Darkness in the World

We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. (1 John 5:19)

It is difficult for some to understand that this world, created by a good God, is under the control or the power of Satan. God, indeed, created all things and placed in the Garden of Eden His creations, the first man and the first woman.

Once they brought sin into the world, evil became the norm. The world came under the power of darkness and still is. Satan, as the beautiful, yet prideful and evil angel, had been cast out of heaven and now rules over humankind.

In many scriptures God’s word tells us that His followers are not to be of the world. We are not to be worldly in our desires and our lifestyles. We are not to live like those who do not follow Christ. We are not to be influenced by the powers of darkness.

You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. (James 4:4)

We are surrounded by evil. Everywhere we turn, evil will be there. It is almost impossible to be with Christians all the time and even then, evil will sometimes creep in.  We are all sinners, though forgiven, and we still find ourselves doing what we know is wrong in the eyes of God.

If we ever wonder why life is difficult, this is the reason. The power of evil is trying to draw us away from God. But we have the good news that was brought by Jesus Christ. His death on the cross for our sins saves us from evil. If we follow Him, we are safe in our salvation, yet we still must deal with the evil world around us.

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

Our many problems, whether financial, physical, or mental all come because evil entered this world and took control of humankind. Temptation to lie, cheat, steal, and all sins come from the power of darkness. We call him Satan but whatever we call him (it), he wants us to lose out on the gift of eternal life with Christ.

Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. (James 1:13)

Sometimes the lives of evildoers seem exciting and enticing. That is one of the many tricks of Satan, and one of his many lies used to draw us away from the truth. Sin often masquerades as good or fun. It often seems harmless. We cannot be fooled by these lies.

Evil tells us that the world is changing, getting better, and people are more accepting of each other. The changes and our acceptance is so gradual, we sometimes don’t even notice our views of sin are changing. We are becoming complacent when we encounter sin. We have been convinced that some sins are not sins anymore. This is so very dangerous.

God is not mean. He does not tell us that sin is bad to spoil our fun. He knows what will harm us and what will help us in our lives. He created us He loves us just as we are. We are all different and yet, sin is the same for each of us and will hurt us in the long run. This does not mean that we all act the same, do the same things, or say things in the same way. We are to be ourselves, as God made us, striving to follow Christ and avoid sin.

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12)

Darkness, not the darkness when the sun goes down, but the darkness of evil is where we will live if we continue to sin. The light is where all good things happen, and Christ is the light. We must leave the darkness, repent of our sins and move into the light where we can see the truth and not be blinded.

The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, (Acts 17:30)

Evil continues to spread. We can see it happening everyday just by watching the news on television. Sins become acceptable. Children choose their own gender. Movies win awards showing men and women doing evil things. Cults and the Occult are rampant. Our schools teach other religions and evolution, but not Christianity.

It is time for a revival of the world’s love for Christ. The Good News must be told and shown wherever we can. We must worship in spirit and in truth. And we must pray for protection from the evil one who is working through humankind. God does ultimately win. He will take control once again. Will we be with Him?

So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?” (Hebrews 13:6)

Prayer: Lord Jesus, this world is scary. It seems like everyone is turning away from You and embracing evil. Sin is seen as right, and right is seen as wrong. Everything is upside down. We need your assurance of what is truly right. We need your strength and direction in our lives every day. Fill us with your Holy Spirit and bring revival on the earth through each of us as we follow you and your word. Amen