Light
‘let my light shine in your life.’
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
1 Peter 2:9
Folks usually talk in great lengths about the first half of that verse, but for purposes of this article we’re zeroing in on that second half.
Indeed, we proclaim the excellencies of the only One who is truly excellent. We give thanks to Him, because He called us out of darkness into His marvelous light.
Take note that we must make mention of the darkness where we once were, before we marvel in His light… But it seems our plight was even worse than that, because we read of something else in Isaiah’s account:
16 And I will lead the blind in a way that they do not know, in paths that they have not known I will guide them. I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them.Isaiah 42:16
And we also read the following conversation between Christ and Saul (later, Paul):
15 And I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. 16 But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, 17 delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—to whom I am sending you 18 to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’Acts 26:15-18
Before we even knew we were in darkness, we were blind to begin with. Our eyelids may have been open, but no matter where we were, all we saw was darkness. God delivered us from blindness first, before calling us out of the darkness, calling and saying, ‘let My light shine in your life.‘
On a side note I find it interesting that in the Old Testament, those who were blind were merely led and guided in paths. Granted, Isaiah follows with Him turning the darkness into light and ‘smoothing’ the rough places, but it seems as if they are still blind.
Let me correct myself, I’m not looking at the exact account of Christ’s appearing to Saul (later Paul), but Paul’s recounting of the events to King Agrippa, in Acts 26. Considering that these were the words and memories that stuck with him since, up until this moment prior to his appeal to Caesar, I think they’re worth looking into.
He tells the king that Christ appointed him as a servant and witness to things in which he saw Him, and in those which He will appear – take note that as early as here Paul is making mention of eyesight. A side note: These things where Christ shows Himself are for his deliverance – and not only him but his people (the Jews) and the Gentiles.
Paul tells King Agrippa, he was appointed, and he was also sent to the Gentiles ‘to open their eyes‘; see, here, not only to guide them and to make their paths smooth, but to deliver them from blindness, so that THEN they may turn from darkness to light.
At this point I just want to give thanks to God, because our being in the light apparently implies so much more – that we have been healed of our blindness, AND we have been called out of the darkness.
And see there, Paul gives us a couple of other contrasts so we understand what we were in when we say we were in the darkness – we were under the power of Satan, in sin and separate from sanctification.
Now, we praise God, because through Christ, not only have our Gentile eyes been opened, but we have been called out of darkness, out of the power of Satan. We have received forgiveness of sins, and we have been brought out into the light, ‘a place among those who are sanctified by faith in Me’.
26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD! We bless you from the house of the LORD. 27 The LORD is God, and he has made his light to shine upon us. Bind the festal sacrifice with cords, up to the horns of the altar!Psalms 118:26-27
28 For it is you who light my lamp; the LORD my God lightens my darkness.Psalms 18:28
11 Light is sown for the righteous, and joy for the upright in heart.
12 Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous, and give thanks to his holy name!Psalms 97:11-12
Oh, give thanks to God! For, again, once we were blind and in the darkness, but light – and not just any light, but HIS light – this light shines upon us, and IN us. Yes, once we were blind and all we saw was darkness, but blessed be the name of the Lord, for He ‘lights (our) lamp‘ and He sows light for us – yes, we who have been made righteous through our faith in Christ!
Glorious Children
‘you are my dearly beloved son. your sons shall become conquerors of this world.’
16 For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17 For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,” 18 we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. 19 And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, 20 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. 21 For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. 2 Peter 1:16-21
Peter mentions in his epistle of how they saw Christ’s glory and majesty – the integral basis and foundation for their proclaiming of His power and His return.
The Gospels recall of at least 2 incidents where God proclaimed to those around, that Jesus Christ was His beloved Son, ‘with whom (He is) well pleased’ – first, after John baptized Him, with the Holy Spirit descending upon Him as a dove, and second, at the event we know as the Transfiguration, when He conversed with Moses and Elijah.
In both incidents, glory was involved – first, descending upon Him, and then when He changed form/appearance into a more glorious (Merriam-Webster mentions ‘more beautiful or spiritual’) state. Also, as I’m writing this I’m noticing that in both incidents, the Holy Spirit was present and just as involved…
..and, I feel that He really is involved, because this is the same Holy Spirit that not only convicts us of righteousness – but He also leads us to the Truth: The Truth that He is the Spirit of Adoption that causes us to call God our Father. We who are in the body of Christ are children of the Most High.
With that being said, I propose the following: The Holy Spirit is absolutely consistent and faithful in reminding and convicting us of our righteousness. But I believe there will be in times when we are reminded, specifically, not just of our right-standing with God, but of His calling us, as He calls Christ, His ‘dearly beloved child’.
In all we’ve been going through here, we’re not only so thankful because this Holy Spirit causes us to call God our Father, but at the same time, we’re also reminded of His descending upon us with glory, and His changing us a new creation – the old has passed away, behold the more beautiful, the more spiritual has come.
I have reason to believe that it is by the grace of God, the finished work of Christ, and the power of the Holy Spirit that we are constantly reminded of our being so close to God that we can call Him our Father, and we are constantly reminded of how He calls us His beloved children, in whom He is well pleased – effectively pouring His glory afresh on us (from the outside in), transforming us, glorifying us (as Christ prayed for in John 17) by the renewing of our mind (from the inside out), and causing us to move from glory to glory.
God is our Father, and we are His children. We enjoy His comprehensive grace, and from His absolute glory we proclaim, as Paul proclaims: 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.Romans 8:37
In all things we conquer, through Christ, who, while we were sinners, loved us and lay His life down for us.
In all things we conquer, through God our Father, who loves us, and proclaims to us (by the power of the Holy Spirit) – we are His beloved children, in whom we are well pleased.
This is the Gospel:
Christ delivered us from blindness, and took us out of the darkness into His eternal light. Once we were under the power of satan, separate from God, devoid of glory.
By Christ’s obedience (praise His holy name!), we have been brought back into the presence of God, reconciled to Him; Now, He calls us His children, and we call Him our Father, enjoying His presence, His glory and grace, here and now, unto forever!
And we give praise to God, because we are given opportunities in this dark, fallen world, to shine, so that as we conquer by this Gospel – by the grace of God, by the finished work of Christ, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, others will also be delivered from darkness and into light, into glory, into conquest!
Oh, indeed, that the family that is to be established from me would be so blessed by the Gospel. I pray, even now before I see them, that they would be fully ministered to by God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) that they would be raised up as humble conquerors!
Gracious and glorious Father, may you continue to be glorified to the utmost, as we continue to test all prophecies, and hold on to what is good. Thank You for Your love, thank You for Your faithfulness – Thank You for Christ, Your only begotten Son, and thank You for the Holy Spirit, continually ministering to us, even in these turbulent times.
Indeed, Father, even in these times when we are trampled upon and assaulted from all sides, be praised and glorified! For while the enemy is set on dominance, You have already conquered – You have been glorified, and You WILL be glorified, again! Halleluyah!
I’m seeing just a couple more lines to go through, before we wrap up, consolidate, and conclude. At this moment I’d like to just say, thank you – I don’t know why you’re putting up with me as I go through all this, but hey, if you happen to be reading this, really, thank you.
I know it does sound like I’m going off my rocker here, but all the same, I think it still is of benefit (to me, at least) for me to put it all out here, instead of in my brain. It helps me organize my thoughts, and gets me less impulsive, more collected in my actions and reactions.
With all this said, again, thank you, and until the next post, may the Lord continue to bless us greatly, and deeply.
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