I Saw the Light

“Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” (Jeremiah 31:31-34 ESV). "I Saw the Light" is a country gospel song written by Hank Williams. Williams was inspired to write the song while returning from a concert by a remark his mother made while they were arriving in Montgomery, Alabama. He recorded the song during his first session for MGM Records, and released in September 1948. The song became the show closer for Williams and one of his most popular tunes. Williams' version did not enjoy major success during its initial release although it was soon covered by other acts and with time became a country gospel standard. Seeing the Light is an essential part of the Christian experience. The human eye belongs to a general group of eyes found in nature called camera-type eyes. Just as a camera lens focuses light onto film, a structure in the eye called the cornea focuses light onto a light-sensitive membrane called the retina. Then the brain is able to “develop” those images and interpret what we are seeing. All of that takes place in milliseconds. It is an incredible process we often take for granted. One of the things about our eyes that is critical is the necessity of light. Whether by day or night, light fuels human discovery. Visual perception, our eyesight, is based on processing information conveyed by visual light. If you can see anything at all, even the faintest blur in a dark room, it is because your eye is receiving light. What we call light and dark are relative terms, considering there are virtually no natural places on the surface of the earth that do not have some form of visible light present. So it is with spiritual discovery. In our reading today the Lord speaks through Jeremiah about a day in which God’s people will know him so intimately that his law will be written on their hearts. They will no longer need to teach one another about who God is, because they will all know him, every last one. With the coming of Jesus Christ, who called himself the light of the world, God fulfilled this promise. Jesus took our sins upon himself and reconciled us to God. Have you “seen the light”?