Guiding Light

This was from my devotional today. It reminded me that the #1 problem with people who are in the "darkness"of sin, is that they do not know they are in the darkness, i.e., they do not know there is another way.

1 John 2:7-11, Holman Christian Standard Bible ®
7 Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command, but an old command that you have had from the beginning. The old command is the message you have heard.
8 Yet I am writing you a new command, which is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining.
9 The one who says he is in the light but hates his brother is in the darkness until now.
10 The one who loves his brother remains in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. Or in it
11 But the one who hates his brother is in the darkness, walks in the darkness, and doesn’t know where he’s going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

"The front of his T-shirt read, Be the Moon. I was curious to know what that meant, so as the guy walked by I turned around and read the back of his shirt. It read, Reflect the Son.

Since science was never my strong subject, I had to think about the shirt's message for a moment. Then it hit me. Just as the light of the moon is actually a reflection of the sun, so Christians should be a reflection of Christ, the Son of God.

Christians are similar to the moon in three ways. First, the moon doesn't have the ability to produce its own light. It's simply a celestial body that depends on another source for light. In the same way, Christians don't have the ability to produce our own light. The best we can do is to reflect His light.

That's what today's verse means when it describes the Christian who "lives in the light." When we live "in the light" of Christ, we are like mirrors that reflect His light. Second, the moon's ability to reflect the sun depends on its position in relation to the sun. In the same way, our ability to reflect the light of Christ depends on our relationship with Him.

Finally, the moon often provides enough light for a person on the earth to walk around outside without falling flat on the ground. When Christians are growing in their spiritual lives and staying close to the Lord, they give off a light that can guide others who may be stumbling in a dark world.

What about you? Are you being the moon? Do you reflect the Son? Allow God to use you as a guiding light for others this week.

Take a close look at your life. Where are you in relation to Christ? Do you know Him as your personal Savior? Are you staying close to Him through prayer, Bible study, worship, and fellowship with Christian friends?"