Afraid of the Light

Most Christians live in fear of God. We are afraid He will judge us. We are afraid He won’t love us. We are afraid that our sins will become known if we are ‘too open’ with God and each other. We forget that God already knows everything about us. He already knows we are afraid.

We can admit, can’t we, that letting our sins be seen out in the open can be frightening. We can admit that we judge others for their sins, so we fully expect others to judge us for our sins. We can also admit that keeping our sins and weaknesses secret is our way of self-preservation.

The problem is that we can’t preserve ourselves. We can only delay the inevitable judgment that is coming. We can either confess our sins to God now and be forgiven now or hold on to our sins and pretend God won’t remember them.

The Lord said to his disciples: “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. He who believes in him is not condemned; he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one who does evil hates the light, and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does what is true comes to the light, that it may be clearly seen that his deeds have been wrought in God.”

John 3.16-21

The Light of God is healing for those who want to be healed. It is burning for those who want to hide. Yes, the Light reveals our sins and weaknesses, but it also heals them. A brief moment of humility in Confession can open a lifetime of healing in Christ’s Light.

The Gospel lesson for today is a both a call and a warning. We are being called by God to enter the Light. We are warned that choosing darkness over Light only delays the pain. “Everyone who does evil hates the light.” This is a severe warning.

We must choose either Light or darkness. We must choose life or death. We must choose evil or God. We can’t have both. We can’t remain in the shadows and expect God to forget about us. He will never forget us because He loves us.

God offers us the Light for healing because He loves us. Judgment isn’t something to fear unless we are trying to hide. Judgment only reveals our heart. If we love the Light and come now, we will be healed and forgiven. If we avoid the light our of fear, we remain sick.

God knows we are afraid. He still invites us because He knows His Light can heal us. He wants to heal us but He won’t force us. Eventually everything will be exposed by the Light. Rather than fear, approach the Light with faith. Rather than fear approach with love. God is waiting.