In a prophetic word about the Messiah, God’s Suffering Servant, Isaiah prophesied:
I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6).
Not only is the Lord Jesus the Light of Israel, but He is also the Light of all nations. From the very beginning of time, God planned to bring forth from all nations a bride for His Son. He said to Abraham, 2“I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you” (Genesis 12:2-3 Emphasis mine). All nations of the earth were to be partakers of the heavenly blessing, that includes you, dear reader.
Hopefully, you have come to a point where you ask the big questions about life, "Who am I? Why am I here? What reason do I have for living? Where am I going?" These questions can be depressing if you do not know the Light of the World, Jesus the Messiah. When a person is in darkness, he stumbles around, trying to see the next step before him. The direction in life is difficult to find amid spiritual darkness.
A person who comes to Christ begins to understand who they are, their reason for living, and where they are going. Light speaks of knowledge, whereas darkness speaks of ignorance and the things of this world. The more light or understanding a person acquires, the less stumbling he experiences as he walks through this life. Light also speaks of illumination, of seeing a truth hidden before. The light will draw you upward and lift your spirit. Darkness keeps people in bondage and obscures the truth.
There are times in our lives when we go through great difficulties when everything seems dark, but no matter what darkness we have to walk through, Christ will be our light. When we lose a loved one, and it looks as if the darkness is crowding in, when we are sick and want to lie in bed or even hope to die, it is often because we have no hope and no light—no reason to live. These are the times when God wants to reveal Himself to you personally if you seek Him and ask Him. He will not come where He is not invited. He has given us the will to walk towards the light or stay in darkness. Coming to Him and learning of Him will bring us much light to walk through difficult times. It is written of Jesus, “by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities” (Isaiah 53:11).
Many people experience darkness in their lives as they follow their desires and stumble through life with no direction, not having any knowledge of God. In periods of darkness, God speaks and draws people to Himself. Those who follow Christ find that, even when great trials come, the Lord is with us and has promised He will never leave us or forsake us. Jesus said, “Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness” (John 8:12). We must submit ourselves to His guidance and take our direction from Him, listening to His voice and meditating on His Word.
There are times in life when those walking with Him go through painful situations, which God uses as teaching times to strengthen us, teach perseverance, and create the character of Christ in us. These problematic situations are caused not by our forsaking Him but because we walk closely with Him. The Scripture says, “The righteous person may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all” (Psalm 34:19). It is not enough to look at this light during our troubles; we must follow hard after Him, for His light is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path (Psalm 119:105). We would all like to see further down the road of life and know what is coming our way, but God has only promised light for the next step, not the next mile or year. Why is that? He wants us to trust Him in the difficult times of darkness. Keith Thomas
Shortened from the more extended study at the following link: Jesus, the Light of the World