This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.
(1 John 1:5, NASB)
We live in a time of darkness, not the blackness of the last days (although we are headed that way) but dark days none-the-less. We have political unrest in our country fueled by conservatives and liberals who refuse to move to any middle ground to create a mutual agreement point. COVID-19 has altered our lives in ways that many of us never believed would happen, mass shootings are still occurring, and the threat of a church or other place of worship being attacked or bombed is very real.
It would be easy for us as Christians to simply say that there is a light and His name is Jesus Christ, then walk away. Yet Christians are not called to do that. We are called to minister to a hurting world. Within Christianity exists a wide range of political and sociological thought. Because we are diverse, we are called to show how to interact with those who have a different way of thinking or a different political view. Yet, I feel that we have failed miserably at doing this. We fail because we have lost focus on what is essential.
Although political positions are essential, they should not become the most significant aspect of a Christian’s life. The most important feature of a Christian’s life is our focus on Christ. When our focus is on Him, we can interact with those who do not have our political or theological position without purposely fighting or offending them. When our life is not focused on Christ, we experience the social atmosphere we now live in.
I believe that everyone wants the light to shine in these days of darkness. Christians can do that by placing their focus on Christ. In the sixth chapter of Matthew, verse thirty-three, he tells us how to do this, “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” (NASB) When we seek His kingdom before any other thing, we walk in the light. When we seek other things first, we walk in darkness. Let’s all choose to walk in the light.