GOD IS LIGHT

"This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all" (1 John 1:5)

Devotion 1 of

INTRODUCTION

The comprehension of God, to a measurable degree, is essential to the experience of His fellowship. Those who "know NOT God" "will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power" (2 Thess 1:8-9, NASB). This is not generally known among religious devotees, yet has been clearly revealed in Scripture. One critical aspect of the New Covenant is this: "And they shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest" (Heb 8:11).

Jesus came to make God understandable to us. This is not a luxury or novelty, but a necessity! As the Savior Himself said, "No one knows the Son, except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father, except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him" (Matt 11:27, NASB). There is no academic explanation of this text that can obviate this divine statement. The aggressiveness with which God addresses the matter of us knowing Him is comforting, bringing hope to the fainting heart. In Christ we come to "know God," which constitutes "eternal life" (John 17:3).

This being the case, an ignorance of God is most serious. In fact, it causes alienation from the Lord. This is why the Spirit witnesses, "This I say therefore, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind, being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart" (Eph 4:17-18, NASB).

The alarming thing is that the ignorance of God prevails in the so-called "church." Far too many religious leaders are more familiar with the ways of the world than the "way of God" (Acts 18:26). The "wisdom of this world," though soundly condemned and rejected by God as a means to knowing Him, (1 Cor 1:20-21) is fearlessly embraced by many accepted Christian teachers. The result has been the dissemination of religious dogmas and perspectives that do not require a Living God, interceding Christ, or empowering Holy Spirit.

This observation is not intended to be "negative," as commonly conceived. Rather, it is a sincere attempt to forthrightly address a grievous condition. It must be remembered that all who do not "know God" will be eternally cut off from Him, and there are no exceptions (2 Thess 1:8-9). Candidly, we have too many religious "experts" in earthly matters, and too few in God Himself.

This series of devotions will present God as Light -- the ultimate
and essential Source of all illumination.

PRAYER POINT: Father, I thank You for the privilege of knowing You through Your son. In His name, I ask for You to do for me what You did for Moses: Show me Your glory!

-- Tomorrow: I REMEMBER THE DAYS --