Heavenly Lord Your Name is wonderful, Your Name is excellent Your Name is beautiful, I worship You God for You are mighty You got the world in Your Hands; You got the whole world, in Your hands 4x. I will lift up my voice, I will joyfully sing not for what He has done, but for who You are, You are the song that I sing, melody in my voice, the reason I sing is to praise Your Name….
Yes Father, that should be the reason why we live, “to praise Your Name” but how well have we fare here is what we know the answer already, not pretty well. Why the host of angel above and twenty and four elders in heaven fall with face down to worship You. Father, forgive us as many times we have fail to worship and honour You Lord. As many time we have focused on our need other than on You, Lord. As many times we have fail to be dreadful of Who You are, Father forgive us we prayed Thee (Gen 28:17, Lk 5:8).
Beloved, concerning the dread of God, Jacob said, ‘how dreadful is this place!’ And Peter said, ‘Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord’ (Gen 28:17, Lk 5:8). When you meet God, You get over the dangers and fears of this world. But the fear, the dread that is God, is not a sense of danger. It is a sense of being in the presence of someone very awful, very wonderful, transcendent and highly lifted up. It is this sense of creature consciousness. This was Abraham expressed when he said, behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, which am but dust and ashes (Gen 18:27). We continue on this tomorrow, because it will be better understood with tomorrows teaching.
Back to yesterday discussion from I broke off, I said, that the man of true faith has found an answer to the question by revelation and illumination.
Most of us stop at revelation. But revelation is not enough. Revelation is God’s given Word. It is an objective things, not subjective; it is external, not internal. It is God’s revelation of truth. A man may believe that and believe it soundly and hold it to be truth. And yet he will have only an objective revelation of truth that has been objectively revealed.
While Illumination there is another way to find an answer to the question “what is God like?” and that is by illumination. The man of real faith believes the Word, but it has been illuminated so that he knows what the Word means. That doesn’t mean that he is a better bible teacher. But it means that he has had what the Quakers call “an Opening’ his heart has been opened to the Word. Put in another word, you have rheme in the Word. God giving you a Word peculiar to you or the situation on hand. The given revelation is a means toward an end, and God is the end, not the text itself.
The illumination is what matters and the Word of God is a means toward an end, just as a roads are means toward destinations. A road is nothing in itself. Nobody ever built a road and fenced it in at both ends and planted posies along it and beautified it and said, “This is a road.” They said, ‘’this is a way, a means toward somewhere.’ The bible is a whole series of highways, all leading toward God. Therefore you should know that God is the end toward which He is moving, then that man has real faith.
Beloved that brings us to the teaching of today life and light. Jesus is our life and light (Jn1:4; 3:15; 3:36; Jn 8:12 9:5; 12:46)
The illumination can only come from God and that is what convinces your faith and make God so real and close to you. Beloved, you need to come to this level of faith through constant reading from the Word. The Holy Spirit minister to your spirit man, you become a different person and operate on higher dimension of faith.
Life was in Him,
and that life was the light of men.—John 1:4
When Jesus came to a world that was in bondage to darkness and dead in its sin, He came as light and life. His light dispelled sin’s darkness wherever He went, for the forces of evil could not withstand Him. The life He brought was abundant and free, available to all who were dead in their sin. (Eph. 2:1; John 10:10).
If you are a Christian, Jesus lives in you, and His light is within you. Christians are called to dispel darkness (Eph. 5:11). The light of Christ ought to shine so brightly through you that those practicing darkness are uncomfortable when they are around you. The light within you should dispel darkness from the lives of your friends, coworkers, and family members.
The fullness of life found in Christ dwells within you as a Christian (Col. 1:27). The life that Jesus offers is available to others through you. Don’t discount what you have to give to those who are hurting. Christ’s life within you is more than sufficient to meet every human need.
When people encounter you, they encounter Christ within you. You do not know all the answers, but you have Someone within you who does! You will not carry the burden of the needs of others. Christ will. Be aware that just as many resisted Jesus, so there will be those who resist the truth that you offer (John 1:11).
Be thankful, however, that God chooses to express Himself through you, giving light and life to those around you.
Beloved, when you receive from God, you also need to give it out. We did a teaching last week -“be ye separate’’. The world of today love darkness rather light (Jn 3:19; Rom 2:19). But we must be like them because in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, we are to shine as light. Let’s keep going:
“In the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world.” Philippians 2:15
We use lights to make manifest. A Christian man should so shine in his life, that a person could not live with him a week without knowing the gospel. His conversation should be such that all who are about him should clearly perceive whose he is, and whom he serves; and should see the image of Jesus reflected in his daily actions.
Lights are intended for guidance. We are to help those around us who are in the dark. We are to hold forth to them the Word of life. We are to point sinners to the Saviour, and the weary to a divine resting-place. Men sometimes read their Bibles, and fail to understand them; we should be ready, like Philip, to instruct the inquirer in the meaning of God’s Word, the way of salvation, and the life of godliness.
Lights are also used for warning. On our rocks and shoals a light-house is sure to be erected. Christian men should know that there are many false lights shown everywhere in the world, and therefore the right light is needed. The wreckers of Satan are always abroad, tempting the ungodly to sin under the name of pleasure; they hoist the wrong light, be it ours to put up the true light upon every dangerous rock, to point out every sin, and tell what it leads to, that so we may be clear of the blood of all men, shining as lights in the world.
Lights also have a very cheering influence, and so have Christians. A Christian ought to be a comforter, with kind words on his lips, and sympathy in his heart; he should carry sunshine wherever he goes, and diffuse happiness around him.
Gracious Spirit dwell with me;
I myself would gracious be,
And with words that help and heal
Would thy life in mine reveal,
And with actions bold and meek
Would for Christ my Saviour speak.
Would my Christ my Saviour speak. Praise the Name of the Lord. Be dreadful of God and walk in Holy fear of Him. Aside the revelational knowledge of what God is saying, pray for the illumination of the Word, visions and dreams into your heart. May God alone be praise forever in Jesus Name.
Remain blessed in the Lord.
