THE QUALITIES OF GOD (PART 3)

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light.

1 Timothy 6:15b-16b NIV

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

God has many qualities that He reveals to us through His holy Word. One such place is in the final chapter of 1 Timothy as Paul writes to his former ministry protégé who had matured in Christian leadership to assume the pastoral responsibilities over the church in Ephesus.

To date, we’ve seen where God is the ultimate, sovereign Ruler over all creation, the King of kings and Lord of lords. We have also been reminded of His immortality, that we serve a God who will never die and neither will anything we are blessed with from Him.

That brings us to today’s message, part three in this four part series, as we look at yet another quality found in our God. Look once more at these words from the second part of verse 15 and two thirds of verse 16:

God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light.

Now, the matter of God being light is not a new revelation in the scriptures. For as we look at God’s word in whole, here’s what we find in this quality He possesses:

This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. 1 John 1:5

Here in John’s Gospel, we are reminded that light is in God’s very essence. He doesn’t just have light but He IS Light. When one looks at His being, there is no darkness, only a glorious, magnificent, holy illumination. The prophet Habakkuk described like this:

God came from Teman, the Holy One from Mount Paran. His glory covered the heavens    and His praise filled the earth. His splendor was like the sunrise. Habakkuk 3:3-4a

If you’ve ever had the wonderful experience of catching a beautiful sunrise, then you will have a general idea of the exquisite nature of God’s Light, a Light we will one day see face to face. More on that later.

So what can His people gain from His Light?

Once again, we find some of the answers in the scriptures, like these words from 2 Corinthians, chapter 4:

For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. v.6

God shines His light into our hearts so that we can shine His light on others. In other words, believers receive “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God” and in turn, they can share news of that glory as they go about the work He calls them to do.

Believers also gain wisdom and understanding from God’s light. Consider these verses that testify to this truth:

The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple. Psalm 119:130

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. Psalm 119:105

Send out your light and your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling! Psalm 43:3

God doesn’t leave His people in a place where they need to figure things out on their own. Rather, He shines His light on us and “imparts understanding” out of the dark recesses of our spiritual ignorance, leading us to truth. And as we allow His words to take root in our hearts and minds while seeking and then carrying out His will, He shines His light to illuminate the path He wants us to travel.

In other words, God will always use His light to equip us to do His work while revealing where He wants that work to be accomplished. All we need to do is submit to His leading and follow that divine light He sends.

So we know that light is not only a quality of God but something at His core. And because He is God, His light is unrivaled and unmatched in magnificence and magnitude but here’s the thing.

None of us will have a full grasp on the brilliant radiance that is God on this side of Heaven. We know this because His word assures us an important aspect of His light is that it is unapproachable. Look at other translations of this verse and you will find that unapproachable is rendered:

“...so brilliant that no human can approach Him.” NLT

“...light that no one can come near.” CEV

“...light that no one can approach.” GNT

In this human existence, we will never fully be able to appreciate the incredible majesty and splendor of our God as we will never be able to get near enough to Him to see it. Thankfully, this separation will one day be removed for those who have placed their belief in Jesus who said this in John’s Gospel:

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me (14:6).”

While salvation carries with it the assurance of Heaven and escape from Hell, it also ensures us that we will one day see our God and His Son, our Savior, face to face. We won’t simply see God’s light in part but in whole as we read in these wonderful verses from Isaiah and Revelation, verses that discuss what is yet to come:

Night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever. Revelation 22:5

The sun will no more be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you, for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. Your sun will never set again, and your moon will wane no more; the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your days of sorrow will end. Isaiah 60:19-20

Can you imagine what this is going to look like one day when those saved in Christ enter into the promised eternal kingdom?

God’s light will illuminate everything. There will be no other need for an alternate source. And since there is no darkness in God, we know that there will be no darkness there as there won’t even be night anymore. The Lord God Almighty will be our everlasting light as we reign with Him forever and ever.

Friends, I don’t know about you but I get thoroughly excited when I consider that this world I now live in is not my true home, that a far better place has been prepared for me by the Savior Jesus I believe in (John 14:1-3). It’s what keeps me encouraged even as I see this world going more and more into decline every day.

The good news is the best is yet to come and it’s going to be greater and more breathtaking than we can comprehend. Thanks be to God for being our light and making a way through His Son Jesus to one day remove the barrier of approachability from Himself.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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