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“Let us walk in the light of the LORD”
Isaiah 2:5
What if you had to find your way alone in a dark forest at night
without any light? What would you think of someone who had a
light, but failed to use it? In the spiritual realm that is what most
people do.
We need the light of God’s word.
“Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my pathway”
(Psalm 119:105 ISV).
Deep darkness covered the earth until God said, “Let there be
light” (Genesis 1:3). The Creator of physical light is also the source
of spiritual light. “Oh, send out Your light and Your truth! Let them
lead me” (Psalm 43:3).
We need the light of God’s word to guide our steps along a
safe path in a dark and dangerous world. Without this light we
cannot find the good way.
Jesus, the Word of God (John 1:14), is “the true light, who
gives light to everyone” (John 1:9 NET). He said: “I am the light of
the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have
the light of life” (John 8:12).
Millions walk in spiritual darkness.
It is sad that most people make no use of this “light of life.”
They are like people driving their car at night without turning the
headlights on.
And what about someone who goes into a forest at night,
takes a light, but without batteries? These are people who have a
Bible, but never read it. Of what value is a lamp without oil or a
pocket light without batteries?
For a long walk, we need spare batteries!
Jesus told about ten virgins who took their lamps to meet the
bridegroom (Matthew 25:1-13). Five were wise. They had extra oil.
Five were foolish. They had oil in their lamps, but no reserves. As
the bridegroom approached, their lamps started flickering out.
These people have some light from God’s word but not enough.
The light of life must enlighten our heart.
The word of God must dwell in us richly (Colossians 3:16).
Before the word can reside in our heart it must enter our mind
through our eyes and ears. We do not have a slot for a Bible
memory card on the top of our head. To have God’s word in our
heart we must listen to the word being preached, participate in
Bible studies, and read the Scriptures. Human memory must be
refreshed and strengthened by repetition.
We must know what the Bible says, but that is not sufficient.
We must also understand the word of God. His word must enlighten
the eyes of our understanding (Ephesians 1:17, 18).
We must walk in the light (1 John 1:6, 7).
This spiritual enlightenment must guide our lives: “Let the
word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and
admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do
in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks
to God the Father through Him” (Colossians 3:16, 17).
When we walk in the light we do everything “in the name of
the Lord” which means “under His authority.”
Some people misuse this passage. They think they can do
whatever they want as long as they say they are doing it in the
name of the Lord! But Jesus warned: “Not everyone who says to
Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who
does the will of My Father in heaven” (Matthew 7:21).
To be done in the name of the Lord, our words and deeds
must be based on the word of God! That is why His word must
dwell in us richly, so we can know what to do and what to say! Only
then can we walk in the light and do all in the name of the Lord.
To walk in the light, we need a good supply of extra oil! God’s
word must dwell in us richly and that word must guide our lives.
“We also have the prophetic word made more sure, which you
do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day
dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts” (2 Peter 1:19).
By heeding this word, we follow Christ “the Bright and Morning
Star” (Revelation 22:16). He “went about doing good” (Acts 10:38).
We follow His example “by patient continuance in doing good”
(Romans 2:7).
When we walk in the light we follow God’s pattern for our
lives. Paul charged Timothy: “Hold fast the pattern of sound words
which you have heard from me” (2 Timothy 1:13).
A pattern is a binding example. What happens if a pattern is
not followed carefully? If someone cuts out a dress haphazardly,
without closely following the pattern, it will not be a presentable
dress.
In explaining salvation by grace to the saints at Rome, Paul
said: “But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet
you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were
delivered” (Romans 6:17).
The word translated “form” has the basic meaning of “mould”
and refers to the prescribed form or pattern of something.
Thus, God has subjected us to a prescribed form of doctrine
that we must gladly obey.
To walk in the light we must follow God’s pattern for our lives.
The light does not follow us, we must follow the light. We must
walk in the light!
We must avoid darkness.
To walk in the light we must refrain from walking where there
is no light! What if we leave the well-lit pathway and wander off in
the dark?
To walk in the light we must enter the small gate and stay on
the narrow path: “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is
wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are
many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is
narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matthew
7:13, 14 NASB).
Avoiding darkness involves the daily choices of our lives. It is
not stepping into the darkness of sinful ways, being careful what we
allow our eyes to see, what TV shows we watch, what websites we
visit, what books we read, what words we speak, what thoughts we
nourish. Such choices determine whether we are walking in the
light where God is or in the darkness where Satan is.
Avoiding darkness also requires the avoidance of religious
practices that God has not prescribed.
Paul wanted the Corinthians to learn “not to go beyond what is
written” (1 Corinthians 4:6 NET). “Any one who goes ahead and
does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God” (2 John
9 RSV). In Isaiah 8:20 we read: “To the law and to the testimony!
If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no
light in them.” Peter commanded: “If anyone speaks, let him speak
as the oracles of God” (1 Peter 4:11).
What we do and say, both religiously and in our daily lives,
must be based on the word of God. Otherwise we are walking
where the light is not shining.
The blind cannot see the light.
Light has no value for someone who is blind. He cannot
recognize light and he does not benefit from light.
This also applies to the spiritually blind. Jesus said of the
hypocritical religious leaders of His time: “Let them alone. They are
blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will
fall into a ditch” (Matthew 15:14).
“The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is
good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad,
your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is
in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” (words of Jesus in
Matthew 6:22, 23).
Rather than having the eyes of their understanding
enlightened (Ephesians 1:18), the spiritually blind have “their
understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God,
because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness
of their heart” (Ephesians 4:17, 18).
Spiritual blindness can result from hatred. John warns: “But he
who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and
does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded
his eyes” (1 John 2:11). Eyes that lack love are blind to the light of
God’s word.
Spiritual blindness can result from rebelliousness. Ezekiel was
told: “Son of man, you dwell in the midst of a rebellious house,
which has eyes to see but does not see, and ears to hear but does
not hear; for they are a rebellious house” (Ezekiel 12:2).
The eyes of the rebellious are blind to the light of God’s word.
Rebellious people do not want to submit to the authority of God.
Rebellion is a fundamental cause of the apostasy of
Christendom. Denominations are rebellious. They walk in darkness
because they do not submit to God’s word. They do many things
that are not prescribed in the New Testament - even things that are
specifically forbidden, and they neglect to do what is prescribed.
They just do what they want to do, or follow their own traditions.
People who do not want to practice the truth shun the light:
“And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the
world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their
deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and
does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But
he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be
clearly seen, that they have been done in God” (John 3:19-21).
They who are spiritually blind because of hatred,
rebelliousness, or rejection of the truth cannot see the light.
What have we learned?
We need the light of God’s word. His word is a lamp for our
feet and a light for our path. Millions walk in spiritual darkness. The
light of life must enlighten our heart. To walk in the light, we must
know the Scriptures, understand the word, and do the will of God.
We follow Jesus Christ, the light of the world. We do not walk where
there is no light. The spiritually blind cannot see the light.
They who walk in the light have fellowship with God.
“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” (1 John 1:5-7).
“Let us walk in the light of the Lord!” (Isaiah 2:5). Amen.
Roy Davison
The Scripture quotations in this article are from
The New King James Version. ©1979,1980,1982,
Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers unless indicated otherwise.
Permission for reference use has been granted.
Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)
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