What the Holy Ghost has given me today I pray that I will do well and he speaks through me.
We see in scripture that Jesus is the light of the world.
John 1:1-9 1 IN the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 The same was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
6 ¶ There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.
7 The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. (notice Light is capitalized)
8 He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.
9 That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
John 3:19-21 19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
John 8:12 ¶ Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
John 9:5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.
John 12:35-36 35 Then Jesus said unto them, Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth.
36 While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light. These things spake Jesus, and departed, and did hide himself from them.
John 12:46 I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.
Matthew 4:12-16 12 ¶ Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee;
13 And leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim:
14 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying,
15 The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles;
16 The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up. (refers to Jesus. Only Jesus can bring us light)
Luke 2:28-32 28 Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said,
29 Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word:
30 For mine eyes have seen thy salvation,
31 Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people;
32 A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.
(Simeon said this when Mary came to bring her sacrifice after her purification after the birth of Jesus. This proves she was not born without sin as the Roman Catholics say. Jesus needed no sacrifice for himself.)
Psalm 97:10-11 10 Ye that love the LORD, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.
11 Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart.
Acts 26:17-18 17 Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee,
18 To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me. (Paul was recounting his encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus) (Paul was to tell the people about the light of Jesus)
Paul spoke of seeing a bright light from heaven brighter than the sun that shone on him and those with him and they were afraid and then Jesus spoke out of that light. Jesus was that light. (Acts chapters 9, 22 and 26)
I John 1:5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. (We know Jesus is God) [See John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.]
II Samuel 22:29 For thou art my lamp, O LORD: and the LORD will lighten my darkness.
Psalm 119:105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.
(John 1:1 and John 1:14 tells us the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. The Word is Jesus)
Romans 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
Genesis 1:3-4 3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.
Jesus was the light on earth before the sun was created. He created darkness. (Isaiah 45:7 I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.) The sun was created on day four, but plants on day three. They had light from Jesus. This contradicts evolution. The sun is a type of Jesus and the moon is a type of Christians.
Revelation 21:23 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. (refers to new Jerusalem) (There are many more verses that show Jesus is the light of the world)
II Corinthians 4:6 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
The transfiguration of Jesus showed Jesus’s true nature.
Matthew 17:1-2 1 AND after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,
2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.
Hanukkah is the Jewish Festival of Lights. Jesus celebrated it where it is referred to as the feast of dedication. If you study the scriptures, Jesus was most likely born on the feast of tabernacles (John 1:14 says And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.) We know the Word is Jesus and the word dwelt in Greek means to tabernacle. This is like someone who is born on Christmas and we say he Christmased with us. I believe the Holy Ghost was giving us a clue that Jesus was born on the feast of tabernacles and if you go back 9 months for gestation then Jesus was most likely conceived on Hanukkah which is appropriate as Jesus is the light of the world conceived on the festival of lights or feast of dedication as Jesus is dedicated to the world.
Luke 23:44 And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. (noon until 3 pm) There was darkness because the light of the world was dying for the whole worlds sins including mine and yours and God the Father could not look at him. Without the light of Jesus there is no light on earth.
Many examples in the Old Testament such as the candlestick in the tabernacle (which gives off light) are a type of Jesus.
Many numbers in scripture have meaning such as five means grace, three is divine completeness, seven is perfection (even the casual reader of scripture sees a significance in the number seven), 16 means love for you romantics, 50 represents the Holy Ghost. The number 22 means light. The number 14 means salvation and 8 is new beginning or new birth. 14 (salvation) + 8 (new birth) = 22 (light) or Jesus.
There are seven types of light in nature: visible light, infrared, x-rays, gamma rays, microwaves, radio waves and ultraviolet light.
The colors also have meanings such as green means life, purple royalty and blue means separation or division. This is seen in the Old Testament priests robes which were blue as they were separated for service to God and the veil in the temple was also blue which separated the holy of holies from the rest of the temple. We know the rainbow represents God’s promise to never destroy the world with a global flood again (Genesis 9:12-16), but the colors of the rainbow together represent the story of redemption of our salvation. The rainbow is seen behind God’s throne in Revelation 4:3. (Revelation 4:3 And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.) The rainbow reflects refracted light just as Christians should reflect the light of Jesus and his story of salvation. Genesis 9:14 says And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow (rainbow) shall be seen in the cloud: (All clouds have a rainbow and can be seen with the right equipment or conditions though we see very few, but God sees a rainbow and remembers his covenant each time there is a cloud. The Holy Bible is proven right again). Each individual Christian should be a cloud that tells the story of redemption to the lost world.
Light has different properties that represent the Godhead. X-rays, gamma rays, radio waves, and ultraviolet light cannot be seen or felt just as God the Father cannot be seen or felt. Visible light can be seen and felt just as Jesus could be seen and felt. Infrared light cannot be seen but can be felt just as the Holy Ghost cannot be seen but can be felt. Not sure on microwaves. They are not seen and some say not felt, but others say they can burn you, but they still may not be felt before burning you. Not sure.
The unsaved often like the night time such as thieves as seen in many places in scripture. Light is compared to good and God and darkness to evil throughout scripture. Light represents truth.
An example of good is evil and evil is good and truth is twisted is seen by the Hindus of India who celebrate Diwali every October or November. Satan always tries to copy God. Diwali symbolizes the spiritual “victory of light over darkness, good over evil and knowledge over ignorance”. Businesses are closed and candles and lights lit and it lasts five days. Let us pray Hindus get true victory over darkness and turn to the true light of Jesus.
Jesus said he is God when he said his seven I am statements such as he said I am the door, I am the way, the truth and the life, and I am the light of the world. Moses was told to tell the people I AM sent him.
Jesus tells us in plain English that even a child or one uneducated can understand that he is the light of the world. (John 8:12 ¶ Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.)
Through these verses and illustrations we see Jesus is the light of the world.
We as Christians are to represent and reflect the light of Jesus to others and be a lighthouse unto the lost and dying world.
As I read earlier in John 12:36 While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light.
Matthew 5:14-16 14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.
16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
Luke 16:8 And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light. (here in the parable of the unjust steward Christians are referred to as children of light, but are not wise as they should be)
I Thessalonians 5:5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.
The following are some things that keep a Christian from growing and their light shining brightly. All of these things apply to me as well. I am preaching to myself at the same time as all of you. When you point a finger at someone, three are pointing back at yourself.
Christians need to live their lives in a way that reflects Jesus (Light). Christians should be putting God first in all that we do. Like it or not the world watches anyone who professes to be a Christian. Christians should not be using alcohol, tobacco, gambling including buying lottery tickets, going to the casinos (even eating there which only supports an ungodly establishment) or getting tattoos or piercings all over their body. Christians should not be cursing and also need to be careful how they speak such as being rude. They are not to be politically correct, but need to be tactful and gentler as not to hurt our Christian brothers or sisters. Do not give evil looks and watch the tone of your voice when speaking. Christians need to act their age both physically and spiritually whether 8 or 80. One who professes to have been a Christian for 50 years should not still be drinking milk, but should be eating meat and teaching babes in Christ. Christians should not be watching or looking at pornography, telling or listening to dirty jokes, lusting after the opposite sex, watching television shows or movies that mock sin and blasphemy God. Christians should not watch or read books and movies that promote witchcraft such as Harry Potter (the spells in the stories are real with only a few words supposedly left out and these books are supposedly written by a professing Christian) and the Wizard of Oz. God hates witchcraft. There is no white or black witchcraft. It is all evil from Satan. God compares rebellion to witchcraft. (I Samuel 15:23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.) Christians should not be Masons (All of the top Masons worship Satan). Christians should be in church whenever possible and not make excuses not to come. Do not put sports, family, money or anything else before God. Vote according to what scriptures says on issues and not our personal feelings. Christians need to use their money wisely and spend more for the Lord and need to tithe. (The word tithe means 10% and people need to tithe based on their gross income, not net. Do not try to steal or cheat God. He only asks for 10% when it all belongs to him. God told the Jews in Malachi 3:8 that they had robbed him. They said where and God said in tithes and offerings. Offerings is anything above the 10%). Even if one is poor they still need to tithe. God will bless them just like the poor widow who threw in all she had with her last mite. God does not need our money, he wants our obedience. (Malachi 3:8 ¶ Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.) Christians need to do more than live their lives as an example. People need to see Christians in action and not just talk. We all need to tell others about Jesus, invite people especially the lost to church. Offer to drive them there. Christians need to use the King James Bible and avoid all other versions including the New King James Version as all others have been corrupted and influenced by man, the Roman Catholic Church and Satan. Christians should not commit adultery (Jesus said in Matthew 5:28 That whosever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.) [Many women are guilty as well]. Christians should not be getting divorced (this is unacceptable, rate as high as the unsaved and you took an oath before God), living together when not married, dating and marrying unsaved people as scripture says we are not to be unequally yoked one to another. (II Corinthians 6:14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?) Christians should not be gossiping, should not be listening to Rock and Roll or rap music including so called Christian rock and Christian rap and most of the contemporary Christian music. This kind of music is from Satan and does not honor or please God. One should dress up for God. It need not be a suit, but wear the best that you have. Women make sure you are not wearing revealing clothing.
Matthew 5:13 ¶ Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.
All of us are guilty of one or more of these sins or some other sins and need to confess them before Jesus, repent and try to not repeat them.
The following will help Christians to grow and shine brightly:
Christians need to read and study (these are not the same) scripture everyday (no excuses). Christians need to pray every day for the lost as well as for our church family, nation, Christians in bonds and those being persecuted for Jesus, etc. Christians should not be lying and should be examples to the lost. Love our neighbors and enemies even when difficult.
All Christians should find a way to serve Jesus and reach the lost. One is never to old or young to serve Jesus. Moses was 80 when God called him to stand before Pharaoh and free his people from Egypt, cross the Red sea, receive the ten commandments and lead the people in the wilderness for forty years. He served until his death at 120. Aaron was 83 when he was called by God to be a priest and served until is death at 123. Noah was 600 when he went aboard the ark. Abraham was 75 when he departed out of Haran. Jack Chick continued to serve the Lord and reach the lost by writing and drawing new tracts until his death at 92. Tim Lahaye of the Left Behind book series, continued to write books for God until his death at age 90. Neither are you too young to serve. Samuel served with Eli the priest from a very young age and Samson also served from a young age. There are no excuses, even if you are in bad health. (Tell story of lady with polio and in iron lung who led a Sunday School or bus ministry). Whether through giving out tracts (tell of my ministry), telling people about Jesus, giving people Holy Bibles, starting a website, a ministry, or using social media such as Facebook. One can teach, give out cd’s or dvd’s of stories of Jesus as well. One can serve on mission trips, give money to missionaries or support various Christian ministries. There are many ways to serve. Every Christian is given a gift or gifts from the Holy Ghost and needs to use it to honor and serve the Lord such as if you are an artist, writer or musician use it all for the glory of God. Just as in the military there are those who serve on the front lines, those in the rear that support those on the front and then those who serve in factories to make the weapons for those on the front. Christians can also serve in one of those three spots. All Christians can at least pray for those who are serving. Christians should be kind, gentle and caring and should show the fruit of the Spirit of Galatians 5:22-23. The people around you at work, school, family or friends should know you are a Christian and what you believe. Christians should not be ashamed of Jesus and should not be embarrassed to pray in public or around coworkers, schoolmates or others for our food or other reasons for praying.
Satan was originally Lucifer which means light bearer. Satan was meant to reflect the light of God (of Jesus I believe), but failed when he rebelled against God. We as Christians must not fail to reflect and shine the light of God. If Christians truly want revival, then just as the moon reflects the light of the sun, they need to make sure they are reflecting the light of the Son of God Jesus Christ. As the sign above the sanctuary as you exit at Southside Baptist Church says “Go Forth To Serve.”
If one is not saved, today is the day of salvation, repent, admit that you are a sinner, realize you need a Saviour and that Jesus died in your place for your sins, was buried, and rose again on the third day and ask Jesus to save you so you too may come out of the darkness into the light and can reflect the light of Jesus.
