From the very beginning of creation, God desired to bring forth life out of darkness, so He said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. This separation is representative of two opposing kingdoms; one to which His children belong, and one to which His enemies belong. Scripture tells us that God is light, and there is no darkness in Him, and those who belong to Him are children of light. Join us as we look at some of the attributes of each kingdom, and the separating choices each person will face as a reflection of the kingdom to which they choose to belong.

In a world fixated on credentials and achievements, Jesus deliberately selected twelve ordinary, flawed men—impulsive, proud, skeptical, even a traitor and a thief—to carry His gospel to the ends of the earth. He saw their faults and chose them anyway. This should radically reshape the way we evaluate ourselves. Through their stories, we recognize our own brokenness, and we’re reminded that God delights in using unlikely people so that His power can shine through their weakness. What He did with those unlikely disciples, He longs to do with us, if only we’ll say yes to His call.

We sometimes mistake religious performance for a relationship with God, convinced that if we just check enough boxes, we’re doing what He desires. The Pharisees kept all the rules, yet their hearts were far from Him. Jesus repeatedly crossed their man-made boundaries, not in rebellion, but to remind us that God cares more about what’s right than what’s merely religious. The world isn’t looking for people with all the answers; they want to see people who actually look like Jesus. May we have the courage to love like He does, even when the religious establishment won’t, because doing what’s right sometimes means breaking the rules.