Light Conversation

If we say we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. – 1 John 1:6-7

I always thought honesty and truth were closed related -- silly old paleo-conservative, classical liberal me. The postmodern progressive, the materialist, men like Hitchens and the former OC jester can be honest enough, even pure in a sense, yet be completely in the dark with regard to truth. When the concept of truth is divorced from its Source, it becomes nothing more than a consensus interpretation of derivative existence, conveniently useful in some cases, but devoid of light. Honest self-evaluation won't automatically lead to enlightenment, especially if we are only comparing ourselves to others or people in general.

And then there are some people who manage to be blithely unaware of their own inconsistencies while seeking Truth. In fact there are people whom I would have to acknowledge as Christians, recipients of the grace of God in Christ, who are at best blunt instruments with regard to self-examination. I have a relative by marriage that is the perfect example of this. I was talking to her the other day about her late husband, who really was a saint. She commented on how hard the man was to live with and the fact that he had a quick temper. I told my wife afterward that I was surprised blood wasn’t running out of my mouth from biting my tongue. The woman is rigid, demanding, and arrogantly self-righteous. Is she a Christian? Obviously, it’s God’s call, and I can’t be certain – I mean, but for the grace of God, she could be an ax-murderer. Always remember: when you meet an idiot who claims to be a Christian, the Lord may be doing the best He can with what He has to work with.

That brings us to the idea of walking in the light and practicing the truth. The tension in our relationship with the Lord is always about how much control we are willing to surrender. How much are we going to give Him to work with? Surrender is function of trust, of the extent of our belief, our faith in the Father. We talked yesterday about having no need to fear God, for He is pure and true in Himself with no shadow of deception. He can be fully trusted. Yet we hold back.

I think I am afraid of not being myself. If I let God have too much control, control of everything, will I cease to be me? Will I become bland and homogenized? Will I just be part of the herd?

“I Gotta Be Me” is the world’s favorite song, yet it is the world system that is peopled by poor imitations, by slavish devotion to fashion and the herd mentality. That is not God’s way. The Lord does not try to categorize us and make us fit into little pre-formed pigeonholes. He wants us to be more than we are, not less.

In my better moments I thought walking in the light meant being aware that I can’t do anything behind God’s back, and that’s true, but it doesn’t go far enough. The King James Bible uses the word ‘conversation’ in contexts which seem odd to the modern reader. Conversation once had additional meanings beyond simply talking to someone. It could mean behavior, manner of living, social intercourse, and it could even have a sexual connotation. It could mean to understand through study and contemplation, as we still speak of being ‘conversant’ with regard to some subject or body of knowledge.

We are called to have conversation with God, with light and truth. To walk in the light means that we are conversing with the Lord, aware, speaking, listening, and interacting with Him in every chamber of our being. That’s my goal today, to let the Son shine in.