There is a raging battle being fought between the Kingdoms of Light and Darkness. Darkness is the absence of light and the opposite of light. If light symbolizes God, darkness connotes everything that is anti-God; the wicked, judgment and death. We are indeed experiencing what Paul describes in Ephesians 6:12, “For we are not wrestling against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenlies.” This is the kingdom of darkness that is the whole realm of satanic rule, or to the darkness of ignorance and alienation from God. However, the absolute, sovereign God rules over the darkness and the powers of evil. The battle is the Lord’s and He wins!
GOD RULES THE DARKNESS. This is the message that I believe God is speaking to us today at such a time as this. Let us go back to the first mention of the word “darkness” in the Bible to gain insights into God’s covert strategy in this battle. Genesis 1:2 reveals that “the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep.” Then we read, “And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light and there was light.” In verse 5 we read: “And God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. And the evening, and the morning were the first day.” These words jumped out at me and I asked God to show me why His original pattern for a day begins in the evening. Our day begins in the morning but that was not God’s pattern!
Jonathan Cahn, a Messianic Jewish Rabbi, sheds light upon God’s intension. “If the day leads to night, then everything goes from light to darkness. Everything gets darker. Everything is in the process of darkening. And so is the way of the world. We go from day to night, from youth to aging, from strength to weakness, and ultimately from life to death. It’s the way of the world, but it’s not the way of God. When God created the universe, it was not day and night. The day began with night. There was night and then there was day. In God, it is the night that comes first. A Jewish biblical day begins at sunset—there is evening and then morning. It goes from night to day…from darkness to light. The children of this world live from day to night. But the children of God live from night to day. They are born again in the darkness and move to the day. And if you belong to God, then that is the order of your life. You are to go from darkness to light, from weakness to strength, from despair to hope, from quilt to innocence, from tears to joy, and from death to life. And every night in your life will lead to the dawn. So live according to God’s sacred order of time…that your entire life be always moving away from the darkness and to the light.” It is always darkest before the dawn—before the day breaks and the daystar appears! Jesus is the bright and morning star! (Rev. 22: 16)
Jesus revealed to Paul in Acts 26 His purpose for coming to this world: To open eyes, to turn us from darkness to light and from the power of Satan unto God that we may receive forgiveness of sins and inheritance among all who are sanctified by faith in Him. Jesus is the Light and the Holy Spirit pulls away the veil of darkness and seals us as a child of the Most High God! I Peter 2: 9 reveals the believer’s position in Christ: “But we are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that we should show forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” 1 John 1: 7 says: “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.” Jesus’ model prayer says: “Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven…For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever.”
What is God’s message for us today? “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 armor of light.” (Romans 13: 11-12) Let us not focus on the darkness of the circumstances around us but on the light of God in Jesus Christ that darkness can be dispelled. “Your Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” (Ps. 119:105) God’s Word is like a flashlight that pierces the darkness of the future, showing us the way. May 2023 be the year that we are set free to be all God wants us to be—the year we see God’s power and glory manifested over the powers of darkness! GOD IS VICTORIOUS OVER DARKNESS! The best is yet to come for believers. “And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light; and they shall reign for ever and ever.” (Rev 22:5)