Intro 5……6. Light and Darkness

Light is one of the most important images in John's Gospel. It represents God's truth, holiness, life, and saving presence revealed through Jesus Christ. Darkness, by contrast, symbolises sin, spiritual blindness, unbelief, evil, and separation from God. Throughout the Gospel, people are constantly faced with the choice of either stepping into Christ's light or remaining in spiritual darkness.

John introduces this theme in the opening verses of his Gospel: "The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." (John 1 v 5)

Jesus later declares: "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (John 8 v 12)

The contrast is not merely intellectual but deeply moral and spiritual. Those who reject Jesus often do so because they prefer darkness to light: "Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil." (John 3 v 19)

John also uses physical darkness symbolically. When Judas leaves the Last Supper to betray Jesus, John simply writes: "And it was night." (John 13 v 30) This is more than a note about the time of day. It symbolises Judas stepping fully into spiritual darkness as he rejects the Light of the World.

Ultimately, John presents Jesus as the only true light capable of overcoming the darkness of sin and bringing people into fellowship with God.
May we in our journey through life increasingly turn to the light! David