God is Light

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/122816.cfm
1 JN 1:5–2:2
MT 2:13-18

Each of us are so different in our thinking processes, and in our life experiences. No matter our history, or our learning patterns, though, we each go through varying degree of the same steps to make up our minds about things. The apostle John captures the very specific steps that lead us to clarity in a most interesting way in today’s reading.

First, God is good. Second, if we walk with God, we too are good. Third, if we fail, God rescues us. Why? Because God is good.

While John’s verses are a very good intellectual exercise in truth, reality has a way of making us forget that God is involved with us when we live in darkness. Darkness seems to pour over us more often than the light.

For some of us, it’s our own fault. For instance, I’ve heard many friends and acquaintances tell me seriously that they doubt there is any absolute truth. That statement, though, if it is a truth, contradicts itself. A truth that says there is no truth is by design, baseless. It’s always good to have an actual truth at hand for our baselines.

As basic truths go, then, God is light and is without darkness, presents, perhaps, the most solid basis for truth. It explains the source of good, setting all else as darkness, and encourages us to walk in the way of truth, the way of light, at all times.

Two old men, Ben and Tony, stood arguing in a parking lot outside of a grocery store late one evening. Ben’s hands were shoved into his pant pockets to keep them warm. Tony had pulled his wool hat as far down as he could. He squinted away the wind. They’d run into each other when they arrived at the same time.

They spied a rare Tesla parked near them, and immediately began chatting about it. Originally, their discussion centered on the impracticality of implementing driverless cars in parking lots. Parking lots have a wide range of locations to navigate, and create a host of problems associated with handy access to loading up groceries after shopping. Later, they opined on their apparent inability to survive in a new world that was simply moving too fast.

Ben thought that the driverless car should simply drop the rider off at the entrance to the grocery store and then go find the closest parking place. “Who cares where the car is parked?” he concluded. Tony, thought the automation of a driverless car should include parking based upon the driver’s needs — find a handicapped space, pick a safe spot for a woman under a light, get close to a shopping cart stall, and even park far away for a person who needed to get their exercise. 

“Holy cow,” Ben said. “That’s super complicated. No way that would all work out.”

Tony explained the purpose for his complex idea. “You can’t have a string of cars blocking the entrance to the grocery store, with folks getting dropped off by their driverless car, and other folks loading up their stuff. It’d be like a day care center traffic problem all dag-nabbed day long.”

Then, the wind began to blow so hard that the two of them had to get into one of their cars to continue their conversation. They picked the closest car, Tony’s, and after the doors slammed, Tony continued his line of thought.

“Maybe we just end up with one big parking lot in the middle of town, and you either walk to where you want to go, or you get dropped off. You decide,” he said.

“That’s just ridiculous,” said Ben. He then went on to explain that the entire point of driverless cars is so people don’t have to walk anywhere, or deal with other people. “The biggest problems we have are other people and their problems.”

And then, lightening struck someplace nearby, a flash of sparks lit up off to their left, and everywhere they could see went dark. The night sky hung black above them. There was no moon.

“Criminently,” Ben said. They could see a few headlights winding around through the parking lot, but nothing else. 

“What the heck would you do if you had a driverless car in this?” Tony asked. “I’ll bet you wouldn’t be able to go anywhere. Don’t the cars get their information from ESP?”

“You mean GPS?”

“They’re both kind of the same,” said Tony. “But, yeah.”

“Well, they still have their own power. They’ve got headlights. They could probably just drive you right home without any problem. All the info for maps is in their computer,” Ben replied. “Just go on your merry way and not worry about anybody else.”

They sat contemplating the impending reality of a fully automated automobile that supplied its own source of power, rubbing their hands in their laps. And then Tony asked the question that was on both of their minds. 

“What happens when the battery runs out? Electricity is down, and the computer is useless.”

“I guess that’s the end of the rope and you’d have to call a friend,” Tony replied. “So much for independent living.”

“You’re phone’s always running out of juice,” Ben pointed out. 

“True,” Tony said, “I’d just have to wait for morning when the sun came out. Maybe it’d warm up, and then I’d walk home, I guess. Maybe get run over by somebody else’s driverless car.”

“Heck, I would probably end up driving here on a battery that was almost dead, forget where it was, and then wander around looking for my car until I was worn out, and then go over someplace and sit down and die of exposure,” Ben surmised.

“We’re not going to be prepared for this new stuff, Ben.” Tony said. “We’re just a couple of losers, lost in the dark.”

Just then, they heard a knock on their window. A lady holding a baby stood in the wind. Tony opened his window and asked if she was OK.

“I locked my keys in my car,” she said, shivering, and bouncing the covered up child in her arms. “I feel so stupid.”

“It’s OK,” Ben said. “Happens to all of us.”

They let her in, and she took up the backseat with her purse, a changing bag, and a bright-eyed child covered from head to toe in pink wool and pink bows. Definitely a girl. “Thank you so much,” the mother said quickly. 

She pulled a phone she dug out of her purse. “Oh no, my phone’s dead! I was getting frantic, then the lights went out, and then I saw you guys. I’m so sorry to be such a bother.”

Tony and Ben sat still for a minute, Tony looking at the scene in the back seat through the rear view mirror, and Ben craning his neck to see behind him. They were listening to the mother coo at her child, telling the little girl that they were fine. “These two nice men have taken us in from the dark,” she said.

The baby smiled widely at Ben. “Wow, she lights up the whole car. What a happy child.”

“Just a tiny bright piece of heaven,” the mother said.

Tony started his vehicle to turn on the heat. 

“How about we give you a drive home?” Tony said, looking over at Ben, who nodded. “You got a way to get your car opened up tomorrow?”

“Yes,Thank you! My husband can get it opened.” 

“Well, then, let’s get you and your little one out of this dark and home to your husband and some light.”

“God bless you,” she said.

Tony looked at Ben, smiling. “Couple of losers, eh?” he said.

My children, I am writing this to you
so that you may not commit sin.
But if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, 
Jesus Christ the righteous one.
He is expiation for our sins,
and not for our sins only but for those of the whole world.

     1 JN 2:2