LIVING WORD DEVOTIONAL
By Pastor Mensa Otabil
Tuesday 5th October 2021
GOD IS LIGHT
Scripture Reading: 1 John 1
This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. 1 John 1:5
In the introduction, the Apostle John stated that he was writing about things he had heard, seen, and touched. Here he began with the message he and the disciples heard from Jesus concerning the Father – God is Light.
What does it mean when the scriptures describe God as light? It means that God is self-revealing. Just as it is the nature of light to reveal itself, so is it the nature of God to reveal Himself. God has first revealed Himself through His creation and more clearly through the coming of Jesus Christ. In Christ, God makes His light known.
God’s shows Him to us in various ways.
- God is pure. There is no imperfection in Him. John drew a clear distinction between God’s nature and those of the deities of the Greeks and Romans. The early Christians lived in a religious culture that portrayed the gods with human-like weaknesses and foibles. Most Christians were converted from religions that favoured such deities. That is why John had to remind the Christians of the difference between the God of the Bible and the gods of the Greeks and Romans. God is Light means God is always Pure.
- God is life. There is no decay in Him. Just as all material life and growth depend on natural light, so does all of life and growth depend on God. Knowing Him is knowing life. God does not deteriorate in nature or power. He is the same at all times. God is Light means God’s life never dims.
- God is truth. There is no error in Him. As natural light illuminates and makes all things clear, so does God give knowledge and understanding to our minds. Knowing Him is knowing the truth. God does not make mistakes; neither does He learn nor improves. He has perfect knowledge of all things.
Just as light shows people where to walk when it is dark, so God shows how human beings are to walk.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, you are pure without imperfection. You are truth without error. Let me know you in your fullness. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
