This month we are going to reflect on why we continue to live with gratitude for our relationship with Jesus. John begins his Gospel not with a manger or shepherds, but with light. Jesus is described in our passage today as the true light – not a flickering candle or the last faint ray before sunset, but the Light itself, who gives light to every person. In a world that has lost its direction, and in which there is so much darkness and there are so many challenges to face, Christ is the light we need.

 

We live in a time when the common mindset is that “Everyone has their own truth.” Yet John testifies that there is one true light. Jesus Christ is not merely a religious teacher among others; he is the revelation of God himself. As he later says in John 8:12, “I am the light of the world.” His light shows us who God is – holy, gracious, faithful – and simultaneously shows us who we are.

 

Light has two effects: it exposes and it leads/guides. When the sun rises, you see dust that you did not notice in the dark. In the same way, the light of Jesus reveals our sins and vices, our selfishness, and our lost condition. But it is precisely in this place that gratitude begins: Jesus shines on us not to harm us, but to save us. The light of Christ is not a searchlight of condemnation, but a lighthouse for those who are lost.

 

John writes the tragic words: “He was in the world … the world did not recognise him.” Even his own people did not receive him. Darkness prefers itself. Yet the passage does not end in rejection, but in grace: “Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”

 

Herein lies our gratitude; that we, who were by nature in darkness, have, through faith, become children of God. Not by descent, achievement, or spiritual merit, but by new birth – being “born of God” anew. It is pure grace. When the light of Christ rises in a person’s heart, your identity changes – you are no longer a stranger, but a child in the Father’s house.

 

Perhaps today you feel overwhelmed by darkness – personal worries, uncertainty about the future or the heaviness of this world. Remember: The light, Jesus, has already come. The darkness cannot extinguish it. Even a small beam of light illuminates darkness in a room; how much more the true source of light who comes from God?

 

Let gratitude be your response today. Thank the Lord that he has revealed himself. Thank him for opening your eyes. Thank him that you get to be a child of God, and ask that his light will shine through you onto others – for children of the light reflect something of their Heavenly Father’s glory.

 

Prayer: Lord Jesus, the true source of light who gives light to everyone, thank you for entering into my darkness. Thank you that you did not reject me, but gave me the right to become a child of God. Let your light fill my heart today, renew my mind, and let my life reflect the glory of your name. Amen.