I was walking in to work from the parking lot early one morning not too long ago.  It was a cool morning with the temperature in the upper thirties.  As I turned the corner around one building, I was met by the sun that had just risen above the buildings and trees ahead of me.  The beautiful sky that surrounded the sun, along with the radiant warmth that touched my face gave me an overwhelming desire to praise and worship God for Him being the Creator and for Him making his presence known to me.

All the while I was walking in to work that cool, early morning, I was thinking over a verse of scripture that I had read the night before.  That verse of scripture was John 8: 12, which reads:   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.” (NIV)  I felt that God had just brought those words to life for me through a magnificent display of the nature He had created.

Then in a random thought I wondered, “what if the light from the sun just went away?”  Then in an instant, I was reminded of another passage of scripture.  This time it was a passage from the Gospel of Matthew (chapter 27), which describes the crucifixion of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  The verse that was most vivid in my mind was Matthew 27: 45, which reads: “From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land”.

Over the years, many intelligent people have tried to explain what caused this darkness over the land.  However, in my simple mind, all I know is that Jesus said that He was the light of the world.  Jesus was dying on the cross, thus the light of the world temporarily went away. What a dark and cold world it is without Jesus!

We observe this day as “Good Friday”, which commemorates the death of our Lord and Savior on the cross.  But darkness could not overcome the light and death could not hold its grip on Jesus!  This Sunday, the day we observe as Easter, will be celebrated as the day that Jesus arose from the dead.  What better way is there to honor our Savior’s victory over the grave, the triumph of light over darkness, than to display his light for those around us to see?  “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.  Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.  In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”  (Matthew 5: 14- 16 NIV)

Wherever you are today, whatever you do, let us join together in one spirit… as one church… together in praise and worship of God, as we celebrate victory over death… light over darkness!