How you see things determines whether you are full of light or darkness.
I know two people who do not get along with each other. Unless it is out right praise, whatever Amber says to Donald, Donald thinks Amber is being critical of him. Donald thinks this is a problem with Amber - that she doesn't really care much for him - that she feels superior to him. But I know Amber pretty well. She thinks highly of Donald. The problem is that Donald sees Amber with eyes that are unhealthy. Amber moved to Donald's small town from the big city. And Donald's experience with big city women is that they look down on his small town ways. He has no desire to travel far from home and doesn't understand people who do. Amber has traveled all over - had a big city career - and is well educated. Donald is well educated and successful too, but he got his education close to home and built a business near mom and dad. He likes his small town ways.
Amber and Donald were thrown together when Amber joined his church and was invited to serve on the church board where he had held an office for years. Amber was excited about working with Donald, but soon realized that there was nothing she could say to him - unless it was lavish praise - that wouldn't upset him. He evaluated everything she said believing that she was looking down on him, his family, and his town. If she suggested they start a clothes closet out of the church, he became angry that she thought the people in his town were poor. If she saw him at the local high school basketball game - he would not acknowledge that she was there nor would he introduce her to his friends. He thought she thought that she was too good for his family and friends.
He couldn't understand that Amber was excited to live in his small town, admired his family and friends, and wanted to be part of their lives. The problem was not with Amber; Donald was blinded by his unhealthy vision of outsiders. Donald eventually told Amber in heated tones during a board meeting that he just didn't appreciate her attitude. After that, she finished up her commitments on the board as quickly as possible - not without enduring quite a bit of sustained abuse during those days (I guess he wanted to be certain she wouldn't change her mind about leaving) and moved onto another church.
How you see determines whether there is light inside you or darkness. Donald missed out on knowing someone really interesting and fun - someone who loved Jesus - someone he could have worked with to make his community an even better place - someone who actually liked him without condition - someone who had the best interest of his church and community in mind. Instead of letting this person brighten his life, he sealed himself off and lived in his darkness.
We often do this to Jesus. We invite him in when he is lavishing praise on us and blessing us, but we throw him out when he speaks truth into our lives. We hear what he says when it supports our lifestyle, but have no use for Jesus when his teachings sound insulting and hard.
How we see Jesus determines whether we are filled with light or darkness.
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Another gospel weighs in...
Luke 11:34-36 34 Your eye is the lamp of your body. If your eye is healthy, your whole body is full of light; but if it is not healthy, your body is full of darkness. 35 Therefore consider whether the light in you is not darkness. 36 If then your whole body is full of light, with no part of it in darkness, it will be as full of light as when a lamp gives you light with its rays."
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