The Darkness is Passing
Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command but an old one, which you have had since the beginning. This old command is the message you have heard. Yet I am writing you a new command; its truth is seen in him and in you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining.
1 John 2:8
John is taking an old command and giving it preeminence under the new covenant. John is now telling us that love under the new covenant is the fulfillment of the law. Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law (Romans 8:8). John is inferring that a heart filled with God’s love will desire to fill the commandments.
Therefore the foundation of the Christian life is a heart filled with God’s love. Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments” (Matthew 22:38-39). God is love and when our heart is filled with his love we do the things Jesus did because it is our new nature and our desire.
Our hearts will continue to be filled with God’s love and we are continually molded to the mind of Christ. As our hearts are filled with love the darkness is passing and the true light is shining. The darkness is our worldly sinful nature and the light is our Christ-like nature driven by the indwelling Holy Spirit. Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires (Romans 8:5). Our heart is reflected by our thoughts, which means we can know our heart is changing by seeing our thoughts and desires changing.
Living in the light is living with love, peace, and joy, knowing Heaven is our home. Now Satan is the ruler of darkness and he is deceiving people to think Heaven is their eternal home for any reason they choose to believe. This includes both non-Christians and some Christians, where both justify their eternal life by believing Satan’s lies.
Today let the light takeaway any darkness in your life, because you are a light in this dark world. The brighter our light in this world the more darkness is taken away. We have the power of God through the Holy Spirit who gives us power over Satan and his demons. As you go through your day, realize you have the power of God revealed by love and wisdom and the absence of fear.
Prayer: Lord takeaway and darkness in my heart and replace with light. Let the light of Christ reflect through me with a heart of love and a mind of wisdom. Give me wisdom and the words to minister to others, so they will accept Christ. In Jesus name, Amen