The Trouble with Darkness
Recently there was a blackout in the middle of the night. It was planned and we were all warned it was going to take place, but we didn’t prepare for it.
I awoke about 1:30 am and everything was black. It wasn’t just dark; it was pitch black. It took me a moment to realize what was going on. My eyes were wide open, but I was not seeing anything. It didn’t matter how much I blinked, the dark was impenetrable.
Since I was awake, I decided to get up. I thought I could navigate the room from memory… three steps forward, watch your left foot on the foot of the bed… one more step past the dog bed and turn right, five steps and left into the bathroom, but ‘wham!’ Instead, I ended up bumping clumsily into my husband's dresser… I went a step too far and I missed the doorway. The darkness had totally disoriented my sense of direction and shaken my confidence that I could navigate the room without any light.
Every day I walk around that same room. The furniture has been in the same places for years. Yet, when I couldn’t see anything, it was suddenly not as automatic. On the way back, I measured my steps but met a wall where there wasn’t one before. The darkness was so deep that my human eyes couldn’t discern anything. The darkness brought a kind of chaos to a room that was once well-ordered in the light. It seemed easier to just keep my eyes closed than to try to strain and see.
Finally, I realized that rather than try and look around me (that was fruitless), I relied on what I knew and remembered. It helped guide my steps. I didn’t get distracted by the darkness, but rather, recalled to mind what I knew was true.
As I lay in the dark, I realized how much spiritual symbolism was in those ill-fated moments during the blackout…
1. First, we were warned it was coming, but we didn’t heed the warning.
How many people hear the gospel, yet disregard its importance? They hear the warning about eternity without Christ, yet they don’t give it a second thought? If we look around, we see the signs of the times, nation rising against nation, wars, rumors of wars, earthquakes, famines- it’s all there. Jesus' return is very near. It WILL matter whether you chose to follow Him or not.
John 3:13 “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.”
We all have friends and loved ones who know “about” Jesus, but do not walk in relationship with Him. Do our sons and daughters have dull hearing and veiled eyes? When we talk about the dangers of spiritual darkness, do our sons and daughters just ‘bob their heads’ (yeah, yeah, yeah… I’ve heard it all before)? Maybe they pass off our warnings as overreactions. Perhaps they think they have time, or maybe they are indifferent to spiritual things altogether. This darkness is powerful.
John 12:46 “I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.”
We need to pray that the Light of Christ breaks through the darkness and shines a spotlight on their sin, their desperate need for a Savior and on the Truth that will give them life! Let’s pray for deep grief over sin and a hunger and thirst for righteousness.
John 8:12 “When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.””
2. Darkness disorients us to what is right and true. Spiritual darkness does the same.
Darkness takes what we know and distorts it. It twists and confuses things. It calls into question what we think we know and makes us unsure. We become a target for the Enemy. Disoriented victims are easy to hold captive.
2 Corinthians 11:14-15 “And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.”
Darkness also lulls us into a false belief that we can navigate this world on our own, without the light of Christ. We clumsily bumble and stumble but pridefully think we’re doing just fine. We’re painfully ignorant or outright stubbornly resistant to admitting our need for Him. Darkness makes us believe a lie.
Proverbs 4:19 “But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble.”
Colossians 2:8 “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ.”
We need to pray that the Holy Spirit will move in the hearts of those who don’t yet know Christ and open the eyes of those who are walking in darkness so they see their need for Jesus and long for the Shepherd to lead them. They are living in spiritual chaos, but Christ can bring order and direction.
Acts 26:18 “To open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.”
3. Deep darkness almost forces one to keep their eyes closed- and isn’t that what the enemy wants?!
2 Corinthians 4:4 “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”
Now is the time to pray scripture over our loved ones. Verses that plead for clear spiritual vision and discernment needed for dealing with the darkness that surrounds all of us and for the protection from the Prince of Darkness that only Christ can give.
Psalm 119:18 Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.
Isaiah 42:16-17 “I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them. But those who trust in idols, who say to images, ‘You are our gods,’ will be turned back in utter shame.”
4. Finally, we can only battle darkness and confusion with the Truth of God’s Word.
We must turn our eyes to the Truth of the Gospel, the infallibility of Scripture, the Sovereignty and Holiness of God.
2 Samuel 22:29 “You, LORD, are my lamp; the LORD turns my darkness into light.”
Psalm 143:8,10 “Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life. Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground.”
2 Corinthians 10:5 “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”
Darkness is present. We can’t deny that. Satan prowls like a lion, looking for anyone to devour. But our God reigns and His Word is powerful and effective. It has the ability to deter and defeat the enemy. It brings life and light and penetrate the darkness . Jesus is that Word. Let’s pray continually for our sons and daughters, for our loved ones, for those who don’t know Christ that He would defeat the darkness and lead them to walk in the Light of Life.
Take time today and throughout the week to pray these Scriptures over your sons and daughters, over your friends and loved ones. Put their names into each one, speak them out loud, call on the name and the blood of Jesus to bind the enemy and defeat the darkness.
Jude 1:24-25 “To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.”
Pray without ceasing.
Doubt: part 1. Ambiguity and Confusion
James 1:6 “But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.” (ESV)
or
James 1:6 “But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.” (NLT)
or
James 1:6 “But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind.” (NASB)
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Doubt can color everything, can’t it? It can impact our trust, our understanding, our ability to connect with others and, ultimately, our ability to trust in the Lord. We often hear the phrase “I doubt it” and we may even use it ourselves. It’s our way of expressing disbelief, or at least skepticism. It can be a challenge or a simple expression of ambiguity. But when it comes to our faith, it can crack our foundation or bring rot to our roots.
What really causes doubt? Over the next few weeks we’re going to look at some other words for doubt and their antonyms to give us a bit more insight. We want to be confident in how we should pray for others who may struggle with doubt.
Look at that list. Do you see anything unique about the left column? The words are all tactics Satan uses to undermine the work of the Holy Spirit, to erode our faith and to woo people away from Christ. This week we’ll look at the first two words, ambiguity and confusion and we’ll dive into the others over the next two weeks.
If we’re ambiguous it means that we’re open to various meanings and we’re equivocal (1). We’re prone to “waffle”. Someone who is ambiguous will not say there is just one way to Heaven, that would be too narrow and exclusive. No, they’ll be more of an ‘all roads lead to Heaven” kind of person. But John 14:6 says, “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” We can be certain that Jesus is the only way to reconciliation with God, forgiveness of sin and redemption to eternal life.
Satan wants nothing more than to remove absolutes. If he can convince people that ‘being a good person’ or ‘doing good works’ will earn a spot in Heaven, then he’s accomplished his deception and lured people from the cross. Ambiguity leads to variations of the gospel, yet Galatians 1:6-7 warns us “I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.” Yes, there are ‘different gospels’ out there, but only One gospel is the gospel of Jesus Christ that provides grace and mercy for sinners. Romans 10:9 confirms it, “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” That is Biblical certainty right there- there’s nothing ambiguous about it.
We need to pray that our sons and daughters have a clear understanding of justification and redemption through Jesus Christ. Romans 4:25-5:2 “He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification. Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.” Pray that they would have spiritual wisdom and would daily pursue Godly knowledge so that they are on guard against false gospels that would woo them from the cross. Pray that they have peace in the certainty that there is one way to the Father and that is through Jesus.
The second tactic Satan uses is confusion- a state of disorder. Have you ever been to a party where they play “pin the tail on the donkey”? The player is blindfolded and then spun around several times so they lose their bearings and have no sense of direction. Because they’re blindfolded, they have no ability to ‘see’ where they are going and their senses are confused. The spectators around them yell directions, but not everyone is honest about the destination they’re pointing toward. Just like the player in the game, those who struggle with confusion listen to those around them with no sense of who is leading them or to what they are being led. They lack a foundation of Truth and because of that, they’re vulnerable to follow the wrong path.
There are many ‘voices’ that give false direction. Oh, they ‘look the part’. They sound knowledgeable. But even Satan used scripture to tempt Jesus (Luke 4). Those struggling with spiritual confusion lack the spiritual discretion that warns them from false teachers. These other voices ‘sound good’ and the doubters begin to buy into the message. Why? Because they lack knowledge of Scripture. They lack a solid foundation. They lack spiritual discretion and a heart in tune with the Holy Spirit. Satan counts on that. He stirs confusion to pull people away from the Truth. But scripture says, “For God is not a God of confusion but of peace—as in all the churches of the saints.” 1 Corinthians 14:33
An understanding of Scripture brings clarity. Pursuing correct knowledge and growing in our understanding of God’s Word protects us from confusion by the enemy. We must pray that our sons and daughters are diligent to add to their Biblical knowledge and guard against deception and confusion. 2 Peter 3: 17-18 “Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.”
This week, let’s pray over our sons and daughters so ambiguity and confusion would not infect and impact their faith and cause them to doubt. Friends, the enemy is alive and well. He is the prince of the power of this earth. He is at work to draw us away from Christ and plant the seeds of doubt in our hearts. Let’s fight this!! Let’s get on our knees and intercede for those we love.
“Father, You see the dangers we face each day and You are mighty to surround us with protection. I pray for Your divine protection over (name) today. Filter what they hear through the Truth of Scripture. Give them spiritual discernment to know when they encounter false teaching or deceptive messages. I pray that they would have unwavering commitment to walk with You so they are not easily pulled from the path of life and sidelined by the enemy. Keep their path clear of obstacles that would make them ‘trip’ and make their direction sure- always pointed toward You and moving closer each day. Lord, guard us all from ambiguity and confusion. Don’t allow the opinions of others or the pressure of the crowd to influence our commitment and certainty about following Christ. I pray Philippians 4:7 over (name) today “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” In Jesus’ name, amen.”
Pray without ceasing.