Spiritual Phototaxis

It’s kind amusing, what happens in the insect kingdom when we turn on the lights.  Cockroaches flee the illumination and head straight for the comfort of darkness as fast as their tiny legs can carry them.  (“Whew!”)  Moths, on the other hand, are drawn to the light and propel themselves incessantly toward its brightness; they simply can’t get enough of it!  (“Nice!”)

Not to ruin the joy of wonder, but there is a reason for this.  It’s called “phototaxis,” the tendency of an organism to move toward light or away from it.  Moths are positively phototactic while cockroaches are negatively phototactic. 

And in a spiritual sense, people can be either!  Speaking with a ruler of the Jewish Council one evening, Jesus explained to him that the Son of God had to take on flesh for a time to restore life to a fallen humanity and to shine the light of truth into a world lost and wandering in spiritual darkness.  But, he went on to say, not everyone would be open to him or to his mission: “Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.  Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.  But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God” (John 3:19-21).

Our sin nature is ever inclined away from God’s glory, his will and his ways.  Those who prefer their sin and wish it not to be exposed “beat feet” into the inky blackness when truth lights up their corner of the world.  Which is sad, because they miss the indescribable beauty of life that comes into view in the brilliance of Christ.  Their sin is exposed, yes, but, were they to remain and look around, they would see also Jesus' love for them, his forgiveness, his wisdom and his salvation.

Yet there are also the moths among us, people weary of futilely fluttering in the dark.  They yearn for life as they know it should be, one radiating with hope, peace and joy.  And they long to shake off their sin and their shame, and to fly freely and securely in the vivid clarity of truth.

So it is important that we shine the light of Christ wherever we are.  As Jesus befriended the humble, so must we connect with those he brings into our lives.  As Jesus came to serve, so must we be willing to forego our comfort for that of others.  As Jesus spoke words of hope and salvation, so must we speak his words of life.

Of course, many will scurry away and into the shadows, even as many of us once did.  But there will be others who will respond to the reflection of Christ in us.  God already knows who they are and he sends us to them.  And we will marvel as they wing their way to the one they’ve been longing to see – to him who is our life and whose life is our light.

“I am the light of the world.  Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”  John 8:12

[Click here to see the daily reading in John 3:9-21.]