Our Only Hope

“Life” is found in the “Word” or ‘Logos’ of God, and this life is the “Light of men.” It “shines in the darkness,” and the darkness is powerless to extinguish it. This ‘Logos’ became the Living Word of God manifested in Jesus Christ. In him, the glory and life of God radiate for all men to behold - (John 1:1).

Presidents, kings, dictators, political ideologies, and messianic figures portray themselves as humanity’s best hope for peace and prosperity. Supposedly, they are sources of light and bulwarks of order against the darkness that threatens to overwhelm society at any moment.

[Photo by Matt Palmer on Unsplash]

Such claims are counterfeits of God’s reality. The arrogant pretensions of political leaders and false prophets are exposed when the true “Light of God” shines brightly through His Son. The God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” now gives us the “light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” There is “no other name under heaven whereby we may be saved”– (Acts 4:12, 2 Corinthians 4:6).

Contrary to the wisdom of this world, life, truth, stability, and salvation are found only in the lowly man of Nazareth who died on the Imperial Cross, condemned by his enemies and the State, and abandoned by his friends and followers. The proclamation of “Christ crucified” is “God’s power and wisdom.” True power does not come out of the barrel of a gun, but through the “word of the Cross” - (1 Corinthians 1:17-24).

The disciples of Jesus are summoned to “testify” to the light. The true light shines only in him. This must be so since God sent him and He is “light, and in Him is no darkness at all.” Therefore, the “darkness is passing away, and the true light is shining,” driving back the counterfeits and lies of Satan and his earthly servants as Christ’s followers proclaim his Gospel in this world – (Matthew 24:14, 1 John 1:5, 2:8).

The false claims of this fallen age have failed time and again, and according to the Apostle John, there is only one source of the True Light that “illuminates every man coming into the World,” and the “Light” and “Life” of God are found only in His beloved Son, Jesus Christ.

The disciples of Jesus become his “Lights in the World.” They are called to let their “light shine before men so they may glorify their Father in heaven.”  The fullness of His Light and Life is manifested in His Son, and that light is reflected in his followers as they bear witness to Jesus, the Messiah who came to “save his people from their sins” – (Matthew 1:21, John 1:1-14).

Thus, Jesus is the “Light of the World,” and there is no other source of life but him. His followers become the proverbial shining “City on a Hill” when they let his light shine through them by carrying his cross and following him “wherever he leads.” Their mission is to preach the Good News to all men without exception. He is the Savior of the world, not just of one nation, people, or tribe – (Matthew 16:24, 1 Corinthians 1:18, Revelation 14:4).

THE WORD

John’s Gospel begins by declaring that God created all things through His “Word,” the “Logos.” “Light” and “Life” are found only in this “Word made flesh.” The Creator of the Universe gave living form to this ‘Logos’ in Jesus of Nazareth.

He is the “Light of the World” because he is the full expression of God. That is why anyone who believes in him and his words no longer “abides in the darkness.” Thus, we have been rescued from the power of darkness and “transferred to the kingdom of His beloved Son” – (John 12:44-50, Colossians 1:13).

John summarized this truth in his first epistle, and he used several terms from the prologue of his Gospel to do so:

• “That which was FROM THE BEGINNING, that which we have heard, that which we have seen with our eyes, that which we beheld, and our hands handled, concerning the WORD OF LIFE. And the LIFE WAS MANIFESTED, and we have seen, and BEAR WITNESS, and declare unto you the everlasting life, which was with the Father, and was MANIFESTED TO US. That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you also, that ye also may have fellowship with us. Indeed, our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ” – (1 John 1:1-3).

Today, Jesus, the Crucified Messiah, is the “Word of Life” manifested to humanity as his Church proclaims the Gospel. Because this “Word of Life” has entered the world through him, the “darkness is passing away, and the true light already is shining.”

The darkness cannot smother the Light. It retreats wherever the light of Christ shines and his message is heard. Thus, the forms and institutions of this world are in the process of retreating and “passing away” even now. This includes the political ideologies and institutions of the existing age. After Jesus returns, only the Kingdom of God will be left standing – (1 John 1:1-3, 2:8, 1 Corinthians 7:31, 15:24-28).

In a very dark world, Jesus is the bright light that radiates God’s life, truth, salvation, and hope to all men and women, and there is no other. He alone is the “Light of the World.” There are no substitutes, surrogates, or proxies. The other claimants are liars and deceivers, agents and “ministers of Satan” attempting to disguise themselves as “angels of light” to hoodwink others – (2 Corinthians 11:14).

The Nazarene declared to his disciples, “I am the way and the truth and the life.” No one comes to God “except through me,” and, “He who has seen me has seen the Father.” There is no other way to know or access God. Jesus is the full and final expression of the Father. Life and salvation can be found nowhere else.

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RELATED POSTS:

• The Living Word - (Jesus is the Word made flesh in whom the glory of God is revealed, the same word by which God created all things)

• Glory Revealed - (Ever since the Word became flesh, the Divine Glory has been manifested in Jesus of Nazareth and all who follow him behold it – John 1:14)

• His Mysteries Revealed - (The mysteries of God previously hidden are revealed in Jesus of Nazareth, and especially in his death and resurrection)

{Published originally on the Kingdom Disciples website}