The Light of Life!

"God is the LORD, which hath shewed us light." -Psalm 118:27 [KJV]


The Psalmist was clearly possessed of light, for he says, God is the LORD, which hath shewed us light. He was evidently, then, possessed of light; and this light was in him as "the light of life." This light had shone into his heart; the rays and beams of divine truth had penetrated into his conscience. He carried about with him a light which had come from God; in this light he saw light, and in this light he discerned everything which the light manifested.


Thus by this internal light he knew what was good and what was evil, what was sweet and what was bitter, what was true and what was false, what was spiritual and what was natural. He did not say, This light came from creature exertion, this light was the produce of my own wisdom, this light was nature transmuted by some action of my own will, and thus gradually rose into existence from long and assiduous cultivation. But he ascribes the whole of that light which he possessed unto God the LORD, as the sole Author and the only Giver of it.


Now, if God the Lord has ever shewed you and me the same light which He shewed his servant of old, we carry about with us more or less a solemn conviction that we have received this light from Him. There will, indeed, be many clouds of darkness to cover it; there will often be doubts and fears, hovering like mists and fogs over our souls, whether the light which we have received be from God or not. 


But in solemn moments when the Lord is pleased a little to revive His work, at times and seasons when He condescends to draw forth the affections of our hearts unto Himself, to bring us into His presence, to hide us in some measure in the hollow of His hand, and give us access unto Himself; at such moments and seasons we carry about with us, in spite of all our unbelief, in spite of all the suggestions of the enemy, in spite of all doubts, fears, and suspicions that rise from the depths of the carnal mind, in spite of all these counter-workings and underminings, we carry about with us at these times a solemn conviction that we have light, and that this light we have received from God. 


And why so? Because we can look back to a time when we walked in no such light, when we felt no such light, when everything spiritual and heavenly was dark to us, and we were dark to them.


-preacher J.C. Philpot (1802-1869 A.D.)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Putrid Cup of Tolerance: When Evil Poses as Progress

"Ye that love the LORD, hate evil: He preserveth the souls of His saints; He delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked." -Psalm 97:10 [KJV] "Tolerance becomes a crime when applied to evil." Thomas Mann's chilling words pierce through the fog of modern moral relativism like a shard of ice. It's a warning that echoes through the blood-soaked pages of history, a truth we ignore at our peril. The Seduction of False Neutrality We live in an age where tolerance is held up as the supreme virtue, the golden idol before which we must all bow. We're told to accept everything, question nothing, and embrace a faux-unity that sacrifices truth on the altar of political correctness. But what happens when this tolerance becomes a blindfold, obscuring the stark reality of evil lurking in our midst? Like a ravenous wolf, evil doesn't care for our carefully crafted social constructs. It doesn't respect boundaries, it doesn't play fair, and it ce...
Read more

LORD JESUS, Be Merciful...

" LORD, be merciful to me: heal my soul, for I have sinned against Thee." -Psalm 41:4 [KJV] Is this the language of the man after God’s own heart? Was David a saint when he uttered it? Yes, he was a holy man of God. This confession and prayer shew it. His heart was not hardened through the deceitfulness of sin, nor blinded by self-righteous pride, so as to say, “I have no sin.”   Self-righteous hearts cannot away with this, that all the Lord’s saints are yet in themselves miserable sinners; that they daily see need to confess this; and to sue for mercy and healing from the Lord. Here is a confession, a plea, and a prayer.  (1st.) A confession, “I have sinned against Thee.” Thus we must come and confess to the Lord to-day, to-morrow, and every day, till the sun of life sets. Sense of sin, whether fresh contracted, or long since committed, abides with us. It wounds and pains a gracious soul. Here grace discovers itself. That soul waits not for time to efface the m...
Read more

Great Encouragement in Christ JESUS ~ 19 October, 2025 A.D.

"Behold, he prayeth!"   -Acts 9:11 [KJV] In many trades, it is customary to shew samples or patterns. By these men judge of the goodness or quality of the whole. St. Paul sets himself forth as a sample, or pattern, of the free, distinguishing, sovereign, unmerited grace of God, that we should judge of its nature by its efficacy upon him. “I obtained mercy, for this cause, that in me first   (-a first rate sinner) Jesus Christ may shew forth His all long suffering, for a pattern to them who should hereafter believe on Him to life everlasting”   (I Timothy 1:16.) Thou hast seen this pattern of free grace. What dost thou think of it?  The whole is alike with the pattern. It cometh alike upon elect sinners. It finds no more prerequisites, fitness, qualifications, or conditions in any, than it did in St. Paul. Whenever it takes place upon any, it produceth the same effects as it did in him. Grace and mercy from Jesus, makes Saul pray to Jesus. There is the ...
Read more