Praise the Lord for the Bible, the word of God! Apart from the word of God in the Bible it is hard for us to know God and the things concerning God. But the word of God reveals to us, in our own language and in black and white, what and who God is, and what is His purpose.
However, even though the Bible is so available, whether or not we receive blessing from it depends on our condition. If we have a proper heart and an exercised spirit before the Lord, the Bible will be to us a book full of light and life, and by reading the Bible we will enter into the realm of the divine light.
However, if we do not have a pure heart and a right attitude when we come to the word of God, we will not see the light but rather we may get some knowledge or doctrines. Yes, the Bible contains a lot of history, doctrines, teachings, and good things, but the Bible as the word of God is the embodiment of God as the divine light, and when we come to God’s word we need to have a right attitude and a proper heart so that we may enter into God’s light, see things as He sees them, and walk in the light.
The Word of God is the Embodiment of God as the Divine Light
The word of God, the Bible, is the consolidation of His light; God’s light is solid in His word. When we open the Word of God with a right heart and in a right condition, inevitably the divine light will be there, and when God’s light is shining, we will see the truth and we’ll be set free by the truth. God is light (1 John 1:5), and this light is consolidated in the Word; therefore, the Word of God is the embodiment of God as the divine light.
The whole world lies in darkness, and all the things going on around us daily show us clearly that this world is rotting more and more, sinking deeper into darkness day by day. We must be those who come to the Word of God, uphold God’s word, honor God’s word, stand for His word, glory in His word, trust in His word, and walk in God’s light as He shines on us through His word.
Everything else is diluted: what is right according to the Bible and even according to morality is considered wrong, and what is wrong is considered right; what is sweet is considered bitter, and what is shameful is considered good…Oh Lord Jesus, we must stay close to the word of God in a living way to receive the divine light. We need to read the Bible, be filled with the Word of God, know the Word, and come to the Word as a realm of light, otherwise we will have no way to go on, and we do not know how to live our human life and our spiritual life. The only salvation is the light we receive from God through His living word.
Whenever we come to the Word of God, we should sense that we are in an atmosphere of light (Psa. 36:9). If we come to the Bible with a proper attitude, we will be in the light and under the light – and not merely receive light (1 John 1:7). The Lord doesn’t want us just to “get some light” in His word from time to time but that we may live in a realm of light, the divine light. When we are under the sunlight we don’t need to receive light but we are fully under the light and we walk in the light.
May we be those who come to the Word of God with a proper attitude so that we may receive God’s light and walk in His light, so that the Bible would be a book full of light and we may abide in this light. The Word of God is the embodiment of God as the divine light, and if we come to the Word of God with the right attitude and the proper heart, we will receive God’s light and walk in the light so that we may have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sins (1 John 1:7).
Lord Jesus, thank You and praise You for Your Word, which is the embodiment of God as the divine light. Lord, we honor Your word, we stand for Your word, we glory in Your word, and we trust in Your word and in nothing else. Keep us enjoying You in Your living word day by day so that we may receive the divine light and walk in the light. May our whole being and our entire daily living be in Your divine light so that we may walk in the light to have fellowship with one another and have the constant cleansing of Your blood.
How the Word of God is a Realm of Light in our Experience as God’s Loving Seekers
The Bible is full of verses showing us that the word of God is a realm of light to God’s loving seekers (Psa. 36:9). Because the Word of God is a realm of light, the opening of God’s words gives light (Psa. 119:130). The Word has an “opening”; when we open to the Lord, deal with our heart, and exercise our spirit to come to God’s word with the right attitude and the proper spirit, the opening of God’s word gives light, imparting understanding to the simple.
The Word of God is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path (Psa. 119:105). Step after step in our daily life, in our daily walk with the Lord, in our family life and church life, in big and small decisions, the Word of God is our light. The world today walks on a path that is without any light; we must be those who come to God’s word and enter into a realm of light, then walk day by day in the light having the Word of God guiding us and keeping us in God’s way.
Without God’s word as the light we stumble, get off on a tangent, and we don’t stay on the straight path. But, praise the Lord, the word of God enlightens our eyes to see what our situation is, what is the condition of those around us, and what is the way we should take in our going on with the Lord (Psa. 19:8). We need to humble ourselves, have a thorough dealing with the Lord, and ask Him to have mercy on us so that our inward condition would be right before Him so that we may receive His divine light, have our eyes enlightened, and go on with Him under His light.
Our eyes can become darkened, tired, droopy, or blurry; when this happens, we need the word of God – we need to be brought into the realm of light again. In the word of God as a realm of light, the prophetic word is a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in our hearts (2 Pet. 1:19).
[In 2 Peter 1:19] Peter likened the word of prophecy in the Scripture to a lamp shining in a dark place. This indicates that (1) this age is a dark place in the dark night (Rom. 13:12), and all the people of this world are moving and acting in darkness; and (2) the prophetic word of the Scripture, as the shining lamp to the believers, conveys spiritual light that shines in their darkness (not merely knowledge in letters for their mental apprehension), guiding them to enter into a bright day, even to pass through the dark night until the day of the Lord’s appearing dawns. Before the Lord as the sunlight appears, we need this word as light to shine over our footsteps. (2 Pet. 1:19, footnote 2, Recovery Version)
The situation among us is dark; the world is dark, our workplace is dark, the university or the school we’re in is dark, and even the situations we find ourselves to be in are dark. But the word of God shines in us as we walk and move on a pathway toward the Lord’s coming, toward His return at the end of this age. The Word shines in us until the day dawns and the morning star rises in our heart. In the Word of God as a realm of light we are being constituted with the truth as the shining of light (John 8:12, 32).
As we receive God’s shining through His word and live in the realm of God’s light, we are being constituted with God’s very element realized by us, and this realization of God is reality – which is truth. Only in the Word of God as the realm of the divine light can we be constituted with the truth; this truth will set us free. In the Word of God as a realm of the divine light, we walk in the light (as God is in the light), and we have fellowship with one another (1 John 1:5, 7).
True fellowship can take place only when we are in the light. The real enjoyment of the Triune God and the real joint participation in His divine purpose can only occur when we are in the realm of light. May the Lord save us from “fellowship” that we may have and leads us into more darkness. May we enjoy the Lord as light in His word, and may we walk in the light and have fellowship with one another!
Lord Jesus, open Your word to us so that we may have light. We take Your word as a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. Enlighten our eyes and strengthen our spiritual sight through Your Word as a realm of light. May the prophetic word shine in us and through us until the day dawns and the morning star rises in our hearts! Lord, keep us in the light and constitute us with the truth as the shining of the light. We want to walk in the light as You are in the light and have fellowship with one another.
References and Hymns on this Topic
- Inspiration: the Word of God, my Christian experience, brother Minoru Chen’s sharing in the message for this week, and Life-study of Exodus, msgs. 59-60, as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallization-Study of Exodus (2), week 3 / msg 3, The Word of God Being a Realm of Light in the Experience of God’s Loving Seekers.
- All Bible verses are taken from, Holy Bible Recovery Version.
- Hymns on this topic to strengthen this burden:
# God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all! / Oh, how we love within His presence to dwell! / In this light we enjoy a constant cleansing within— / From every sin! (Song on God being light)
# Live in the light of life, / Sweet fellowship maintain; / Behold His gracious face, / Each day more glory gain, / The Spirit’s move obey, / Rejoice and praise and pray; / Live in the light of life. (Hymns #1353)
# And we have the prophetic word / Made more firm, to which you do well / To give heed as to a lamp / Shining in a dark place, / Until the day dawns / And the morning star / Rises in your hearts. (Scripture song)
About aGodMan
[Psalm 119:130 indicates that] the Word has an opening. This means that the Bible has an entrance, a gate. According to my experience, the bar to this gate is not on the inside but on the outside. It is on our side of the gate. This means that if the gate is closed, we are the ones who have closed it.
In verse 105 the psalmist says a practical word about light: “Your word is a lamp to my feet / And a light to my path.” This is not a matter of doctrine or teaching but of experience in the daily life of the psalmist. Step after step in his daily life, the Word was his light.
Psalm 19:8b says, “The commandment of Jehovah is clear, / Enlightening the eyes.” This verse indicates that God’s living Word enlightens our eyes. If we do not sense that we are in light when we come to the Word, this is a sign that our condition is not right. It is not adequate simply to pray that the Lord will give us light. We need to humble ourselves, have a thorough dealing with the Lord, and ask Him to have mercy on us. (Witness Lee, Life-study of Exodus, pp. 696-698)