Light Reveals Our Flaws

Everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.
–John 3:20

Have you ever noticed how many of our Christmas traditions are about light? We put lights on our homes, at shopping malls, and on Christmas trees. Light is an important part of Christmas because light is associated with Jesus Christ. How is Jesus like light?

Jesus is like light in that light reveals our flaws. This is a part of light, quite frankly, we do not like that much. Think about it: when you want to have a romantic dinner, you do it over candlelight, not over a spotlight. Why is that? We don’t like a bright light shining on us when we are trying to romance somebody because we don’t want them to see our imperfections and flaws.

That is true about the spiritual world as well. Many people are repelled by the light of Jesus Christ because His perfection reveals our flaws. Jesus said about Himself in John 3:19-20, “This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.”

My brother was a policeman for 30 years. He told me that most crimes occur not during the daytime, but at night. If you want to protect your home, you keep the lights on because burglars are repelled by the light. It is the same reason that people are repelled by Jesus Christ–they do not want to have their imperfections, their lawlessness, their unspirituality exposed.

We see that illustrated in the story of the coming of Christ. The Bible reveals two very different reactions to the light of Jesus Christ and His arrival to earth. In Matthew 2, notice the difference in response to Christ’s birth by the wise men and King Herod: “After Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, ‘Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.’ When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled” (2:1-3). That word “troubled” means “stirred up,” “agitated.” When Herod heard the same news the magi had heard, he was troubled. Herod did not like that a rival king that had been born, so he said to the magi, “Go and search carefully for the Child; and when you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may come and worship Him” (2:8). Herod searched in darkness for Jesus Christ but never found Him. Herod wanted to extinguish the light. But the magi wanted to know God. And God promises that if anyone sincerely wants to know Him, He will reveal Himself to that person. In Jeremiah 29:13, God said, “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” If you really want to know your Creator, the God of the universe, He will reveal Himself to you. He will take you to the same place He took the magi–to Jesus Christ.

Today’s devotion is excerpted from “The Night Before Christmas” by Dr. Robert Jeffress, 2017.

Scripture quotations are taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.lockman.org)