153. Light and Glory
Isaiah 60:1, 2 Arise, shine; for thy light has come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.
God promises light and glory. Light and glory has come with the birth of Jesus of Nazareth on the earth. God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. Darkness covers all the earth and deep darkness all the people of earth. The sun, moon and stars give and reflect light to the world, but spiritually the people are living in darkness inside in the soul. Humans are blinded by sin and spiritually cannot even see the darkness they are in. They are blind but they think they see. They do not have the light of the Lord and since they haven’t seen the light they cannot know the darkness.
But God says we are in darkness, and so we are. There is no use arguing with God about this fact. We can only call out for the Lord and for the light and He will come. When He comes He brings light. Light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it. Jesus is the Light. He has penetrated the darkness that covers and fills the soul. The darkness has been pushed back; darkness has no power. When light shines darkness disappears.
When we find ourselves in darkness, and we cannot see and don’t know what to do or where to go we may turn to the light that has come. Repentance senses the darkness while faith sees the light. When we believe the Gospel light arises and shines. The darkness is gone but it doesn’t want to leave, so it lies and tempts and deceives us into believing that the only thing real is the thing we can see with our physical eyes. The Word of God says, “But you don’t see. Let the Light shine. Believe the Gospel Light of Jesus Christ.”
The true light was coming into the world. This promise was fulfilled in the birth of Jesus. The world, still in darkness, did not receive Him, but to all who did receive Him, who believe in Him, He gave the right to become children of God. We who did hear and believe this glorious message have received Him and now we see. And we need to receive Jesus again and again, over and over, and day after day, because we are always in darkness and at the same time always in light. In the midst of death we are in life. When we receive Him the glory of God will be seen on us. We do not see the glory, but God does see the glory on you and in you, and He rejoices to see the star. Let the light rise and shine upon you.