Walking in Darkness
…the man who walks in darkness does not know where he is going. John 12:35, NIV
Every morning when I get up for prayer, it’s usually dark in my room. Now, because my husband is sleeping and I don’t want to disturb him, I will not turn on any lights. Even though I know my way around in our bedroom I always seem to knock over something or put something on backwards! The scripture above speaks to walking in a similar kind of darkness. In this scene described in John 12, Jesus has just finished His triumphant entry into Jerusalem and has predicts His coming death.
Some Greeks who were in Jerusalem for the feast asked Philip if they could see Jesus. When Philip heard this, he went and told Andrew, they both told Jesus that some Greeks had made a request to see Him. Jesus then begins to speak about leaving and being glorified. In the midst of Him speaking Jesus says, “Father, glorify your name!” Then scripture says, “…a voice came from heaven, ‘I have glorified it, and will glorify it again’” (John 12:28).
The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to Him. Jesus went onto explain that this was to show what kind of death He was going to die. The crowd questions Jesus according to the law, stating that the Christ would not die. Jesus responds by telling them “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you, the man who walks in the dark does not know where he is going” (John 12).
Jesus is telling them that He is the light, and if they stay in darkness they are going to be lost. Whenever I read this passage, it reminds me of the many times I have moved on something without seeking instructions from God first. Usually, it’s because the task is familiar. I can just go, without even thinking to check in with God. I will check with my GPS for instructions on how to get somewhere before checking in with God! I believe God is telling us not to move without checking with Him first. Many of us could have saved ourselves some major headaches if we would have checked with God before we went on that date!
We have to be careful. Our day to day, seemingly mundane things we do without checking in can walk us into seasons we could have avoided. Scripture says “…do not lean on your on understanding but in all thy ways acknowledge him and he will direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6). Listen, you will always make mistakes moving in darkness, just like me moving in my bedroom without light! But we never want to get so familiar with something that we don’t check in with God first about it. Amen!
Affirmations: Matthew 10:20; Luke 24:32; Ephesians 6:19, Isaiah 55:11
You can also follow me at JCCMinistriestv:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMoEcr3koSqRbqVma5EGWgA/videos
My recently published books are now available at:
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Life%27s+Journey+volume+2+Jacqueline+Crooks&language=en_US&ref=nb_sb_noss