkness, read this account of when Moses, by God’s command, brought the plague of darkness upon the land of Egypt in order to get Pharoah to let the children of Israel go. Exodus 10:21-23 says: “And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt. And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days: They saw not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days: but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.” (KJV).
At night you may be startled from your peaceful sleep by noises. You lie in bed, listening, to see if they’ll continue, or if you can tell where they’re coming from. Someone has to go check. Who’s the bravest? The darkness doesn’t help you see what the cause is, but are you afraid to turn on the lights? Romans 13:11-12 says: “And that knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness and let us put on the armour of light.” Having light to dispel the darkness lets us see things as they really are so we can know what’s going on, where to step, and what to avoid.
Why are some people afraid of the dark? It’s not necessarily the darkness itself that causes the fear, but the unknown that the darkness conceals. “The darkness leaves us vulnerable and exposed, unable to spot threats that may be lurking.” [source for quote: www.thecut.com, “Why Some People Never Grow Out of a Fear of the Dark.”]
Lots of things are hidden under the cover of darkness. Vandalism, robberies, kidnappings, murders, and other crimes take place in darkness. Darkness helps to conceal these criminal acts and those who commit them. Before technology and DNA existed, the darkness worked well for these criminals, but now with new tools for catching the “bad guys,” even the darkness doesn’t always hide them. John 3:19-20 says this about darkness: “And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.” (KJV)
And then there’s someone who’s always lurking in the shadows of darkness to see who he can lure into the darkness of sin. His name is Satan.
The Devil, Beelzebub, Old Nick, El Diablo, The Evil One, The Destroyer, Belial, The Tempter, Ruler of the Demons, and Prince of Darkness—these are some of the names that Satan goes by. [www.powerthesaurus.com, “202 Satan Synonyms”].
What a tragic story is Satan’s. Starting out as one of God’s own angels in Heaven, but desiring to be all-powerful like God, and choosing to do evil, Satan rebelled against God, and he, along with his followers, were cast out of Heaven to be reserved in chains in the darkness of Hell until judgment, (I Peter 2:4; Jude 6). [source: www.apologeticspress.org, “Has Satan Always Existed?” by Eric Lyons, M.Min.]. Satan lost everything. His plan didn’t work, and it cost him Heaven and spending an eternity with God.
Satan wants revenge. But knowing God’s power he knows he has to find another way. God’s masterful creation, mankind, is the perfect target for Satan’s revenge against God. Satan’s task and goal are to lure and capture every person’s soul and bring them into the darkness of sin, and to ultimately destroy all souls in Hell.
“The Bible makes it clear that the devil is the originator, the father, of sin. John wrote, ‘He that doeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning.”’ I John 3:8.
Satan can’t make us sin. He can tempt us. If we give in to the temptation, then we sin. God has given us the freedom to choose to do good or evil. Our sins are our own responsibility.
Remember that even Jesus Christ, our Lord, was tempted by Satan in the wilderness, but didn’t sin.
How is Satan able to do all his evil deeds? He puts men in darkness by “perverting God’s Word, Genesis 3:1-4; he sows tares among God’s wheat, Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43; and he steals the Word of God from human hearts, Matthew 13:19.” [source material and quotes from: www.apologeticspress.org, “Satan—His Origin and Mission, (Part 1), by Bert Thompson, PhD.].
Satan hides in the shadows and tempts us by making sin look pretty, or fun, or exciting, or lucrative. When we wander into the darkness, we lose our way, we begin to stumble, and even fall. We can’t see clearly what’s happening because our light is gone. Some may never want to return from the darkness. But some will long for the light, and the feeling of hope and help—a fresh new beginning, like a new day at sunrise.
God made us a pathway out of the darkness of sin. Colossians 1:12-14 says: “Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:” (KJV). I John 1:5-7 says:5 “This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.” (KJV).
Even if we’re Christians, it’s still possible to wander back into the darkness, lose our way, and be lost. Then we must put our eyes back on the light, remember whose name we wear, and remember the sacrifice Christ made on our behalf. Galatians 6:1 says: “Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.” (KJV)
For our physical safety, we need light to light up the darkness and guide our steps. For our spiritual safety, we need to look to our one and only Light, Jesus Christ, to guide our steps away from the darkness of sin. II Corinthians 4:6 says: “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” [www.bible.knowing-jesus.com, “The Light of Christ”].
May we let the light of Christ be seen in us wherever we may go.