Daily Jewel

by   Pastor J.T. Carnell, McAlester, OK

“In the Cover of Darkness” 

“As I stood at the window of my house looking out through the shutters, watching the mindless crowd stroll by, I spotted a young man without any sense.  Arriving at the corner of the street where she lived, then turning up the path to her house.  It was dusk, the evening coming on.  The darkness thickening into night.” – Proverbs 7:6-9 (MSG)

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was with God in the beginning.  Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made.  In Him was life, and that life was the light of men.  The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.” – John 1:1-5 (NIV)

“God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light; and God saw that the light was good.”

– Genesis 1:3 (New English Bible)

I remember as a young teen living in Colorado playing games with my neighborhood friends—one of which was something similar to “hide-and-go-seek” only it was in teams.  To play this game properly it had to be played at night.  The fact that it was played at night meant that it also was the cause of a number of injuries.  I recall one guy who ran into an electric post line.  He wound up with about ten stitches—and yet once he was healed was back at again.

The battle between darkness and light has raged from the world’s very inception.  This battle has been of two natures:  physical and spiritual.

Statistics show that 65% of crimes are committed at night—in the cover of darkness.  Gang activity, theft, murders occur mostly during the evening hours.

Although most car accidents occur during the day when there is more traffic, a national insurance oversight group reports that the risk of serious injuries increases more than 50% at night and the vast majority of accidents involving cars and pedestrians occur at night.

In the scene that Solomon is describing, be it fictional or real, we see how this alliance between darkness and the deeds of evil work together.  They have been partners from the beginning so why would we think it would be any different today? 

Jesus said, “I am the light of the world!”  (John 8:12)  If you think about it, that can apply to both our spiritual and physical natures!  Spiritually speaking, that should be a “no-brainer!”  We are being by the power, laws and principals of God—which are elements of “The Light.”  Physically speaking, when we follow God’s Spiritual guidelines there is a safety factor that cannot be ignored. 

Charles Colson, one of the nation's finest Christian writers, tells a story from the childhood of a biologist named Benno Muller-Hill.

"One day, Muller-Hill's teacher set up a telescope to show the students a planet and its moons.  One by one the students looked through the telescope and said, 'yes, they could see the planet.'  Finally, one student said, "I can't see anything!'  The teacher angrily told him to adjust the lenses.  Still, the student saw nothing.  Finally the teacher himself leaned over and looked.  When he stood up, he had a strange expression on his face.  He glanced at the end of the telescope and saw that the lens cap was still on.  The students had not seen a thing!"

Just as most of the students saw what they were told to see, many people are the same way with their religion.  They see what others want them to see instead of allowing the Holy Spirit to work through them!

Do not be fooled into thinking that there is safety in “the cover of darkness.”  The light will always expose its deeds.