Shining Light Into Darkness

Lately I’ve been reading through different Old Testament books – no particular order, just looking at them with new eyes.  And on this day that during my lifetime has become less and less about good clean fun and more and more about the work of Satan, I wanted to share what this fresh look at really old stories has been teaching me.

My approach to the Old Testament this time around has been to skim the details (instead of getting bogged down in them) and look for the hand of God throughout the history, the laws, the wisdom, and the prophecies of this part of the Bible.  I have been underlining every instance where God speaks and every time that the events of life are attributed to God’s work.  Even though I am a seasoned Christian and Bible student, this approach has opened my eyes to new truth.

Admittedly, the Old Testament narratives were written by people who were biased: they believed in God’s sovereignty and wrote their stories in an effort to proclaim that to others.  I happen to believe their stories to be true; but, even if they’re not, the way they are told reveals something important about the people who wrote them.

Time and time again I have underlined actions of God and words of God: God redeemed (Deuteronomy 24:18); the Lord heard (Numbers 12:2); the Lord spoke (too many references to cite!); the Lord gave (Judges 1:4); the Lord God of Israel fought (Joshua 10:42); God sent (Genesis 45:7); the Lord saved (Exodus 14:30); the glory of the Lord appeared (Leviticus 9:23); God keeps covenant and steadfast love (Nehemiah 9:32); the Lord established (2 Samuel 5:12); the Lord had visited his people (Ruth 1:6); God makes everything (Ecclesiastes 11:5); the Most High rules (Daniel 4:32); the Lord answered (Job 38:1); God searches (1 Chronicles 28:9); the Lord listened (1 Kings 17:22).  There are so many more!

As these underlined words now leap off of the page, I am struck over and over with the reality of God’s sovereignty as well as other more personal traits.  I might not always understand how he chooses to work, but there can be no question that he does work in our world as well as the ancient world.   Most of all I recognize his faithfulness and example as a true promise-keeper.  And while not everyone (in either the ancient world or our world today) chooses to recognize and acknowledge God’s sovereignty and follow his leading, the writers of the Old Testament books chose to record their stories in light of the greatness of their God.  There was never any question regarding God’s sovereignty, even in a book like Job.  There is a lesson in that for all of us.

Does everyone I come in contact with see the God who rules my heart?  Do all the stories I tell about my own experiences clearly point to the One who directs my path?  Do I set an example in my daily life that shows others how much I love my Lord?  Is God’s sovereignty unquestionably accepted in my life, and is this what I model – even when life’s circumstances are hard?  Only through Christ’s work on the cross and through the process of daily sanctification can we answer these questions the right way, because even the desire to do what is right is initiated by God (Philippians 2:13).  But, thanks to his power, we have everything we need to live godly lives (2 Peter 1:3-4); and we can trust his promises because he always keeps them.  So go tell your story – with God as the main character – and boldly shine his light in a world of the enemy’s darkness!