MONDAY MEDITATION: Living in the Light (October 28)

The night is almost over, and the day is near. So let’s get rid of the actions that belong to the darkness and put on the weapons of light. — Romans 13:12

Did you know that Missouri is the cave state? We have over 7000 of them. If you ever want to experience total darkness, go into the depths of one of them and turn off the light. There’s an inky-ness you can feel.

For Paul, darkness was not only frightening but destructive. He saw it as a symbol of what was happening in the world. In verse 13 he detailed behavior that tempted Christians living in Roman society. From “partying and getting drunk” to “fighting and obsession,” people’s worst instincts were on display. Sort of like what we see on TV and in social media.

In typical Paul fashion, his counsel to the Christians in Rome was to be aggressive in confronting such immorality. He told them to “put on the weapons of light.” We’re not simply to defend ourselves against darkness and resist the temptations of immorality. Rather, it means living such an intensely bright life that evil does’t stand a chance. He characterized this in Galatians 5:16-26 as living a life filled with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

The world does a great job of inviting us into the caves. We invite people into the light by the way we live. Hopefully when they see us, they’ll need sunglasses.