Based on John 12:46

MEMORY TEXT:  “I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on Me should not abide in darkness” (John 12:46)

One of the brightest objects in the night sky is Venus.  It looks like a bright star, but it’s really a planet.  Because Venus is bright enough to be seen with the naked eye, it has been known and worshiped since prehistoric times.  The Greek name for Venus is Aphrodite; The Babylonian name is Ishtar.  Venus is called our sister planet, because it’s approximately the same size as the earth.

Venus reaches its maximum brightness shortly before sunrise, and this is why it is often called the Morning Star.  Here’s an interesting fact about the planet Venus.  Venus is covered with a layer of clouds over 35 miles thick (on earth, even the highest clouds seldom go above ten miles).

Not long ago, a scientist writing for the National Geographic wrote this:  "Theoretically, if you could stand on Venus, you might enjoy one of the strangest experiences of a life time.  Because the clouds reflect like a mirror, you could in theory see all the way around the planet.”  That’s called “full circle reflection.”  How does that work?  You’ve been in dressing rooms where there are mirrors all around you, and you can see yourself from any angle.  Well, instead of mirrors, the cloud layer on Venus would be like a gigantic mirror reflecting all around itself, so you could see all sides of the planet while standing in one place.

Why is this so interesting?  Have you ever wondered how every eye will see Jesus coming in the clouds?  How hard would it be for Jesus to cover our earth with thick clouds that would reflect His coming, like a giant mirror, so that everyone all the way around the planet could see it at the same time?

But the Morning Star has more to tell us.  Before Jesus came, our world was in darkness.  The prophet Isaiah wrote: “For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people” (Isaiah 60:2).  But then Jesus came.  “In Him was life; and the life was the light of men....  That was the true Light, that lights every man who comes into the world.” (John 1:4, 9).

Invite Jesus to be the light of your life today.