Read the Bible in a Living way to have a Shining Star Rise in our Spirit as we love God

As those who give heed to the prophetic word so that the morning star rises in our heart, we need to have an intimate relationship with God and read the Bible in a living way so that light would shine and Christ as the living star would rise in our heart.

When we give heed to the word of the Scriptures as to a lamp shining in a dark place, the condition within us will be like the day dawning and the morning star rising in our hearts. Amen!

We need to be those who are watchful and ready for the Lord’s return by having Christ as the morning star rising in our hearts as we give heed to the prophetic word made more firm.

Some Christians may say that they don’t want to read or study the prophecies concerning the Lord’s return since there’s not much spiritual food in there, or maybe they want to focus on other topics such as spirituality, holiness, the kingdom, the church, etc.

But we as believers in Christ need to pay attention to the prophetic word, even pray and read and prayerfully consider it so that Christ as the morning star would rise in our hearts.

If we do not give heed to the prophetic word, it will be easy for us to fall into apostasy, to be deceived, and even to lose faith.

But if we have the prophetic word being made more firm and we give heed to it, Christ as the morning star will rise in our hearts, and the day will dawn.

This age is dark, and people today live in darkness. Sometimes you think you know someone, and then you find out in how much darkness they live, in and how many things they do in darkness.

It seems like more and more people like to do things that are dark, things that God is not happy with.

Not only the magic and witchcraft, but even the entertainment today is filled with darkness, and all the social media is simply darkness.

When we go to work, darkness prevails, and when we travel somewhere, we can see darkness everywhere.

However, we as believers in Christ can come to the word of God and exercise our spirit to “strike the word with our spirit” until the divine light shines in us and we live in the light.

The word of God is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path.

When we come to God’s word and we have the opening of the word, we receive light, and understanding is given to us when we are simple and pure in coming to the Lord’s word.

May we remain in the word of God and give heed to the prophetic word so that Christ as the morning star would rise in our heart today as a foretaste and in that day we will receive Him as a reward!

We aspire to be the Lord’s overcomers, those who prepare themselves and are watchful so that we may see the Lord not only in His open appearing as the Sun of righteousness but even more, have Him as a secret reward at His secret coming as a thief to steal those precious ones to Himself.

Pursuing an Understanding of the Prophecies by having an Intimate Relationship with God

We need to give heed to the prophetic word by having an intimate relationship with God.

Our intention in coming to the prophecies in God’s word shouldn’t merely be curious about the future, gaining more knowledge from God’s word, or having a deeper understanding of the events that are taking place.

We should come to God’s word to deepen our relationship with the Lord.

As those who pursue to have an understanding of the prophecies in the word of God, we need to have an intimate relationship with God.

The best way to understand the prophecies is by contacting the Lord and developing our intimate relationship with Him.

For example, the first person who prophecies was Enoch; he was sixty-five years old when he had Methuselah as a son (Gen. 5:21), and he called him this name because he knew that, when “he is dead, it will be sent” (the meaning of Methuselah).

Enoch received revelation from God that, when his son dies, the flood will come, so he prophesied and then he simply walked with God for three hundred years.

He walked with God and was pleasing to God, having an intimate relationship with God to the extent that God took him (vv. 22-24).

We need to pursue an understanding of the prophecies by having an intimate relationship with God.

Another example of such a one was Moses; he was not only a leader of the people of Israel and a representative of God, but he also prophesied.

In all that he did, he was in an intimate relationship with God.

When the people rebelled, he went to God; when they murmured, he brought their words to God, and when God was upset and wanted to wipe them out, he appeased God in his fellowship with Him.

Such a one could prophesy that one day God will raise up a prophet just like himself; he prophesied concerning Christ (Deut. 18:15).

Daniel was a prophet who lived in an intimate relationship with God. He was so intimate with God that he did not fear for his life, even when his enemies convinced the king to pass a law that no one can pray to their god but to the king only.

Daniel saw visions and recorded prophecies concerning the end of the age and the coming of Messiah, and he was a “man of preciousness” to God (Dan. 10:11, 19; 9:23).

He was a man of preciousness, precious to God because of his relationship with God.

Another example is John in the New Testament; he was the young disciple of the Lord who was intimate with Him, even leaning on His breast at the table (John 21:20).

Because he had an intimate relationship with the Lord, he saw many things concerning the end of the age, and he recorded the book of Revelation concerning the New Jerusalem and the new heaven and new earth.

We need to be those whom the Lord loves, those who have an intimate relationship with God; then, we will have a proper understanding of the prophecies in the Scriptures.

Those who fear the Lord and love Him have His counsel, and His covenant is known to them (Psa. 25:14).

May we be such ones.

May we be those who come to the word of God in the way of loving the Lord and developing our intimate relationship with God, and may we read and study the prophecies in the Scriptures in the way of loving the Lord and preparing ourselves for His return.

Lord Jesus, we love You. We really love You. We come to Your word and pursue an understanding of prophecies in our intimate relationship with God. We do not want to merely know what are the events at the end of this age nor do we merely want to gain more spiritual knowledge. We want more of You. We want to know You more and love You more. We want to know what is in Your heart. Oh Lord, it is Your desire to return, and we want to prepare ourselves for Your return. Make us those who are watchful and ready. May we deepen our intimate relationship with God and pursue to know Him, love Him, and be found in Him! Amen, Lord Jesus, make us the men of preciousness today, those whom You consider so precious and mature that You will secretly return to steal away! We want to be intimate with You in all things to know what makes Your heart happy so that we may prepare ourselves for Your return!

Read the Bible in a Living Way to have a Shining Star Rising in our Spirit as we Love the Lord more

The word used in 2 Pet. 1:19 for star is phosphorus; this star is something like phosphorus, bringing light in the darkness.

We need to give heed to the word of God in such a way that there’s light shining forth. If we deal with the word in a living and proper way, it will turn into something shining.

If we only come to God’s word for knowledge, to read our schedule for Bible reading, or to gain more insight into future events, there will not be any shining.

The Bible itself is not the star; Christ is the star, the phosphorus, that can rise in our hearts when we read the Bible in a living way.

We need to read the Bible in a living way to have a shining star rising in our spirit. The Bible shouldn’t just be words in black and white; it should not be dead letters to us, mere knowledge.

Rather, we need to read the Bible in a living way until something shines in us.

When you have a phosphorus match and strike it, the light will shine.

Similarly, we need to “strike” the word of God with our spirit so that light may shine.

The written word in the Bible needs to become the living word, the shining star in our being.

We need to find a way to turn the written word into the living word. One way to do this is to exercise our spirit to mingle the words of the Bible with our prayer and our prayerful consideration.

We need to spend time in the word not only to read it but to muse on it, mixing the word with our prayer, our speaking, our singing, our pondering, and our consideration.

As we open to the Lord in this way, saying Amen to His word, there’s something that will rise up as a light in us; the shining star will rise in us.

Merely having the Bible in our hands is not enough; we need to read the Bible in a living way to have a shining star rising in our spirit.

Merely having the knowledge of the Bible is not enough; we need the living star to rise in us.

Merely going to a Bible seminary to study the Bible may not lead us to Christ as the living star; we need to give heed to the prophetic word until something within rises in us and shines in our heart. Amen!

May there be a star rising in us as we come to the word of God in a living way!

This is something that happens in our experience many times, and sometimes we do it accidentally; however, we need to know how to convert the written word of God into the living word of God so that the shining star would rise in our heart.

In our intimate relationship with God, we need to pray over the word of God, taking it into us in a living way and opening our heart to the Lord, so that there may be a shining star rising up in us (John 5:39-40).

Sometimes we come to the word of God and we may get some good ideas, some encouragement, and some exhortation; we may even be inspired, but there’s no shining.

But sometimes when we pray-read some verses in a living way, we sense that something within us is shining, rising, dawning, and breaking through.

We feel that we are enlightened, shined on, and filled with love toward the Lord Jesus. We simply love Him more, and we consider Him as the most lovable One.

Many times as we read and pray over the word of God we may be beside ourselves with love for the Lord Jesus, for He rises up in us as the shining star.

Outwardly the situation may not change, and darkness may be prevailing all around us, but we are in the light.

We simply enjoy the rising star in us, and we are filled with light and love, loving the Lord Jesus as the most wonderful One.

Our own situation may still remain quite complicated and the trials may not go away, but something within us is enlightening, shining, and filling with glory.

This is Christ as the living star rising in us as we give heed to the prophetic word and read the Bible in a living way to contact the Lord and have Him shine in our being.

May this be our experience day by day. May we come to the Lord as we come to His word so that He may rise in us as the living star and shine in us, shine on us, and bring us into His light.

How wonderful it is to have the Lord as the living star rises in us!

Lord Jesus, we want to read the Bible in a living way so that the written word of God may become a living word to us. Amen, Lord, we exercise our spirit as we come to Your word. We turn our hearts to You. Remove any veil and keep us in an intimate relationship with God as we give heed to the prophetic word. Amen, dear Lord Jesus, we love you! We have no words to express how lovely You are. You are the most lovely One. We love to come to You in Your word so that You may rise in us as the shining, living star. Save us from merely coming to Your word to gain knowledge. Rise in us, Lord, as the morning star day by day. May we learn to turn the written word in the Bible into the living word of God! Amen, Lord, we want to give heed to the prophetic word until it rises within us as Christ, as the phosphorus, as the day breaking through the darkness!

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, Collected Works of Witness Le, 1970, vol. 1, “New Testament Service,” pp. 287-289, 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 hermeneutic of Paul of Ephesians, article by John Pester in, Afformation and Critique.
  – I am grateful for my experiences in the wonderful church life, article via, Living to Him.
  – The Morning Star Rises and the Day Dawns unto the Full Day of New Jerusalem (2), via, New Jerusalem blog.
  – How to become stars, a portion from, Finding Christ by the Living Star, Chapter 1, by Witness Lee.
  – 7 Compelling Reasons to Read the Bible, article via, Bibles for America blog.
  – The way to read the Bible, a portion from, The Pursuit of a Christian, Chapter 3, by Witness Lee.
• Hymns on this topic:
  – O Morning Star, how fair and bright, / Thou beamest forth in truth and light! / O Sov’reign meek and lowly, / Thou Root of Jesse, David’s Son, / My Lord and Master, Thou hast won / My heart to serve Thee solely! / Thou art holy, / Fair and glorious, all-victorious, / Rich in blessing, / Rule and might o’er all possessing. (Hymns #174 stanza 1)
  – I have ceased from my wandering and going astray / By saying Amen to God’s Word. / And my old inclinations are passing away / By saying Amen to His Word. / Now the secret of faith in the Lord I can see— / It’s saying Amen to His Word. / He is more real and precious than all things to me / By saying Amen to His Word. (Hymns #1219 stanzas 3-4)
  – 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)