We live in a 24/7 world where darkness has been turned into light by the invention of the light bulb! In Jesus’ time when it got dark, people turned off the TV and went to bed. Daylight was for working; nighttime was for sleeping.
This man born blind had only known NIGHT. He had never seen a sun rise or a sun set or a flower or a pretty girl or an angry Pharisee. It was always night for him.
The Lord Jesus was fond of using metaphors 
in the gospel of John. He uses the metaphor of birth in chapter three, of water in chapter four, of bread in chapter six, of darkness (night) in chapter nine.
Jesus knows that He is on a mission to do “the works of God” and the time to do those works is the daytime. As the light of the world He was personally obligated “to do the works of him who sent me.”
Actually, when you think about it, the expression “the light of the world” implies nighttime, doesn’t it? We don’t need light during the day, but during the night. Perhaps Jesus is saying that this world is very dark, even in the daytime.
Jesus’ followers, we are told in Matthew 5, are “the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.” In a real sense, we have taken the place of Jesus as the light of the world! Earlier in John 8 Jesus had said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” Jesus says, “While I am in the world . . .” The implication is that He was here only for a short time and soon would be returning to His Father. And in this in-between-time, we are the light of the world.
Letting your light shine? (to be continued)
Dr. Larry Dixon
larrydixon.wordpress.com 