God’s Eternal Lighthouse
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ighthouses have always been fascinating to me. They not only impress me for the way they gracefully stand toward the clouds, but also because of their purpose. They are there to guide home safely those who are seeking the right course, or perhaps guiding those who are lost in a storm. In the past when I did oil paintings, lighthouses were among my favorites to paint. In fact, a picture of a lighthouse is on the wall just above my computer in the office where I work.
While recently thinking about the purpose of lighthouses, the thought occurred to me that Jesus came to earth to lead those who are lost out of the darkness of sin into eternal life. His lighthouse is in the shape of a cross, and its light rays shine into all the world into all generations.
As
the apostle John introduced Jesus as the word, he said of Him, “In Him was
life, and the life was the light of men” (John 1:4). As Jesus spread
His message of salvation He said, “And this is the condemnation, that the
light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light,
because their deeds were evil” (John
3:19). What are some of the light beams that came from Jesus?
The
first one was salvation. Before Jesus was born, an angel of the Lord appeared
to Joseph and spoke of Mary and the birth of her Son. “And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His
name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew
1:21). Years later when Jesus began His ministry, He spoke of His purpose for
coming to earth, “for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which
was lost” (Luke 19:10).
Another light beam associated with this first one was
grace. Because Jesus died on the cross, Paul could write, “For by grace you
have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of
God” (Ephesians 2:8). “For the grace of God that brings
salvation has appeared to all men” (Titus 2:11).
Another
light beam was forgiveness, because it was through forgiveness that grace and
salvation were made possible. This was why John the immerser could introduce
Jesus by saying, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the
world!” (John 1:29).
There
are many other light beams that shine forth from Jesus, God’s eternal
lighthouse, that are related to the ones just discussed. However, there is one
that comes from all others, the light beam of hope. When Jesus came to earth,
the world was hopelessly groping in darkness and lost in sin. There were
destructive storms raging everywhere among the rocks and shoals of the devil.
However, Jesus sent forth a ray of hope that reached all the way to the Father.
Thus He could say, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to
the Father except through Me” (John
14:6).
With Jesus the great lighthouse, what is the problem?
Millions choose to ignore His light and are eternally destroyed in sin and
darkness. Are you among those who follow the beams from God’s eternal
lighthouse? Jesus is the only hope for a lost and dying world. —BBBristow