Feast: The Lord is My Light and Salvation

#FT24-08AM
Martin G. Collins
Given 24-Oct-24; 60 minutes 2024-10-24

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Of all the benefits that we as inhabitants of the earth have received from God, there are few more remarkable than the possession of light and the ability to use it. God is the only trustworthy source of true everlasting light.

By light, we possess extraordinary knowledge and many comforts and necessities. It reveals its incredible purity, delicacy, and variety of colors.

It is not surprising that light exercises an enormous influence over the imagination of humanity and leads to its worship because human nature tends to worship the creation rather than the Creator. Humanity's misguided fascination with light caused some cultures of the ancient world to worship the sun and moon. Ur of Babylonia and several of the Canaanite cities had elaborate systems of moon worship. The use of light was common in the festivals of the Greek cults, especially those honoring Dionysus and Apollo.

Those who worship light itself find themselves unknowingly in spiritual darkness, that is, spiritual ignorance because light represents truth. When God places the light of the spirit in man in the human mind, it enables a person to think above the level of an animal and be a reasoning, intelligent being.

Job 32:8 "There is a spirit in man, and the breath of the Almighty gives him understanding."

As a result of this light, this mind power that God has given us, we can invent and build amazing things. We design vehicles for all purposes to move our bodies from one point to another and places to live with all sorts of conveniences. At the same time, animals rely on preprogrammed instincts for survival and comfort, although they do greatly benefit from light as well.

Thanks to God's promise, a special blessing to Abraham that included special illumination, the descendants of ancient Israel have invented and built the majority of the extraordinary material inventions humanity has seen.

The Israelite Solomon was the wisest man ever. After God tested Abraham with the command to sacrifice Isaac and found him faithful, Abraham named the place "The Lord will provide," and God promised that his descendants would be a blessing to all nations. Now, the blessings we enjoy in civilization: refrigeration, manufacturing, agriculture, chemistry, physics, and superior institutions of learning, are all products of God's blessing of illumination to the children of Israel as part of the promise to Abraham.

These are Christian-influenced Israelite countries where, until recently, Christ was freely encouraged and enabled to have an influence in the minds of people, and the Word of God was read and preached and taught, publicly and without hindrance. This is in stark contrast to the Dark Ages of human history.

But sadly, as the majority of the descendants of Jacob, renamed Israel by God, rejected all connection with God, so also is a great loss of illumination. The light of the minds of the descendants of Israel is going out. And even now, it is only a flicker. Morally and spiritually, there is little more than darkness in this spiritually bankrupt society.

The light represents truth, goodness, and God's redemptive work throughout the Bible. Darkness, on the other hand, symbolizes error, evil, the works of Satan. With very little effort, we observe darkness in the world. Job 37:21 says, "Even now men cannot look at the light when it is bright in the skies." Their trouble is so oppressing to them that it all seems dark.

Biblically, it is impossible to understand light without seeing it as the great antithesis and conqueror of darkness.

With the conflict between light and darkness as a context, light has the properties of rulership over the universe, with an accompanying sense of awe such as a subject might feel toward a benevolent king. This theme of rulership is present in the creation account when, on the fourth day of creation, God created the two great lights, the more excellent light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night.

Biblical writers expressed terror about the absence of light and we can see this emphasis in Job's picture of deposed rulers in Job 12:25 who, "grope in the dark without light." In Isaiah 5:30, Isaiah's apocalyptic vision of "light darkened by its clouds." And in Matthew 6:22-23 where Jesus' vision of good eyesight produced a "whole body full of light" and its opposite produces a "whole body full of darkness."

Please turn with me to John 13, verse 21. The apostle John wrote numerous times that a godless life is darkness. Judas' betrayal of Jesus is a dramatic example of darkness.

John 13:21-30 When Jesus had said these things, He was troubled in spirit, and testified and said, "Most assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me." Then the disciples looked at one another, perplexed about whom He spoke. Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of His disciples whom Jesus loved. Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask who it was of whom He spoke. Then leaning back on Jesus' breast, he said to Him, "Lord, who is it?" Jesus answered, "It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped it." And having dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. Now after the piece of bread, Satan entered him. Then Jesus said to him, "What you do, do quickly." But no one at the table knew for what reason He said this to him. For some thought, because Judas had the money box, that Jesus had said to him, "Buy those things we need for the feast," or that he should give something to the poor. Having received the piece of bread, he went out immediately. And it was night.

Now the repetition of the phrase, "Now after the piece of bread" in verse 27 and "Having received the piece of bread" in verse 30 indicates that Satan's control of Judas and Judas' departure from the group must have been simultaneous.

There is great tragedy in the abrupt comment, "And it was night." Judas set off to Jerusalem from Bethany, which was about two miles distant, under the conduct of the prince of darkness, and in the time of darkness, he did this work of darkness.

Please turn with me to Luke 22, verse 52. So Judas left the light of Christ, of Christ's presence, and entered the world of darkness—and it was night. It may have been that when Judas opened the door to leave, John saw the city veiled in darkness. John's four words correspond to Jesus' statement when Judas betrayed Him.

Luke 22:52-53 Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, "Have you come out against a robber, with swords and clubs? When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me. But this is your hour, and the power of darkness."

John's comment, "And it was night," implies that Jesus' life was one of conflict. The growing hostility between Jesus and His enemies illustrates the opposition of darkness and light. Light represents illumination, but the opposite of darkness.

Now turn over to John 8, verse 42. As the conflict became more noticeable, Jesus says it reflected the contrast between what He had seen with His Father and what they had heard from theirs. When they protested, He declared that God was His Father and that the Devil was their father.

John 8:42-47 Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me. Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word. You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth [or you could say in the light], because there is no truth [or only darkness] in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. But because I tell you tell the truth, you do not believe Me. Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me? He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God."

So to the world, truth is an abstract that is difficult for people to know and appreciate. Pilate, for example, had become so enmeshed in politics that he could no longer recognize the truth. Jesus told the Jews that because they were children of their father, they did not know what truth was. They lived in a world of lies and deception and distortion. In a sense, truth was a foreign language to them. Their native language was a lie.

The same darkness has fallen over this present society, partly because most people speak the same language, the language of lies and deceit. Many politicians, lawyers, salespeople, advertisers, scientists, doctors, and teachers are frequently known for distorting the truth to fit their agenda.

Now, moving on. In sharp contrast, light benefits all life. The creation of light was the initial step in the creation of life. "Let there be light" was the first command God spoke after His creative Spirit moved upon the primary material out of which He created the heavens and the earth, and which lay, until the utterance of that word, in the chaos of darkness and desolation.

The ultimate focus of light (on the fourth day of creation) brought the initial creative process to completion as the essential condition of all organic life. Light is not self-generated. The origin of light finds its explanation in the purpose and nature of God, whom the apostle John defined as not only the Author of light but, in an all-inclusive sense, as light itself. "God is light."

The word "light" is rich in its comprehensive meaning. Its material splendor is used throughout the Scriptures as the symbol and synonym of all that is luminous and radiant in the mental, moral, and spiritual life of humans and angels. And because of His holiness and moral perfection, the Eternal God is pictured as dwelling in unapproachable light. Every phase of the word light, from the original light in the natural world to the spiritual glory of God, is found in the Holy Scriptures.

Now, there are three main types of light:

Natural light is the first one. The sun is the light of the day and the moon and stars are the light of night. Light's characteristics are beauty, radiance, and utility. The natural light rejoices the heart. It is delightful and without it, people stumble and are helpless; they wait for it with inexpressible longing. Life, joy, activity, and all blessings are dependent on light.

Light and life are almost synonymous to those who depend directly on them, such as farmers for their crops. And in the same way, darkness is synonymous with death. The severest plague in Egypt, next to the slaying of the firstborn, was the plague of darkness, the ninth plague that fell upon the Egyptians. Exodus 10:23 says, "But the children of Israel had light in their dwellings."

Light is necessary for good health. Light prolongs physical and spiritual life. We need light for our circadian rhythm to function correctly, the rhythm that guides our sleep and wake cycles. Our bodies use light to signal when to wake up and when to wind down for the day.

Getting an adequate amount of light is critical to our well being. The light levels we receive throughout the day can influence productivity, mood alertness, and sleep. If you have ever suffered from jet lag, you know firsthand how groggy and foggy you can feel when your circadian rhythm is out of sync.

Health care professionals recommend at least one hour a day spent in surrounding light to reap the benefits. Sunlight on the skin boosts the body's vitamin D storage, a crucial nutrient for bone health, immunity, and disease prevention. Sunlight is vital for eye health. Natural light has been shown to improve the function of dopamine in your retina. Dopamine neurotransmitters form in the brain and are essential to the normal functioning of the central nervous system.

But dopamine in the retina acts differently from dopamine in the brain and is a critical component of eye health. It encourages better sleep. Half an hour of natural light in the morning has been shown to improve sleep quality at night.

The Department of Education of Alberta, Canada, conducted a two-year study involving different kinds of light. Physicians, educators, social workers, nutritionists, and dentists participated in the study. The study found that students under full spectrum light similar to natural light with a trace ultraviolet learned faster, tested higher, grew faster, had one-third fewer absences due to illness, and had two-thirds fewer cavities than expected.

In another winter study, veterans in a soldier's home in Massachusetts compared calcium absorption under two lighting systems. Calcium absorption increased by 15% under full spectrum light, calcium absorption decreased by 25% under standard light similar to lighting in most offices.

Natural light also has a cheering influence. It is known that women have a hard time dealing with the long dark winters in Alaska; many suffer from severe depression during those extended winters. Research has found that light can lessen or alleviate seasonal depression. Being outside and getting plenty of surrounding light can help beat those seasonal blues and even the winter sun enhances mood. So the advice is: wrap up and get your face in the light even on the grayer days.

Now, the second type of light is artificial light. When natural light fails, people, by discovery or invention, provide some temporary substitute, however dim and inadequate it might be. The ancients had candles and oil lamps as primary sources of artificial light. You remember the story of the young man Utica, who fell asleep while sitting in a window, listening to Paul preach throughout the night.

Acts 20:8 There were many lamps in the upper room where they had gathered together.

There are probably times when you have been unable to escape the harsh glare of fluorescent lights. While some people remain relatively unaffected, some are extremely sensitive to fluorescent light. They have definite problems with the artificial light. Prolonged exposure in sensitive individuals can induce lightheadedness, vertigo or dizziness, headaches or migraines, eye pain or inflammation, blurred or impaired vision, difficulty reading or focusing, eye strain, shortness of breath, anxiety, depression, lethargy, disrupted sleep, and nausea. I think that actually sounds like the writing on the side of a medicine bottle or a prescription; the long list of derogatory things.

One study by John Ott, PhD, dramatizes the importance of full spectrum light similar to daylight. The study placed 2,000 mice under four different types of light. In an otherwise identical controlled environment, C3H strain mice developed spontaneous tumors and died at 7.5 months under pink fluorescent light; 8.2 months under cool white standard office fluorescent light; 15.6 months under full spectrum fluorescent lights; and 16.1 months under natural sunlight. So natural sunlight doubled the length of time before these mice died. And now we have LED and other artificial lights.

Please turn with me to Job 24, verse 13. Satan's favorite time of day—the night—is illuminated under artificial light. More crime and immorality occur at night under artificial light than during the day. And this is why cities stay bright at night. Studies have shown that crime is directly related to the reduction of light in a town.

Job 24:13-17 "There are those who rebel against the light [that is, truth and the right way]; they do not know its ways nor abide in its paths. The murderer arises with the light; he kills the poor and needy; and in the night he is a thief. The eye of the adulterer waits for the twilight, saying, 'No eye will see me'; and he disguises his face. In the dark they break into houses which they marked for themselves in the daytime; they do not know the light. For the morning [which exposes them] is the same to them as the shadow of death; if someone recognizes them, they are in the terrors of the shadow of death."

So Satan illuminates false light, the wrong light, while at the same time, he is surrounded by darkness. He focuses his false light on the pleasure of sin. We must illuminate the right and the true light. By shining as true lights we must be clear of the blood of the world's sins.

A ship relies heavily on the artificial light from a lighthouse on the shore to warn of of obstacles in the ocean. Not only is our physical environment marked with shorelines and rocks and shoals, but our spiritual state is also. Many false lights are shown worldwide, so the right light is needed.

Only God has designed the perfect light for our physical and spiritual well being.

Now, the third type of light is mental, moral, and spiritual light. The phenomenon of natural light have their counterpart in our inner life. Few words lend themselves with beauty and appropriateness to spiritual life experiences, conditions, and radiance. And for this reason, the Scriptures use light mainly in the figurative sense. Light is inherently suited to portray spiritual realities. In secular life, a distinct line of demarcation is drawn between intellectual and spiritual knowledge and illumination.

Education that enlightens the mind may leave the moral person untouched. This distinction rarely occurs in the Bible, which deals with a person as a free will agent and looks at his faculties as interdependent with their action. Every thought, movement, look, and statement are interconnected with the individual. A few passages, however, refer to the light that comes primarily to the intellect or mind through divine instruction. Speaking of God's instructions,

Psalm 119:130 The entrance of Your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.

Speaking of God's words that are introduced into our minds, Proverbs 6, verse 23 tells us of how God's commandments shed light on errors in our lives.

Proverbs 6:23 For the commandment is a lamp, and the law a light; reproofs of instruction are the way of life.

Even here the instruction includes moral and mental enlightenment.

Isaiah 5:20 describes moral confusion and blindness which cannot distinguish light from darkness. This comes from the rejection of God's law.

Please turn over to II Corinthians 4. Light, figuratively used, has to do primarily with spiritual life, including the illumination that opens all the capabilities of the mind, the intellect, conscience, reason, and will. In the moral realm, the enlightenment of these capabilities is dependent wholly on the renewal of the spirit. Light is frequently used for spiritual illumination, especially the illumination activated in the mind by indwelling Spirit of God.

II Corinthians 4:1-6 Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the God of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them. For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your bondservants for Jesus' sake. For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Verse 6 tells us that the same God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness at the creation is the one who illuminates our hearts and minds to truth. The apostle John recorded that Jesus said, "He who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God."

Throughout the Bible, light symbolizes knowledge and wisdom, purity and truth. In contrast, darkness symbolizes ignorance, error, sin, and wretchedness. The sense here is that God removes this ignorance and pours a flood of light and truth into our minds. David prayed, "Send out Your light and Your truth. Let them lead me."

Figuratively, light cheers and is vigorously applied to spiritual joy from the beneficial influences of the Spirit of peace.

We know that God is light and is gloriously associated with light. Symbolically, light pictures God's simultaneous divine existence and imminence: it is from "above the sun" but permeates everyday life. Light is continually used as a symbol of holiness and purity. It is an attribute of holiness and thus a personal quality of God. It is the outshining of deity.

Let us turn to I John 1, verse 5. God is light just as truly as He is love, truth, and spirit. Spirit and light are expressions of His essential nature; love is the expression of His personality corresponding to His nature. God not merely loves, but is love; and it is His very nature; He imparts this nature to be the sphere in which His children dwell—in light.

The most succinct statement is found in,

I John 1:5-7 This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

The darkness mentioned in verses 5 and 6 is the universal symbol and condition of sin and death. In contrast, light, mentioned in verse 7, symbolizes holiness. God, by His presence and grace, is to His holy priesthood, to His holy nation, a marvelous light.

I Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

Now please turn over to Isaiah 60, verse 19. The glory of His holiness and presence is the everlasting light of the redeemed. Israel's vision of the final triumph of goodness includes the assertion that the Lord will be your everlasting light.

Isaiah 60:19-20 "The sun shall no longer be your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you; but the Lord will be to you an everlasting light, and your God your glory. Your sun shall no longer go down, nor shall your moon withdraw itself; for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and the days of your mourning shall be ended."

God will be our everlasting truth, goodness, surety, righteousness, and holiness—our everlasting light. So God is associated with light as an image of divine glory. He covers Himself "with light (His righteousness and truth completely cover Him) as with a garment."

Psalm 104 is a song of praise to the sovereign Lord of His creation for His creation and providence.

Psalm 104:1-2 Bless the Lord, O my soul! O Lord my God, You are very great! You are clothed with honor and majesty, who cover Yourself with a light as with a garment, who stretch out the heavens like a curtain.

By extension, God, who is light, inhabits a heaven bathed in light. That is, the third heaven, as we refer to it. The light where He dwells is so brilliant and dazzling that human eyes cannot survive. And this is a prevalent representation of the dwelling place of God, the throne of God.

Now please turn over to I Timothy 6, verse 13. Heaven is constantly represented as a place of the most pure and brilliant light, needing not the light of the sun, moon, or stars. And God is described as dwelling in that light surrounded by unique and inapproachable glory.

I Timothy 6:13-16 I urge you in the sight of God who gives life to all things, and before Christ Jesus who witnessed the good confession before Pontius Pilate, that you keep this commandment without spot, blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ's appearing, which He will manifest in His own time, He who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords [the Christ], who alone has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and everlasting power. Amen. [Actually speaking of God the Father.]

This is the only place in the New Testament where the Greek word "unapproachable" is used. The declaration is added in verse 16, that no person has ever seen God or can see Him. This truth is stated in the Old and New Testaments.

Exodus 33:20-23 But He [that is, the Lord] said, "You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live." And the Lord said, "Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock. So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen."

John 1:18 No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.

As a symbol of God, light takes a more specific form of representing the Messiah. Isaiah's prophecy predicted Christ's coming as light and spiritual illumination.

Isaiah 9:2 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light [that is, the Messiah]; those who dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light [that is, the Messiah] has shined.

Please turn with me to Matthew 4, verse 12. Jesus applied this prophecy to himself in Matthew 4 when He began His Galilean ministry.

Matthew 4:12-17 Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, that it might be fulfilled which is spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying, "The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and the shadow of death Light has dawned." From that time Jesus began to preach and say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

The spiritual illumination had come to the people of Galilee in the form of Jesus Christ, who brought God's truth. It is a great light representing the clearness and evidence of the truth. This was not like the light of a candle, but the light of the sun when it shines in its strength. It is a great light because it illuminates great things of enormous consequence. It will last long and spread far. It is a growing light. The work of Christ, like a grain mustard seed or the morning light, was small at the beginning, but gradually grew in intensity as His light shined.

Now please turn over to John 1, verse 4. Christ, the eternal Word, is the radiant splendor of God's glory. The biblical phrase "light in the Lord" indicates the source of light and life. The implied message is, if God is light, to come to God is to come to the light and to receive life. John's introduction in praise of the personified Word, repeatedly applies the symbolic language of light to Christ.

John 1:4-9 In Him [that is, Jesus Christ] was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. There was a man sent from God whose name was John [that is, John the Baptizer]. And this man came for a witness to bear witness of the Light, that all through Him might believe. He [that is, John] was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world.

As the predicted Messiah, Jesus would be a light for humanity. Christ declared himself the light of the world and as light, He was God manifest in the flesh. So Jesus, as the Word, is the eternal expression of God, as a word is the expression of a thought. In the essence of His being God, Christ is the light of life.

John 6:57 "As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me."

Accordingly, Christ, the Word, manifests the attributes of the divine nature as Life, Love, and Light. These are inseparable and constitute the glory that the disciples saw in Him. In revealing and giving life, Christ became the light of men. God gives the light of the knowledge of His glory in the face of Jesus Christ, and this salvation is called the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ. But for the most part, light and life go together. It is the product of salvation.

Psalm 27:1 The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

Christ is the Teacher, Enlightener, Guide, and Savior of humanity. He gives us light, that is, He gives us understanding and truth and wisdom.

Now please turn over to Matthew 27, verse 45. Jesus, as the one who brings the true knowledge of God, is the light of humanity. When people tried to snuff out the Light of men, there was the fall of darkness at midday when Jesus was crucified.

Matthew 27:45-46 Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour [that is, for three hours] there was [physical and spiritual darkness] all over the land. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" that is, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"

The New Testament presents Jesus as the personification of light or divine illumination. And in John 8:12, Jesus said, "I am the light of the world." He plainly stated that those who rejected this divine light would bring judgment upon themselves.

Sin separates us from God. And if we are separated from God, we are separated from spiritual light—from spiritual understanding. If God and His Son are light, light symbolizes salvation and the new life.

When Jesus spoke of Himself as the light of the world, those who follow Him are defined as people who will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. And according to I Peter 2:9, God's own special people are those who have been called out of darkness into His marvelous light. When anything is exposed by light, it becomes visible because anything that becomes visible is light. As Paul explains:

Ephesians 5:8-14 [this is the caption in my Bible, Walk in Light] For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth) [I might interject there that the fruit of light is the fruit of the Spirit], finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret. But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light. Therefore He says, ""Awake, you who sleep, arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light."

The Scriptures give general principles for life, but we must use wisdom to discern how to apply godly principles to the real issues of our lives. The book of Proverbs is an excellent source of great insights. This wisdom is the expertise of godly living, which we must thoroughly discern and apply in practice to live pleasing to Christ.

In John 5:35 Jesus called John the Baptizer "a burning and shining lamp." And significantly, John was referred to by the Greek word luchnos (look-nos), translated as shining lamp. Now, luchnos means a portable lamp or another direct illuminator (literally or figuratively).

On the other hand, the disciples of the New Testament church are referred to by the Greek word phos for light.

Matthew 5:14-16 "You are the light of the world [or you are the phos of the world]. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."

Light there, phos (same as phosphorus or other phosphate and things like that that are used based on Greek language), means to shine or make evident, especially by rays. It also means luminous (in the widest application, natural or artificial, abstract or concrete, concrete, literal or figurative). It can apply to any of those things.

So we are told to shine and make evident the knowledge that we have of God's way of life, make God's way of life evident to all people. This affirms that John the Baptizer came to shine a light on a specific event, the coming of the Son of God. But on the other hand, members of God's church are to shine and make visible God's whole way of life. Even in the hidden meanings of words, we see confirmed in the Bible two specific purposes, two particular commissions.

Please turn over to Colossians 1, verse 12. Now those who have been delivered from the power of darkness and conveyed to the kingdom of His beloved Son are strongly associated with light as the thing that defines our very essence, according to Paul.

Colossians 1:12-13 . . . giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.

Just like the many Cultural Christians who do not live by Christ's example, the Jew of Christ's day who possessed the laws, mistakenly supposed He was a light to those who are in darkness.

Let us turn over to Romans 2, verse 17. The Jews were as guilty as the Gentiles for being in darkness, even though they should have been a light. But they only had the form of knowledge and truth in the law.

Romans 2:17-24 Indeed you are called a Jew, and rest on the law, and make your boast in God, and know His will, and approve the things that are excellent, being instructed out of the law, and are confident that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, having the form of knowledge and truth in the law. You, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? [It is a question. Do you not teach yourself?] You who preach that a man should not steal, do you steal? You who say, "Do not commit adultery," do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who make your boast in the law, do you dishonor God through breaking the law? For "the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you" [that is, because of the Jews], as it is written.

The Gentiles are not only blasphemed because of the Jews, but anyone who claims to be a Christian, a Cultural Christian, is accountable for teaching others about the law or about God's way of life and not doing it themselves. So we are looking at hypocrisy there, if that happens.

So the form of knowledge and truth in the law is the show and appearance of it. Those whose knowledge rests in emptiness and darkness have only the form of it, like a well drawn picture that is colorful but needs life. A form of knowledge produces only an appearance of godliness. A form of knowledge may deceive people but cannot get past God's heart-searching, discerning eye. A form may be the vehicle of the power. But in reality, it only produces the noise of sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal.

Sinners fear the light. So, God must call people to the light because it is His work. We cannot do anything ourselves to bring someone into the church, but we can do a lot with the help of God to let our light shine as a faithful witness. And that also includes preaching the gospel to the world as well and especially of us living God's way of life.

How can we preach the gospel to the world as a church if we ourselves are not living it and setting that example? It is hypocrisy otherwise.

Briefly, there are five main ways light relates to the Christian.

1. Light is a type of the Christian who walks with God.

2. Light refers to the witness of the Christian.

3. Light is a figure of the state of the Christian after he leaves Satan's kingdom of darkness and is brought into the church.

4. Light refers to the walk of the Christian in which he serves God faithfully and directs his life according to the Word of God.

5. Light refers to the defense of the Christian who lives above reproach and has a godly witness before his neighbors.

The scattered church of the Christian diaspora was radiant with the light of God in Christ. The seven churches of Asia were revealed by John by the Spirit as seven golden candlesticks and her ministers as seven stars, both luminous with the light of the gospel revelation.

Please turn over to Ephesians 3, verse 9. In Ephesians, Christ, the light of the world, is the Head of the church. The church is His Body through which His glory is revealed to the world to make everyone see the purpose of the mystery.

Ephesians 3:8-12 To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery [that is, God's church], which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; to the extent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him.

Ephesians 3:20-21 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

So the church brings glory to God by revealing His glory to humans through its production of the life and light of Jesus Christ.

Light, in its varied meanings, is at the heart of such central biblical themes as creation, provenance, judgment, redemption, and sanctification. The text within the Bible that comes closest to summarizing the range of meanings of light is Paul's description of the light of Christ's gospel that we read earlier.

II Corinthians 4:6 For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

This is the link between the existing and new creations, between the Old Testament and the New Testament, and between the physical and the spiritual realities.

Please turn to Romans 13, verse 11. There was a time in human history that historians called the Age of Enlightenment. The Enlightenment of the 1800s, not the Reformation or the Renaissance, dislodged the religious establishment from central control of cultural and intellectual life by liberating science from the shackles of false theological tradition. However, in doing so, the Enlightenment made the autonomous development of modern culture possible. So the enlightenment of humanity from false religion that began in the 1800s, paved the way for the scientific religion of evolution and humanism. In this, we see a clear example of how Satan uses a false light to shift people to deeper darkness.

Romans 13:11-12 And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.

The members of the true church of God are spiritually enlightened now as the potential firstfruits of God's Kingdom for the world. However, the actual period of true spiritual enlightenment will be during the Millennium after the Tribulation and the Day of the Lord. And God will shine light on the people's minds, revealing Himself and His way of life. All will finally see the truth.

Now please turn over to Revelation 21, verse 10. The apostle John portrayed the New Heavens and earth's wonder by drawing attention to the royal city at its center. In the New Jerusalem, the people of God will enjoy unhindered worship and fellowship under the Great King, Jesus Christ. The divine King's presence and the glory of God will provide light for the city, and the nations and kings will bring their splendor into it.

The final pictures of light that we find in the Bible appear in John's visions of the new City of God. In the book of Revelation, the New Jerusalem comes down from heaven having the glory of God. Its radiance is like a very rare jewel.

Revelation 21:10-11 And he carried me away in the Spirit [speaking of John] to a great and high mountain, and showed me the great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Her light was like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, clear as crystal.

Verse 22 begins the description of the glory of the New Jerusalem. The city does not need the sun or moon to shine upon it because the glory of God is its light and its lamp is the Lamb. Illuminated by the overflowing radiance of the presence of the glory of God, the holy city no longer needs a temple. But spiritually, it has a temple because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.

Revelation 21:22-25 But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple, The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light. And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth shall bring glory and honor into it. Its gates shall not be shut at all by day (there shall be no night there).

All the glorious purposes of God, ordained from the foundation of the world, by this time have been attained. The rebellion of the angels and humanity is all finally subdued. As the King of kings assumes His rightful sovereignty, absolute unchangeable holiness characterizes all within the universal Kingdom of God.

The redeemed, made so by the blood of the Lamb, are in eternal glory. Life is everywhere—death will never rear its ugly head again.

At the end of the age, the light of God will obliterate all traces of darkness. The earth and the heavens are both renewed. Light, truth, beauty, holiness, joy, the permanent presence and worship of God, service, and the likeness to Christ—all will be permanent realities.

Words cannot truly and adequately express what God has prepared for those who love Him, for we are His servants who walk in the light of God's presence.

Revelation 22:3-5 And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor life of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever.

God is the only true source of everlasting light, of everlasting truth, goodness, purity, righteousness, holiness, understanding, and justice. There will be no physical or spiritual night, no more idolatry nor intellectual darkness. The Scriptures will be read everywhere, the pure Word preached everywhere, and the Spirit of God will shine and work in every mind.

For final scripture, please turn to Psalm 89, verse 14. All this will be with perfect knowledge and joy. All will be full of wisdom and comfort, continually walking in the light of the Lord. And all this will not be for a specific time period, but forever and ever. The whole purpose of light is to reveal and glorify God. God is light. The glory and light of the New Jerusalem will be the presence of God, with no artificial illumination. The servants of God will reign with Christ forever in everlasting light.

Psalm 89:14-15 Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; mercy and truth go before Your face.

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