The Light of the World
When Jesus came to this earth, He told us that He was the light of the world and then also told us that we were the light of the world. Let’s talk about “God is Light” today.
In 1 John 1:5 we read that God is Light and in Him is no darkness at all. There is absolutely no darkness whatsoever in God. He is pure Light, and His pure Light is the pure Love that spoke this world into existence and created man in His own image. The first thing that is recorded in the book of Genesis that God did was to declare Himself into this earth which was without form and void. In verse 3 of Genesis 1, God spoke: Light be. And Light was. We know that He was not talking about the sun and the moon and stars because they were created later. He was talking about Himself being released into this earth to bring Light to a dark place. He was talking about releasing a portion of Himself, of His Glory into this earth to bring about a wonderful place for His man to live, whom He was about to create. But, of course, we all know that Adam messed up and temporarily extinguished the light. Notice I said, temporarily, because God already had a plan in place.
God’s plan involved getting Himself back into the earth, bringing light back into the darkness. When Jesus was born, there was an explosion of Light Himself permeating the envelope of this earth. In Luke 1:9,10 when the angel of the Lord came upon the shepherds, the glory of the Lord shone round about them. That was God Himself, the Light of His glory once again coming to dwell on this earth. Only this time it would be permanent. This Light would be permanently dwelling in the earth for mankind.
When Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to the temple to be presented after His birth, an old man named Simeon came by the Spirit into the temple and took Jesus in his arms and called him a light to lighten the Gentiles and the glory of His people Israel (Luke 2:32). Simeon was declaring what we see in the Old Testament in Isaiah 9:2: The people that walked in darkness (misery, destruction, death, ignorance, sorrow, wickedness) have seen a great light; they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined. Isaiah 42:6,7 talks about the light to the nations. Listen to these verses in the Amplified Bible: I the Lord have called You [the Messiah] for a righteous purpose and in righteousness; I will take You by the hand and will keep You; I will give You for a covenant to the people [Israel], for a light to the nations [Gentiles]. To open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon, and those who sit in darkness from the prison. Look at Isaiah 49:6: And he said, It is a light thing that thou shoudest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth. Acts 13:47 in the New Testament tells us the same thing: For so has the Lord commanded us, saying, I have set you to be a light of the Gentiles, that you should be for salvation unto the ends of the earth.
And look at John 1:4: In him was life and the life was the light of men. Psalm 36:9 says the same thing: For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light. Compare these two scriptures with John 8:12: I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. And how about Psalm 43:3. Listen to it. O send out thy light and thy truth: let them lead me; let them bring me unto thy holy hill, and to thy tabernacles.
In scripture after scripture we see that Jesus was to come as the light of the world for mankind once again to walk in the light of God and not in darkness of their sin.
I love Psalm 119:105. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. Not only is Jesus the Light but the Word is a light for our life, guiding our every step. Of course, we all know that Jesus is called the Word. Jesus the Word is the light that guides our pathway of life.
Not only is Jesus, the Word, the light of the world but also He told us in Matthew 5:14,16 that we are the light of the world. We are to let our light shine before men that they may see our good works and glorify our Father which is in heaven. We are to arise and shine for our light has come and the glory of the Lord is risen upon us. Isaiah 60:1 in the Amplified Bible is even more powerful than in the King James Version. Arise [from the depression and prostration in which circumstances have kept you---rise to a new life]! Shine (be radiant with the glory of the Lord), for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you! In Isaiah 58:8 we read: Then shall your light break forth like the morning and your healing (your restoration and the power of a new life) shall spring forth speedily; your righteousness (your rightness, your justice, and your right relationship with God) shall go before you [conducting you to peace and prosperity], and the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
We have our instructions as God’s children in Ephesians 5:8 and 1 Thessalonians 5:5 in the Amplified Bible. For once you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of Light [lead lives of those native-born to the Light]. For you are all sons of light and sons of the day; we do not belong either to the night or to darkness.
And we close with Revelation 21:23. What a glorious day that will be. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
There is so much we could say here about he light of God and us being the light as well. I trust that you take these scriptures and do your own study. We are living in the times when the light of Jesus Christ needs to shine brighter and brighter, as never before. Our pathway is to grow brighter and brighter. Proverbs 4:18 Amplified Bible, But the path of the [uncompromisingly] just and righteous is like the light of dawn, that shines more and more (brighter and clearer) until [it reaches its full strength and glory in] the perfect day [to be prepared].
In 1 John 1:5 we read that God is Light and in Him is no darkness at all. There is absolutely no darkness whatsoever in God. He is pure Light, and His pure Light is the pure Love that spoke this world into existence and created man in His own image. The first thing that is recorded in the book of Genesis that God did was to declare Himself into this earth which was without form and void. In verse 3 of Genesis 1, God spoke: Light be. And Light was. We know that He was not talking about the sun and the moon and stars because they were created later. He was talking about Himself being released into this earth to bring Light to a dark place. He was talking about releasing a portion of Himself, of His Glory into this earth to bring about a wonderful place for His man to live, whom He was about to create. But, of course, we all know that Adam messed up and temporarily extinguished the light. Notice I said, temporarily, because God already had a plan in place.
God’s plan involved getting Himself back into the earth, bringing light back into the darkness. When Jesus was born, there was an explosion of Light Himself permeating the envelope of this earth. In Luke 1:9,10 when the angel of the Lord came upon the shepherds, the glory of the Lord shone round about them. That was God Himself, the Light of His glory once again coming to dwell on this earth. Only this time it would be permanent. This Light would be permanently dwelling in the earth for mankind.
When Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to the temple to be presented after His birth, an old man named Simeon came by the Spirit into the temple and took Jesus in his arms and called him a light to lighten the Gentiles and the glory of His people Israel (Luke 2:32). Simeon was declaring what we see in the Old Testament in Isaiah 9:2: The people that walked in darkness (misery, destruction, death, ignorance, sorrow, wickedness) have seen a great light; they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined. Isaiah 42:6,7 talks about the light to the nations. Listen to these verses in the Amplified Bible: I the Lord have called You [the Messiah] for a righteous purpose and in righteousness; I will take You by the hand and will keep You; I will give You for a covenant to the people [Israel], for a light to the nations [Gentiles]. To open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon, and those who sit in darkness from the prison. Look at Isaiah 49:6: And he said, It is a light thing that thou shoudest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth. Acts 13:47 in the New Testament tells us the same thing: For so has the Lord commanded us, saying, I have set you to be a light of the Gentiles, that you should be for salvation unto the ends of the earth.
And look at John 1:4: In him was life and the life was the light of men. Psalm 36:9 says the same thing: For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light. Compare these two scriptures with John 8:12: I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. And how about Psalm 43:3. Listen to it. O send out thy light and thy truth: let them lead me; let them bring me unto thy holy hill, and to thy tabernacles.
In scripture after scripture we see that Jesus was to come as the light of the world for mankind once again to walk in the light of God and not in darkness of their sin.
I love Psalm 119:105. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. Not only is Jesus the Light but the Word is a light for our life, guiding our every step. Of course, we all know that Jesus is called the Word. Jesus the Word is the light that guides our pathway of life.
Not only is Jesus, the Word, the light of the world but also He told us in Matthew 5:14,16 that we are the light of the world. We are to let our light shine before men that they may see our good works and glorify our Father which is in heaven. We are to arise and shine for our light has come and the glory of the Lord is risen upon us. Isaiah 60:1 in the Amplified Bible is even more powerful than in the King James Version. Arise [from the depression and prostration in which circumstances have kept you---rise to a new life]! Shine (be radiant with the glory of the Lord), for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you! In Isaiah 58:8 we read: Then shall your light break forth like the morning and your healing (your restoration and the power of a new life) shall spring forth speedily; your righteousness (your rightness, your justice, and your right relationship with God) shall go before you [conducting you to peace and prosperity], and the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
We have our instructions as God’s children in Ephesians 5:8 and 1 Thessalonians 5:5 in the Amplified Bible. For once you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of Light [lead lives of those native-born to the Light]. For you are all sons of light and sons of the day; we do not belong either to the night or to darkness.
And we close with Revelation 21:23. What a glorious day that will be. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
There is so much we could say here about he light of God and us being the light as well. I trust that you take these scriptures and do your own study. We are living in the times when the light of Jesus Christ needs to shine brighter and brighter, as never before. Our pathway is to grow brighter and brighter. Proverbs 4:18 Amplified Bible, But the path of the [uncompromisingly] just and righteous is like the light of dawn, that shines more and more (brighter and clearer) until [it reaches its full strength and glory in] the perfect day [to be prepared].
posted by Rev. Kialeen Potterton @ 9:04 PM
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