"Darkness" Colossians 1:13, "Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:" This morning, a quick perusal of the various information outlets reveals that sin and evil are alive and well in our world. Though mankind has lived in a sin cursed world from the day of man's fall in the Garden of Eden, today's world seems to either manifest the sin to greater degrees than before or provide the means for seeing it more than ever before. With the rise and advent of instant access, we see man's depravity on display all around us. As Paul told the Galatian brethren (Galatians 5:19), the works of the flesh are "manifest." One thing that seeing all of this around us can do is paralyze us with fear, depression, or apathy. As broken creatures ourselves, we can either be overrun with emotions that do us no good spiritually or want to "quit the fight" as seeing all the evil works of darkness in this world. Our study verse is found in the midst of one of Paul's patented "long sentences." Paul's writing style is known for laying foundational points together over long spaces. Much like in Ephesians 1, this chapter is chock full of rich information about how God has taken His children to Himself. During this rich, foundational discourse, Paul declares that we do not belong to this old world. We have been translated (transferred or transposed) from the hold of darkness into a kingdom that is not of this world. As Enoch was translated from this world to heaven itself (Hebrews 11:5), we have experienced a change from one realm to another. Enoch's translation put him completely away from the shores of this world, and while our translation still keeps our abode here, we have been removed from its grip. Sometimes it helps me when reading the Bible to consider what a text is "not saying" as that aids me in not making the wrong application or drawing the wrong conclusion about things. Too many times today we hear people say, "I don't understand why so many good people suffer in this world." Without addressing the merits/demerits of this statement, let us consider that statement from our study verse. The text does not say that we have been delivered from the "presence" of darkness. We have been delivered from the "power" of it. Whether considering the darkness of the world in general or the darkness of our old nature, God has mercifully delivered us from the power of it. Since the presence of darkness remains, we still must fight for the cause of light, verity, and goodness. But, what about this fight? Have you ever fought the spiritual warfare with a defeatist attitude? Perhaps your prayer life was in motion only, without ever really expecting the prayers to be answered? We are commanded to pray
In Hope,
Bro Philip
Morning Thoughts
Elder Philip Conley