“Giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins” Colossians 1:12-14
From the above passage, we see that Jesus, our Redeemer, through His death and resurrection, has placed us in His kingdom. His kingdom is a kingdom of light. I John 1:5 declares, “God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.” God reveals Himself as light. He communicates to us that there is nothing evil, or to be hidden in Him. There is nothing out of place or order. The word light here literally means to shine or to make manifest. There are many facets of God that He is waiting for us to discover, but in these verses, He reveals Himself as light. As He is completely illuminated, shining forth the brilliant essence of who He is, we as His children, are also designed to reflect His image in this way. Following are a few ways to align ourselves with who He is and who we are:
- Vulnerability with God and man. I John 1:7 says, “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sins.” God is a humble God. He shares who He is with us and has sacrificed Himself in order to reach us. He has made Himself vulnerable, risking our rejection of Him, so that we may have the opportunity to know and love Him. Since He is truth and light, He cannot help being vulnerable. We have an entire book revealing His deepest thoughts, ways, desires, love, passions-even His deepest hurts and disappointments. He has modeled vulnerability in the most beautiful and life-giving way. According to this verse, we too, are to live this way before Him and others. Of course, we need to walk in wisdom when applying this truth to our lives, finding those we can trust and who will handle our hearts well. Finding and living in community where we can be our truest selves with others who are doing the same is essential to being made into the image of Jesus.
- Living in the truth. I John 1:14, ” And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. ” Jesus perfectly represented the Father. From this verse (and many others in the Word), we see that another way that God reveals Himself to us is as truth. There is nothing that is a lie or false in Him. He is pure through and through! By abiding in Him and setting our hearts and affections upon Him, we become more and more like Him. The longer we are in relationship with Jesus, the more our lives should reflect truth. God longs for us to have truth in our inward parts (Psalm 51:6). As we are gleaning the truths of who He is from His Word, His presence, and His people, we will relate to Him in truth in a greater degree. This will cause us to be honest before Him about how we are doing in our relationship with Him, ourselves, and others. Truth enables us to be honest with where we are at in our journey. We can honestly (without condemnation) look at areas of our lives that require work and growth. We can also have an accurate assessment of our strengths and progress. As we experience the truth of who God is, we will see loads of freedom come into our lives (John 8:32). Truth enables us to see clearly who God is, who we are, and to see others as God does. Jesus’ ministry on earth was to simply reflect what was happening in heaven and who God is. Truth breaks bondages and chains, heals the brokenhearted and broken bodies, and brings us back to our purposes!
- Walking in love. Love is the way of the kingdom because it is the way of the King! God is love (I John 4:16). As we grow in loving God, loving ourselves, and loving others, we are fulfilling God’s purposes! We cannot walk in the light if our hearts are not burning with the love of God. Without pursuing and obtaining the passionate heart of God, our lives will be reduced to a set of rules and obligations. Jesus came to set us free from that which held men and women captive for years to legalism and bondage. Jesus set us free to love! If this is not our greatest motivation, then we need to repent! We need to seek and pursue a life of love. Love looks like doing the highest and greatest good for others-beginning with God and ourselves. We cannot give out what we do not have.
These are just a few ways to walk purposefully and to live successfully in the kingdom that we have been placed in. We do not have to strive to be in the light, we simply need to believe that Jesus has transferred us from the rule of darkness to Him being our King. We are children of the light! Wherever light is, there is freedom. May our lives burn with the light and fire of our Father!
