Ignited
by fire
"That you may be blameless and harmless, children of God
without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you
are seen as lights in the world, holding forth the word of life."-- Phi_2:15-16 (R.V.).
The
Spirit of man is the candle of the Lord (Pro_20:27). We are created in the image
of the one who made us and as such are like so many lamps and candles ready for
the flame. As the wick and element are made to burn and shed light so are we,
it is our inherent purpose; we are made for the flame. But until the day we are
ignited we stand dark, cold and alone akin with the shadows, every now and then
catching the light of a passing flame, and it is only when our nature is
kindled from the Eternal Nature of Him who "is Light, and in whom is no
darkness at all." That we come to life and fulfill our purpose as lights
of the world.
John 1:4
In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.
In
every aspect of his being Jesus had the same message and that was life and life
abundantly. Each moment of his time
amongst us was crammed with this message, he never stopped relented or
apologized, his face was set toward
When
Jesus the hope of glory comes close we feel the heat and light of his presence,
we feel the dynamo of life and darkness has no strength as all becomes clear to
our hearts eye. We are no longer tossed to and fro in the darkness unable to
see our landscape but we can see the crooked ways of our own generation and the
perversity of darkness illuminated by his bright shining presence.
John 1:5 And the
light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not
overtake it.
His is the one light in the darkness, that
was not over come by death and
the grave but
conquered all to give you and I hope in the endless sea of night that is the
world, it is his
star that guides and his is the light we must follow.
But when he comes close, when Jesus walks
into the room of our life, oh the fragrance
and warmth of
that flame that reaches to touch and ignite us to shine like him.
Has
the candle of your life been lit by contact with Christ, the Sun of God? Has
life touched you …..
Phi 2:16 holding forth the Word of Life, so
that I may rejoice with you in the
day
of Christ, that I have not run in vain
nor labored in vain.
In my study there is a lamp, and it gives
light to all in the room, it enables me and all
who enter there
to see, bt the other days as I was writing the
element in the lamp
faltered then failed and the room was
plunged into darkness. I could no longer read the
words of life in
front of me. Without the light the words of life are obscured and we
cannot see, just
like the darkness that was our lives before we met Jesus. But what sweet
joy when the
flame of Christ’s presence ignites our hearts to burn, and his words are
illuminated not only on
the page but on the flesh of our hearts.
Jesus said I am the word come to life, in
him is the life of men.
Our
Lord says: "Let your light shine before men." don’t hide it. He shows
how absurd it is to light a lamp, and then hide its light placing it under a
bushel or cloth. The purpose of ignition is frustrated and smothered if the
light is covered.
But how
many of us place bushels on the light of our testimony for God—or the dampening
cloth of hurtful speech! Anger! Or of a discontented and querulous spirit!
These as well as our hidden failings will prevent us from shining forth as
light in a dark world. It is also true that is if our light remains hidden long
enough it can become smothered and will die. We are never meant to live alone
in our faith because when we are set aflame by Christ we become part of the
royal household of God, we are no longer strangers but sons and daughters of
God and as such cannot hide our true identity
The
flame is not ours to ignite nor is it possible for us to produce the oil, our
job is to keep our lamps clean and bright, and guard against anything that may
obstruct the out-shining of the Love and Life of God through the soul. If we
are careful to see that anything which might hinder the effect of our testimony
and mar our influence is put away, Christ will see to it that our light shall effect the full measure of His purpose.
Isaiah 60:1
Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of Jehovah
has
risen on you.
Isaiah 60:2 For
behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the peoples; but Jehovah shall rise on
you, and His glory shall be seen on you.
In the darkness an uncovered flame can be
seen for miles, in the Roman world and the time of Christ, beacon fires would
signal a warning or message that someone was approaching. The flame that ignites
in us will be seen, and its purpose is to bring others to its light, announcing
that God is amongst us and the lord of Glory is approaching.
Isaiah 60:3
And the nations shall come to your light, and kings to
the
brightness
of your dawning.
This light draws all men and knows no
boundary made by man or stiff social order, from the most humble to kings and
queens, all will come.
Isaiah 60:4 Lift up your eyes all around and
see. All of them gather
themselves;
they come to you. Your sons shall come from far, and your
daughters
shall be nursed at your side.
The light of Christ shines steady and
bright, calling all who desire to come out of
Darkness, this light call fourth the
prodigals, calls fourth the lost sons and daughters
and those we had
lost hope for, this light never fails, it will not falter it will not die.
As
lamps and flame the Master of the House may place us in a very small dark
corner, and on a very humble stand, but some day, as He passes by, we shall
light His footsteps as He goes forth to seek and save that which is lost.
What
is our stand? in
our place in society, your position in the home, your situation in some
business house, factory, or school--wherever it be, it doesn't matter, so long
as your light is shining forth, steady and clear, warning and directing men and
women in the path of life.