Light Is Beautiful, But Powerful: Christ in Your Darkness

Introduction

We often talk about light as if it were mere decoration. A candle in the living room, a string of lights at Christmas, a ray of sunshine that soothes us. But in his message closing out the Advent series at Porte Ouverte Chrétienne, Benjamin Peterschmitt brings us back to a much more unsettling truth: light is not just beautiful, it is powerful. And this powerful light is Christ himself, come all the way to you to pierce through your darkness, not merely decorate it.

Message Outline

Introduction: God Is Light, Without Any Shadow

The Bible does not say that God has light, or that he reflects it. It says he is light (1 John 1:5). No duplicity, no injustice, no defilement, no troubling secret.
A lamp casts a shadow because of something coming between it and the light. In God, there is nothing that gets in the way. Light is the reflection of his glory (Psalm 104:2).
This light is powerful because it reveals what is deep and hidden (Daniel 2:22). It exposes even the most well-concealed darkness.
Benjamin tells of the week a man showed him a video filmed from his bedroom: while a brother was giving an online prophetic word to an addict who was about to shoot up, God revealed the syringes lying on the coffee table. The light sees what you are still hiding.

1. A Light You Cannot Reach by Your Own Strength

When you try to stare at the sun, you burn your eyes. In the same way, man is not equipped to gaze upon God as he is. This is not harshness — it is a difference in nature between his holiness and our condition.
Moses, a man who spoke to God as a friend, asked to see his glory. God answered him: "You cannot see my face, for no man shall see me and live" (Exodus 33:18-23). He would place him in the cleft of the rock and let him see only his back.
Paul confirms this reality: God "dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see" (1 Timothy 6:16).
Every religion, every spirituality, every attempt at enlightenment tries to make man climb up to God. The myth of Icarus sums it up: the closer you get by your own strength, the more your wings burn. Your efforts, your religiosity, your good works, even your signs of the cross will not get you there.

2. The Light Came to You: Christ, Light Incarnate

If we cannot reach the light, how can it come to us without burning us? This is exactly what Christmas celebrates: the light became flesh (John 1:1-9).
Christ is the reflection of God's glory, the exact imprint of his being (Hebrews 1:3). Between the Father in heaven and the Son on earth, there is no difference.
Jesus states it without ambiguity: "I am the light of the world" (John 8:12). Not one light among others, not one path among others. He is the light you can encounter.
And above all, when you welcome him, he does not just light you from the outside: "God, who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God's glory displayed in the face of Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:6). He comes to light up your shadowy places from within.

3. The Powerful Light Pierces Through All Your Darkness

Our darkness is not just around us. It is within us: "The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked." Whether you grew up in a Christian family like Benjamin or in the most violent of circumstances, no layer of darkness is too thick for Christ.
The real problem is not that God hides himself: "Light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil" (John 3:19).
When you come to Christ, you are not just making a moral improvement. You undergo a transfer of state: God "has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son" (Colossians 1:12-14).
"The people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned" (Matthew 4:16). This light has dawned for you this morning, for your past, your present, and your future.
The ultimate demonstration is the cross. At the sixth hour, darkness came over the whole land (Mark 15:33-38; Luke 23:44). Everything seemed to be going out, but that is where the light burned brightest. Christ was made sin for us, the light was compressed into a box of darkness until it broke through it. Three days later, he rose again, having disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame (Colossians 2:15).

4. The Light That Heals Your Body and Your Soul

"But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings" (Malachi 3:20, LSG — Malachi 4:2 in other translations). With the light of Christ comes real healing for your body and your heart.
Benjamin shares his own testimony: suicidal, he used to cut himself, hitting his fingers with the lid of his piano to feel less of his inner pain. He went through psychiatric illness, heavy treatments, the shame of hospital care at age 19. Since 2012, he has been completely healed, outwardly and inwardly.
Chantal, coming out of the night of drugs and energy healing practices, met Jesus the moment a word of knowledge pierced her heart. She was instantly delivered from drugs and filled with the love of God like warm oil.
Jesus is more precise than the most precise surgical laser. He healed the woman who had suffered from a flow of blood for twelve years. He sends his disciples "to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed" (Luke 4:18-19).
The sin of the one who hurt you is not God's will. But it is by bringing your wounded heart to the true light that you will experience peace — not in hatred or bitterness, which will not change you.

6. The Gentle Strength of This Light

When you are cold and you step into the sun, its gentle warmth wraps around you. This gentleness takes nothing away from the power of the sun; without it, no life would exist.
Christ says of himself that he is gentle and humble in heart. He does not force himself on you, he does not shine a harsh spotlight in your eyes to force you to see your darkness. He offers you his light.
In Revelation, he is both the Lion of Judah and the Lamb: the power of the light in all its power, but also its gentleness in all its gentleness.
"For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light" (Ephesians 5:8). He will not force you to make this choice — but he is waiting for you to open yourself to that light today.

Key Takeaways

God is not merely lit up, he is light — without shadow, without duplicity, without a troubling secret.
No religion, no effort, no spirituality will get you up to God. You cannot make the unreachable reachable through your own ambition.
God is the one who took the step: light became flesh in Christ to come to you, all the way into your heart.
On the cross, Christ let the darkness crush him in order to defeat it from within; his resurrection proves that no darkness, not even death, can extinguish him.
This light is powerful enough to transfer you from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light, to heal your body, heal your soul, and transform your words, your face, and your future.

Personal Application

What shadowy areas am I still hiding, thinking they will remain invisible to God?
Am I trying to reach God through my own efforts, my religiosity, or my superstition, instead of receiving Christ as he comes to me?
Is there a hatred, a bitterness, an abuse I suffered that I am still carrying without daring to bring it to the true light?
Am I ready to believe that Christ can heal not only my body but also my wounded soul?
When the light of Christ brings something to light that troubles me, do I choose to stay in the light or to flee into the shadows?

Verses Cited

Frequently Asked Questions

If God is light, why doesn't he simply let himself be seen by everyone?

It is not that God hides himself. It is that there is a difference in nature between his holiness and our condition. Moses himself could only see the back of God, protected in the cleft of the rock. We are not calibrated to gaze upon absolute light. That is exactly why the light became flesh in Christ: to become someone we can encounter without being consumed.

Can my good works or my religiosity bring me to God?

No. The message is clear: you can aim for the sky all you want, but you cannot make the unreachable reachable through your own ambition. The myth of Icarus illustrates this well: the more you try to climb by your own strength, the more you burn. We do not reach the light, we receive Christ. He is the one who takes the initiative to come down to you.

Can Christ really heal wounds as deep as abuse or psychiatric illness?

Yes. The light of Christ is powerful enough to pierce through every layer of darkness, including wounds of the soul and trauma. Benjamin Peterschmitt testifies to a complete healing from severe psychiatric struggles since 2012; Chantal was instantly delivered from drugs the moment she met Jesus. Hatred and bitterness bring no peace — but Christ, under his wings, brings real healing for body and soul.

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