Pray-Read the Word of Prophecy in the Scripture to have Light until the Lord’s Return

Peter likens the word of prophecy in the Scripture to a lamp shining in a dark place; the opening of the Lord’s word gives light, imparts understanding, and leads us on the Christian pathway until the morning star rises in our hearts.

We as believers in Christ need to give heed to the prophetic word, especially as we see the day of the Lord’s coming drawing near.

God requires that we know the prophecies, and we as believers need to give heed to them.

When the Lord Jesus was on the earth, He said that we should know and understand the prophecies.

This doesn’t mean that we need to drop everything else and focus only on the prophecies; rather, we need to focus on the Lord as the centre of the prophecies and enjoy Him, partake of Him and behold Him, and allow the prophetic word to guide us and shine on our pathway.

The best way to do this is to be in the word of God and to read the ministry that opens up the word of God.

In Dan. 9:24-27 we see the great human image and the end of the age, with the Lord’s coming; we need to see this vision and be encouraged and warned concerning the Lord’s coming.

The effect that the word of prophecy should have on us is not to scare us or to make us into people who are panicking because the Lord is coming, but to cause us to make ourselves ready for the Lord’s return.

The word of prophecy in the Scripture needs to be made clear to us, we need to read and pray over it, and we need to let it shine on us and light our pathway.

We need to know the last seven years of this age, especially the last three and a half years.

Then we need to know what is the resurrection of the dead in Daniel.

We need to know concerning the rapture of the overcomers, and how the Lord is coming in His parousia to rapture His overcomers.

We need to know that there are many kinds of overcomers, and the majority of the believers will not be raptured but will remain in the great tribulation.

Then we need to know who is Antichrist, someone coming out of the Mediterranean Sea, the seventh Caesar of the revived Roman Empire.

And we need to know what is Armageddon, the last war in the world, where the Antichrist will lead the rebellious mankind in an open battle against God and His overcomers.

The war in Ukraine today is no comparison to what will happen on that day, for on that day the Lord will appear from heaven and will utter a word, and all the enemies will be defeated.

All these are not merely for our curiosity; the Bible speaks about these matters, and we need to know them in order to prepare ourselves for the Lord’s return.

If we don’t know the prophecies and do not give heed to the prophetic word, it will be easy for us to lose heart, be deceived, and even fall into apostasy and heresy.

The Word of Prophecy in the Scripture is a Lamp Shining in a Dark Place until the Day Dawns

In 1 Pet. 1:19 the apostle Peter likens the word of prophecy in the Scripture to a lamp shining in a dark place.

This indicates that in this age we are in a dark place, in a dark night (Rom. 13:12), and all the people of this world are moving and acting in darkness (Acts 26:18).

Humanly speaking, there is the sunlight that guides our daily walk, and we have the night with darkness, but spiritually speaking, this age is the age of darkness.

People today simply lie in the evil one, in his kingdom of darkness, and the pernicious one operates in them and among them as he wishes.

When we believed into the Lord Jesus, we were delivered from the authority of darkness and transferred into the kingdom of the Son of God’s love, which is full of light and love.

As we love the Lord, read the word, and pray over the word of God, fellowshipping with Him and contacting Him, we sense that we are in the light.

But those around us who do not read the word of God and do not have the divine life in them, are like zombies walking around, moving and acting in darkness; they are like the living dead.

Sometimes even some Christians are like that, for they do not take the word of prophecy in the Scripture as a lamp shining in a dark place.

We believers in Christ can come to the prophetic word of the Scriptures to receive the Lord’s shining.

The word of prophecy in the Scripture is a shining lamp to the believers; it conveys spiritual light that shines in their darkness and guides them into a bright day (2 Pet. 1:19; 2 Tim. 4:8; 1:12).

What we read in the Bible is not merely doctrines, teachings, history, poetry, or prophecy; the word of God is a lamp unto our feet and a light to our path (Psa. 119:105).

The word of God in the Bible, and in particular the word of prophecy in the Scripture, is not merely knowledge in letters for our mental apprehension but spiritual light shining to dispel the darkness and bring us into the light in full.

We need to come to the word of God with an exercised spirit and a heart that is turned to the Lord so that the black and white letters in the Bible become the shining of the divine light to us.

In ancient times people did not have street lights; when they walked in the darkness, they needed a torch or a lamp to light their path.

Without such a lamp, it was dark and they could not see where they are going.

Similarly, in this age of darkness we need the Lord’s word of prophecy in the Scriptures to shine on us with spiritual light and guide us in our Christian pathway.

Step after step and day after day, we need to take the word of God as light and walk in its shining.

We need to let the word of prophecy in the Scripture shine with spiritual light and lead us in our daily living.

The Lord Jesus Himself is embodied in His word; when we come to the word of God with our spirit exercised, we receive light, we walk in the light, and light is all around us.

We not only receive a little light; we enter into a realm of light, and the Lord has a way to shine in every part of our being and also shine through us to those around us.

The word of God is the embodiment of God; when we touch the word with our spirit and our mind is renewed, we receive spiritual light.

When we read the word of the prophecy in the Scriptures and give heed to it in spirit, we receive spiritual light to guide us on our pathway.

Lord, we come to Your word to receive light. Open Your word to us. May the word of prophecy in the Scripture become a lamp shining in a dark place. We need Your light, Lord! We do not want to remain in darkness like the rest of those around us. Shine on us. Shine in our being. Shine through us. Even as we live in this dark age, we want to have the divine light shining in us and around us so that we may walk in the light. Amen, Lord, we exercise our spirit as we come to Your word so that we may have light and walk in the light! May the word of prophecy in the Scripture shine with spiritual light and guide us in our Christian pathway as we go on with the Lord. May we live in an atmosphere of light daily as we come to the word of God and allow the Lord to shine on us, in us, and through us.

Pray-read and Give Heed to the Prophetic Word in the Bible until the Lord Returns

Before the Lord as the sunlight appears, we who live in this dark age need to pray-read and give heed to the prophetic word in the Bible to have a lamp shining in us and around us.

Before the Lord’s second coming, when He returns first as the morning star to His faithful overcomers and then as the sunlight to all His believers, we need to heed the word of prophecy in the Scriptures so that we may have it shine over our footsteps (Mal. 4:2; Psa. 119:105, 130).

We all can testify that, when we read the newspaper or a magazine, or when we read the social media posts, the comments, and all kinds of articles, we do not receive light nor are we supplied with life.

But if we come to the Word of God and pray-read some verses with a sincere heart and in an attitude of humility, we will be conscious that we’re brought into the light.

Whenever we come to the word of God in a proper way, light shines on us and around us, and we are brought into the light.

In 2 Pet. 1 the apostle Peter testified in a strong way concerning the Lord’s first coming, how he and the other disciples saw His majesty and splendour on the Mount of Transfiguration.

His word was a good inoculation against any heresy, and when we receive his word with an open heart, we are inoculated against any heretical teaching.

Then in vv. 19-21 Peter goes on to use the prophetic word found in the Old Testament to confirm his testimony.

On one hand, we need the apostles’ witness; on the other hand, we need the prophetic word in the Scriptures, for both of these are the shining of the truth.

In addition to the truth of the Lord’s transfiguration as an inoculation against superstitious myths, the truth of the prophetic word is used for a more sure confirmation.

We do well to give heed to the prophetic word in the Bible, for this word is confirming the testimony of the apostles and strengthens it, and it shines on us with spiritual light.

May we love the word of God and read it, pray over it, and give heed to the prophetic word.

May we not only seek to know what will happen in the last days in the way of knowledge but be in the divine light and receive spiritual nourishment as we come to the word of God so that we may advance in our Christian life.

If we are those who give heed to the prophetic word in the Bible, we will have Christ rising in our hearts to shine in the darkness.

The prophetic word in the Bible, the word of prophecy in the Scriptures, shines as a lamp in a dark place.

May we all love the Lord’s word and read it with much prayerful consideration.

May we have the opening of the Lord’s word, so that understanding may be imparted to us and we would enter into a bright pathway and walk on it.

May we be persons filled with light in this age of darkness.

Even in this dark age, we can live in the daytime simply by coming to the word of God and paying attention to the word of prophecy in the Scriptures.

And we do this until Christ as the morning star rises in our hearts and the day dawns!

As we pass through the dark night of this age today, the prophetic word in the Bible guides us and conveys spiritual light to shine in our darkness; we do well to give heed to this word and pray over it until we live in the light.

Lord, Your word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. We come to Your word to receive spiritual light and have understanding. Shine on us day by day. Keep us under Your shining in our Christian walk. Save us from remaining in darkness like the rest of those around us. May we give heed to the prophetic word in the Bible which shines as a lamp in a dark place. Amen, Lord, we want to give heed to the prophetic word until Christ as the morning star rises in our hearts to shine in the darkness! We come to Your word, dear Lord, with an exercised spirit to touch and receive the divine light conveyed in it. Fill us with light. We want to walk in the light. We want to be persons of light! Amen, Lord, the opening of Your words gives light, imparting understanding to the simple!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Inspiration for this article/sharing comes from the Word of God, the enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by the brothers in the message for this week, and portions from, Life-study of 2 Peter, msg. 8 (by Witness Lee), as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Making Ourselves Ready for the Lord’s Coming (2023 ICSC), week 3, entitled, Making ourselves Ready for the Lord’s Coming by Giving Heed to the Prophetic Word as to a Lamp Shining in a Dark Place Until the Day Dawns and the Morning Star Rises in our Hearts.
• Further reading on this topic:
  – The Morning Star Rises and the Day Dawns unto the Full Day of New Jerusalem, via, New Jerusalem blog.
  – Online Gospel Meeting – Finding Christ by the Living Star, via, Church in Manila youtube.
  – The Heavenly Christ as the Living Star and the Shining Stars in the Churches as Christ’s Duplication, via, Living to Him.
  – Having Living Revelation, via, Finding Christ by the Living Star, Chapter 1, by Witness Lee.
  – The Word of God in the Believers’ Prophesying, article in, Affirmation and Critique.
  – Touching the Divine Concept in the Bible by Exercising Our Spirit When Coming to the Bible, article via, Living to Him.
  – The Deep Significance of the Birth of Jesus Christ, via, Bibles for America Blog.
• Hymns on this topic:
  – O Morning Star! Spring forth from my heart’s fountain, / As we attend to Thy prophetic word; / Glow as a lamp amidst apostate darkness, / Until the morn arrives in all the earth. (Song on, O, Morning Star! stanza 3)
  – Watch for the Savior’s coming! / Watch for the Morning Star; / Watch and pursue the Kingdom! / Watch with many a scar. / Watch, and be ever watchful! / Watch, till the night is done; / Watch till the dawn of glory! / Watch till the Lord shall come. (Hymns #666 stanza 3)
  – O may I love Thy precious Word, / May I explore the mine, / May I its glorious riches take, / May light upon me shine. / O may I find my armor there, / Thy Word my trusty sword; / I’ll learn to fight with every foe / The battle of the Lord. (Hymns #804 stanza 3)