I love a clean car, inside and out. I spend hours washing, cleaning, and polishing my car to make it shine and sparkle. Once finished and in the shade, I think that the windshield and windows are spotless. But, when I drive into the afternoon sun, it reveals the streaks that I thought I had removed.

I want a clean life, inside and out. I spend hours trying to be pure and spotless—good, decent, moral—until I expose my life to God’s light. God’s holiness exposes my sin. When I think little sin exists in my life, God’s light reveals a different story.

The recipients of John’s letter had a similar deception. He wrote, “Now this is the message we have heard from Him and declare to you: God is light, and there is absolutely no darkness in Him” (1 John 1:5). They, too, thought they were without sin. But they, when exposed to the light of God’s holiness, saw themselves as they really were—sinful. God’s light reveals the dirt, the flaws, and the cover-ups. What we think is clean next to God’s holiness is dirty.

God’s light shows our defects, mistakes, and misdeeds. The light reveal what needs to be confessed, made clean. The light points the way to forgiveness, freedom, and spotless behavior.

When we begin with God’s light, His holiness, we understand sin for what it really is—contrary to God’s will, a violation of God’s laws, and removing us from His presence. When we are exposed to the light we begin to understand God’s plan of salvation through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. Then, we realize the price He paid to make us pure, clean, and spotless. Once clean, we reflect His light, like a clean car reflects the sun.

My book, Defining Moments: How God Shapes Our Character Through Crisis, takes a fresh look at the hard times that God uses to shape our character. This book offers hope that God can be found in crisis and shows how He turns our struggles into defining moments—opportunities to dramatically transform His people. Click here to claim your copy.