Isaiah 9:1: Darkness Will Not Reign Forever

Introduction

"In my life, in my family, in my home, in my church, darkness will not reign." This is the confession Apostle Nany Pembele has the congregation of the Centre Évangélique des Églises Sion in Grenoble repeat, even before he reads his text.

It is a special service: the apostle, whom the church calls "the father of the house," has just returned from a mission in Angola. He thanks the church for its support and prayers, then preaches in French and Portuguese from a single verse, Isaiah 9:1 (numbered Isaiah 8:23 in the French Louis Segond Bible): "But there will be no more gloom for her who was in anguish." The preacher stresses that the gloom, the darkness, will not reign forever over the land that now knows anguish.

He presents this message as an introduction to a large subject that the church will develop during its end-of-year prayer time. His guiding thread fits in one sentence: "Darkness does not have the last word in your life. Jesus has the last word."

Outline of the Message

1. Darkness Is a Power, Not Just the Night

Darkness is first of all a place where there is no life and no light. But the apostle wants you to understand that in reality, "it is a power, it is an authority, it is a force."
The verb matters: darkness will not "reign." Where there is a reign, there is a kingdom, and where there is a kingdom, there is a king. The king of the kingdom of darkness is Satan.
He is not talking about the night we know. The room is lit by spotlights, and yet people can be under darkness, because this darkness is spiritual.
There are several dimensions in this kingdom. A simple unbeliever lives in it. Someone who practices magic, witchcraft, or the occult, who "knows the depths of Satan," lives in a dimension of darkness that not everyone knows.

2. You Carry the Light of Another Kingdom

The light we carry is not physical: "it's not electricity, it's not the sun." When you have Jesus, the light, you become the light too.
"You are not just in the world of light, you are the light." If light is a power and it lives in you, then a kingdom lives in you: the kingdom of light.
You are in the world, but you are not of that world of darkness. You belong to another kingdom.
There are two births, the natural birth and the spiritual birth. Because you were born in Christ, "you were born to shine and you must shine."

3. Going Through Darkness Without Letting It Reign

For the Christian, darkness means trials: a hard season, a season of confusion, a season of depression.
David knew them. He walked with God and yet he said: "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me" (Psalm 23:4). You can go through darkness, but it will not reign.
Job feared God and walked in integrity. He lost everything, his possessions and his children. While he was passing through the world of darkness, he did not lose his faith, and he declared that his Redeemer would stand last on the earth (Job 19:25).
Lazarus went through sickness, then the tomb. But Jesus loved him, and on the fourth day the light appeared: the darkness of the tomb would not reign forever. "Come out of there, come into the light."
To the one who weeps and asks "why me?", the apostle answers: "God never abandons his children." And he prays: "Rise and be enlightened. May God's light locate you."

4. Jesus Went Through the Darkness of the Cross

Our Lord himself was fought against. Crucified at Golgotha at nine in the morning, he saw darkness cover the earth at midday, until three in the afternoon (Mark 15:25, 33).
During those hours, he fought the king of the world of darkness, and at three o'clock he crushed his head. Just as Jesus overcame, the apostle declares, you will overcome this trial and this sickness.
"Light can be only the light of a candle while the darkness is thick. Light always ends up making darkness flee." Where sin increased, grace increased all the more (Romans 5:20).
Perhaps you have been attacked, mistreated, misunderstood, pushed to make decisions you did not want to make. "A lie takes the elevator. The truth takes the stairs." But it arrives.
"The enemy can make me cry, but the light that is in me, the enemy will never be able to hold it." No one can steal the peace that is in you.

5. The Blood of the Lamb Has the Last Word Over Your Family

The apostle speaks to the one who comes from a family where, he says, witchcraft reigns and a curse reigns. Your destiny is not in the hands of your enemies, it is in the hands of the Lord: those he called, he also justified and glorified (Romans 8:30).
Someone once told the apostle that his great-grandparents were sorcerers and that the curse continued. He answered that you have to read the Bible to the end: Revelation is its conclusion, and it says: "They overcame him because of the Lamb's blood, and because of the word of their testimony" (Revelation 12:11).
"The blood of Jesus that could not transform your parents' lives, in your turn, it will not miss you." And again: "I am in my family, but I no longer belong to my family."
The whole world lies in the power of the evil one (1 John 5:19). "A star only shines in the darkness": you had to be born into this family to show God's glory there. And if the blood of Jesus has located you, do not condemn others: it can also locate the other members of your family.
Replace the blood of the Lamb with another blood, that of your apostle, your pastor, your father, your president, or your mother, and the sentence changes: they failed. The Bible speaks of only one blood.

6. Son of David, Open My Eyes

When John the Baptist saw Jesus, he did not say "here is the Son of God" but "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29).
The lion of the tribe of Judah is strong, he can kill all enemies, but he does not uproot sin. The only animal that manages it is a lamb: the sacrifice that gives the blood that takes away sin, the curse, and the darkness.
The apostle loves the story of Bartimaeus. The blind man did not cry out "Son of God," he cried out "Son of David" (Mark 10:47). In Israel, many saw in Jesus the carpenter's son.
David is the king, and his reign points to the eternal kingdom. Bartimaeus calls on the one who must open his eyes, draw him out of darkness, and bring him into the kingdom of light. When Jesus asks him what he wants him to do for him, he answers that he wants to see (Mark 10:51).

7. Hold On: The Night Is Not the End

"Depression will not reign forever. Lies will not reign forever. Sickness will not reign forever. Shame will not reign forever. Sin will not reign forever."
David knew darkness and he overcame. So did Job, so did Jesus, so did Lazarus. "And you too will overcome. No matter where you come from, no matter the darkness of your family, trust in God."
The one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world (1 John 4:4). "Satan can fight the light that is in you, but he can never put it out."
Keep the faith, keep trusting, keep praying. Lean on God's promises and wait for God's timing. The night you are going through is not the end: it is temporary, and God wants you to learn something in it.
Through authoritative prayer, call on the blood of the Lamb and the name of Jesus against every claim of the world of darkness, of shame, of anguish, and of fear. "You are on the right side of history." "Darkness will reign, yes, but it will not reign forever. There is an end to darkness."

Key Takeaways

Darkness is a power, a kingdom whose king is Satan, but Isaiah 9:1 announces that this reign has an end.
In Christ, you are not just in the light: you are the light, and you were born to shine.
The Christian can go through the darkness of trial, like David, Job, Lazarus, and Jesus, without it reigning over his life.
No blood other than that of the Lamb breaks the curse: it is by his blood that believers overcome.
The night is temporary. Darkness does not have the last word, Jesus does.

Personal Application

What season of darkness are you going through right now: sickness, confusion, anguish, shame?
Do you see yourself as someone who is in the light, or as someone who is the light where God has placed you?
Is there a spiritual inheritance in your family that you still believe is stronger than the blood of Jesus?
Who or what are you leaning on to be set free: a man, a ministry, or the blood of the Lamb alone?
What do you want Jesus to do for you today, like Bartimaeus when he cried out "Son of David"?

Verses Cited

Frequently Asked Questions

What does "darkness will not reign forever" mean?

For Apostle Nany Pembele, darkness is not only the absence of light: it is a power, a kingdom whose king is Satan. Isaiah 9:1 announces that this reign has an end. A Christian can go through darkness, but it will not reign over his life, because the light of Jesus within him always ends up triumphing.

Why does a Christian still go through darkness?

For the Christian, darkness means trials: sickness, confusion, depression, nights of anguish. David, Job, Lazarus, and Jesus himself went through them. The preacher reminds us that God allowed these moments because you are called to shine, and a star only shines in the night.

What should I do if my family is marked by witchcraft or a curse?

Apostle Nany Pembele points to the conclusion of the Bible: "They overcame him because of the Lamb's blood, and because of the word of their testimony" (Revelation 12:11). The blood of Jesus that did not transform your parents' lives will not miss you. He invites us to call on the blood of the Lamb and the name of Jesus against every claim of the world of darkness.