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Gen 1:1-3 - In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.

Hellen Keller, was the first "blind deaf" person to receive a College doctorate. She is quoted as saying, "The only thing worse than being blind is to be able to see and yet have no vision."

It's when we loose sight of God's "present day purposes", His prophetic vision, that we're prone to adopt a humanistic Christianity. It's not that we're without religion as such, just without God's power and blessing.

The liberal, modern theology, of our user friendly Christianity has lead us into a spiritual "black hole" which purposes to suck all the life right out the Church.

There's no doubt that the Church in Canada is presently living in an incredible void of God's manifest presence and power. That's fact, but that's not  the end! Jesus, "I will build My church and the powers of darkness will not prevail against it."                 (Mt. 16:18)

In these verses we are able to see the creative principle of God.
Everything void and dark, the unseen Spirit of God begins to move and then God speaks the Word, "Let there be light" and there was light. That principle hasn't changed. In fact it's active this very moment.

Somewhere in the world, right now, the Holy Spirit will have been moving on the heart of a "child of darkness". God will have spoken His Word, the Gospel, the Good News and light will have come into that darkened soul.

Every Born Again Believer is a living miracle. The subject of God's creative principle in action. 2 Cor. 4:6 - For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. How incredibly awesome! With God nothing is impossible.

LOOK  AT  THE  FOLLOW  THROUGH

Light and darkness being separated from each other is a "God thing". This is God's intent. Clearly light is meant to be a distinctive. In the heart of God light and darkness are meant to be separate identities.

In the Christian church in Canada we simple don't have a good handle on this at all. Personally I'm not sure we're understanding the principle. For quite some time now the Church, even through leadership has been under a lot of pressure make us all so user friendly. We're often given the impression we need to we doing everything in our powers to be acceptable and nonoffensive to the world.

For whatever reasons we're supposed to believe that the way to attract the unsaved is to be like them. That's like saying to attract darkness we should be light. Hmmm! There's  definitely something wrong with this picture. Darkness may attract darkness all right, but, it will never bring light into a darkened soul. Personally, I think it's time for God's people to not be afraid of the separation God has put between light and darkness.

Mt.10:34-36 - "Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35  For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. 36  And a person's enemies will be those of his own household.

It's awesome when whole families get saved and go on to live for God. I love these stories. It's not the way it happen for

me though, me and countless thousands of others down through the centuries.

It's a misconception let alone being unscriptural to think that being a disciple of Christ will result in being liked by the world. If darkness could talk it wouldn't have anything good to say about light. Why are we (the church) so concerned about being liked, about being accepted, about being relative, about being popular, about being friends with the world?

What did Jesus have to say about this? Mt. 10:24, 25 - "A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25  It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household.

Wherever Jesus went it was as though He brought a sword. Whenever he spoke it just had a way of bringing division among the people. On the one hand were those who received Him, on the other those who rejected Him. From His life it is very clear that Jesus did not come into the world to be like the world. He didn't come to befriend the world. He came as the Light of the world. He came to dispel the darkness and save people from the darkness of their sins.

WHAT  HAS  JESUS  DONE  ABOUT  IT?

Right up until Jesus' dying breath He was at peace with being separated from the world. He was content with understanding that He was pleasing His heavenly Father. (Mt. 3:17; Mt.17:5) He was on a mission from heaven to glorify His Father. That

could only happen as He remained focused on the divine objective. That objective was to be the Savior and that could only happen as He remained a light in a dark place.

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WHAT'S  JESUS  SAYING  ABOUT  IT?

Jesus was the Word (Jn.1:1,14). The Word is God's doubled edged sword. That Sword, that person, that "God Man" was destined to divide, destined to separate wright from wrong, good from evil as well as the saved from the unsaved.

On Calvary's hill Jesus wasn't alone. On that dark day when they crucified the Lord of Glory there was on either side of Him a criminal. Each receiving their just due. The only innocent one on the hill that day was Christ.

As Jesus hung there beaten, bleeding, dying He's seen in the role of God's Sword. He came to divide. That's exactly what happened only minutes before Jesus gave up His spirit.

On the one side of Christ was the mocking criminal on the other a believer. This dividing has continued down through the ages.

Lk. 23:39-42 - One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, "Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!" 40  But the other rebuked him, saying, "Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? 41  And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong." 42  And he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." 43  And he said to him, "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise."

LIVING SEPARATED FROM SIN

During Jesus early life He showed great compassion towards sinners yet never condoning sin. Today the Church is Christ's representative. We are to display, as accurately as possible, the true heart of God and we're to do it the same way Jesus did.

Jesus was in the world but not of the world. The darkness was not able to comprehend Him. He was differant. He was of another kingdom and his life style revealed it. So should ours.

Jn. 15:18-20 - "If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. 19  If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. 20  Remember the word that I said to you: 'A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours.

The call of God's Word upon our life has separated us from the world. We are now from another kingdom. Col 1:13  He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,

2 Cor. 6:17,18 - Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, 18 and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty."

Rom 12:1,2 - I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Clearly it's OK for us to be differant. It's God's will for us to be LIGHT in a dark place. It's God's Word that separates us. All we need do is live as the says and because it's the Sword of the LORD there will come a separation. The world will be able to recognize our uniqueness. They will witness Light living among them.

Mt. 5:14-16 - "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.