The Preeminent Light
The Preeminent Light:
Where there is light, there is life.
From the first words spoken into the void to the eternal radiance of the new creation, Scripture tells one unified story—Jesus Christ is the Light. Not merely metaphorically, not symbolically, but preeminently. He is the uncreated Light by whom and for whom all things exist.
Genesis: The First Word of Creation
The Bible opens with a dramatic moment:
“And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light. And God saw that the light was good.” (Genesis 1:3–4a)
This was not the light of the sun, moon, or stars—they weren’t created until the fourth day. This light was something deeper: a manifestation of God’s order, presence, and power breaking into the formless void. Where God’s light shines, chaos retreats. Darkness loses its dominion. Life begins.
This sets the stage for everything else. Light is the condition for life, vision, growth, and understanding—and that light, we later learn, has a name.
John: The Word Who Was Light
The apostle John, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, intentionally echoes Genesis 1 to reveal who that Light truly is:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God… In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” (John 1:1, 4–5)
And again:
“The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.” (John 1:9)
John isn’t merely being poetic. He is making a radical claim: Jesus Christ is the eternal Word who was both with God and was God—and He is the Light that gives life to humanity. The same divine voice that said, “Let there be light” at the dawn of creation took on flesh and entered our dark world to bring spiritual life and saving revelation.
Jesus is not merely a bearer of light. He is the Light.
He doesn’t just illuminate truth—He is the truth (John 14:6).
He doesn’t just show the way—He is the way.
He doesn’t just give life—He is life itself.
Colossians: The Supremacy of the Light
Paul takes the vision further and higher in Colossians 1:
“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created… all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together… that in everything he might be preeminent.” (Colossians 1:15–17, 18b)
Jesus is the visible image of the invisible God.
He is not a created being—He is the One by whom creation came into existence.
He is not just first in time—He is first in rank, first in glory, first in all things.
This is what it means for Jesus to be preeminent:
- He is the source of creation (Genesis 1).
- He is the revealer of God and redeemer of man (John 1).
- He is the center of all things and the One in whom all creation holds together (Colossians 1).
From the first flash of light that shattered the darkness in Genesis, to the glorious light that radiates from the throne in Revelation, Jesus is the Light. He is not just part of the story—He is the point of the story.
Let There Be Christ
So when God said, “Let there be light,” He wasn’t only launching the physical universe. He was prefiguring the coming of His Son, who would enter the world to dispel spiritual darkness and give eternal life.
That moment in Genesis finds its ultimate fulfillment in the gospel. The light that broke through the cosmic night on day one is the same light that broke through the tomb on the third day. Jesus Christ—crucified, risen, reigning—is the Light of the world.
And in Him,THE Light, there is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5).
So we can boldly say:
“Let there be Light” was ultimately God saying: Let there be Christ.
And where Christ shines, there is life. There is truth. There is hope.
And in the end, there is glory.
“And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.” (Revelation 21:23)