SHADOW
The ancient world believed the heavenly lights, or stars, were gods and feared the powers over them. If those stars are not pleased, they will turn and create darkness in their followers’ lives. To please these irregularities of heavenly bodies, people at those times would do anything as per the directions of their religious leaders. But James is declaring God as the Creator of these astronomical bodies. “. . . God, the Creator of the heavenly lights, who does not change or cause darkness by turning” James 1:17 (GNT). Also, he portrays God as the Lord over these moving shadows that change consistently. James assures that the God whom he proclaims does not change. He is consistent.
Like them, our contemporary world is also holding on to the mythical beliefs of heavenly bodies. Many are spending huge sums of money to please them. Some are torturing their physical bodies to satisfy them. Others are ready to sacrifice even their own sons and daughters to cast away the darkness created by these moving shadows. In such a context, we must be bold like James and proclaim that the God whom we call upon is the one who created these stars. He is constant. He does not change. He sacrificed His own Son, Jesus Christ, upon the cross to remove the darkness of sin from our lives.
As we step into 2025, may our lives align with the great commission that Jesus entrusted upon us in Matt 28:18-20 (KJV) — “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, ‘All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen”.
Pr. Charley Joseph Zachariah
Charley Joseph is serving as the Pastor of Hebron Fellowship, Halifax. He holds degrees from the Senate of Serampore College, India (B.D. and M.Th) and Seneca, Canada (SSW-IR). He is influencing the world around him through writing, teaching, social services and pastoral care.
