If you’ve seen or read about the movie Sound of Freedom, you know its topic. But you may not know what the director intentionally inserted into every scene. Light.
No matter how dark the scene, it contains some form of light. Sunlight squeezing through a small window. A solitary flickering hallway light. “Light in this film is one of the main characters,” writer and director Alejandro Monteverde said. “Even in the hardest, lowest points in our lives, there is always light piercing the darkness. So, in the film, every shot has light piercing the darkness.”
Light! Even its name rings with hope.
When darkness … isn’t
July 11 marked the one-year anniversary of the release of the first images produced by NASA’s groundbreaking James Webb Space Telescope. Using wavelengths of light the human eye can’t detect, the telescope can peer through dust clouds to capture sights never seen before, including stars being born.
Perhaps more interesting is what scientists still can’t account for: light emanating from the darkest recesses of the universe.
Even in regions of few stars, when scientists subtract out all known sources of light, more light is present. That “glow” is so significant that one scientist said, “How could we have missed half of the light in the universe?”
Can the answer be as simple as … God?
God is Light; His character demonstrates it
The New Testament Greek word for light that describes God is phṓs. Phṓs properly means light in terms of what it manifests. For example:
“God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.” 1 John 1:5 (BSB)
“He alone is immortal and dwells in unapproachable light.” 1 Timothy 6:16 (BSB)
How can we embrace that? It’s so BIG. We can see only a sliver of light’s electromagnetic spectrum, so how can we understand light in terms of God—or bring it to a level we can apply to our lives?
Despite what we can perceive of God, we can believe Him for much more—because He is true to His nature. This is where “preaching to yourself” helps. Here’s how:
(1) The LORD is my Light
Apply:
God illuminates my way through life, giving me direction and wisdom.
Claim:
“For it is you who light my lamp; the LORD my God lightens my darkness” (Psalm 18:28).
“He [God] reveals the deep and hidden things; He knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with Him” (Daniel 2:22).
(2) The Light casts out darkness
Apply:
I need to let God’s light replace the darkness in my life.
Claim:
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:5).
“The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1).
(3) God calls me out of darkness into the Light
Apply:
God calls me to Himself by shining His Light on me. He calls me to be something before He enables me to do something. In love, He calls me Holy, Redeemed, and Sought Out (Isaiah 62:12).
Claim:
“For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6).
“You are a chosen people … for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9).
(4) God commissions me to be the light of the world
Apply:
Jesus said that, while He was in the world, He was the light of the world (John 9:5). But then He passed that torch to me—to represent and reflect His light in a hurting world.
Claim:
“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden” (Matthew 5:14).
“Let us [therefore] cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light” (Romans 13:12).
Darkness isn’t dark with God
Facing dark times is a difficult part of life. But we can know with certainty that the darkness isn’t totally dark. John 8:12 says, “Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” In Greek, that’s an unequivocal “no, absolutely not ever.” What a glorious assurance!
The darkest scenes in Sound of Freedom contain light. The darkest regions of space contain light. And the darkest recesses of your heart contain light because you were made in God’s image.
God’s light pierces even the darkest moments. I pray you will receive and accept the His light and love today.
(Keep scrolling; bonuses follow.)
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BONUSES about light and darkness
- The Bible mentions light more than 200 times. It mentions darkness 170 times.
- Darkness is not a “thing,” only the absence of something.
BUT the one time God created darkness, it WAS a thing. The ninth plague the Egyptians endured was to be shrouded in three days of darkness so thick they could feel and touch it. (See Exodus 10:21-22.) - Check out this free eight-part video series, Light in the Darkness, in which Tim Ballard and his wife describe their story beyond the movie. Each powerful video is about 12 minutes long and is extremely well done.
This subject of light has always intrigued me. Thanks for bringing in so many aspects to think about.
My pleasure, Ora! I also wrote about light in the darkness two years ago during the pandemic. I think you’ll like this: https://www.lanachristian.com/light-in-the-darkness/
Also, mega congratulations on how well your books are doing!