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THE ENTRANCE OF THY WORD GIVES LIGHT (Psalm: 119:130) “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path” (Psalm 119:105). Years ago, when we were studying the subject of strongholds and how they affect our thought processes and therefore our decisions, actions and hence outcomes in our lives. We saw that, unless the Lord opens our eyes to see these strongholds and their influence upon our lives, we will remain in the dark concerning these things. We learnt to cry out ‘Lord, light my candle’. When God’s Word gains ‘forceful’ entrance into our lives and brings light into us, strongholds show up in our minds and we are enabled to see them for what they really are: ‘things that exalt themselves against the knowledge of God’. (2 Cor. 10:3-5) The psalmist says ‘thou wilt light my candle’ (Psalm 18:28) and the book of Proverbs says ‘the spirit of man is the candle of the LORD, searching all the inward parts of the belly’. (Proverbs 20:27) How we need light in these days. Jesus says we should be careful that our lights do not become darkness. (Matt. 6:23) When we allow hatred, bitterness and a critical attitude, the ‘light’ in us becomes darkness. The light of the Gospel must shine in the midst of darkness. Darkness means spiritual ignorance. It can imply sinfulness and the secrecy that sin compels us to harbour when we yield to it. The light we need is that which God grants as His Word gains entrance into our hearts. The conditions of our heart matter if we are to receive the light from God’s Word. Many read what they believe rather than believe what they read. They read with their religious or lascivious sun glasses, depending on who they are. The first thing that the prince of darkness wants to do is to quench the light inside the believer. The light does not shine with all its brightness from the start; it starts like a small glow that needs to be fanned into flames. If there is no hunger for God, the light can easily go out. When Eve was speaking to Satan, he tried to snuff the light out with a question, ‘did God say?’ When the light in us becomes darkness, then the darkness will be great. The following are some heart conditions that will enhance the entrance of the Word to bring light to us: hunger, humility, meekness (teachableness), intimacy with God, the fear of God and understanding Godly boundaries. HUNGER In the natural, hunger is a sign of a healthy appetite. Spiritual hunger is also a sign of spiritual health. This needs to be cultivated in the place of desire and prayer. Feeding oneself with natural junk will affect natural appetite. The same is true with spiritual appetite if spiritual junk is fed on. We were made in the image of God and designed to depend on Him. In His redemption plan, we are designed to be conformed to the image of His Son Jesus. Since God never forces Himself on us or forces us to do what we do not want to, we need to sincerely cultivate this quality, called hunger for God. The psalmist says ‘As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God’. (Psalm 42:1) HUMILITY Humility is taking our place in God’s scheme of things. Many find it tough to take their rightful place in God. What you have was given, so what is there to boast about? Jesus exemplified humility as He healed the sick, raised the dead and still said ‘the Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do’. (John 5:19) Peter went from saying to the man born blind ‘look on us’(Acts 3:4) to saying ‘why look on us, as if by our holiness we made this man whole?’ (Acts 3:12) That was humility. He did what he did and gave the credit to the Lord like Jesus did to the Father. Humility includes knowing that we are not the source of the things in our lives; we are channels in the hands of God. MEEKNESS This is teachableness. When we know that there is still so much that we do not know and we are willing to learn, we stay teachable. We do not get too embarrassed with our good intentions but incorrect actions. We are quick to repent and forgive others. Both humility and meekness come from the same root word in the Greek. They are from a word used to describe a war or race-horse, a stallion, under the control of its owner or master. Humility implies endurance and meekness implies perseverance in obedience to God. The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way. (Psalm 25:9) THE FEAR OF GOD If there is one virtue that ranks high in God’s agenda alongside these other ones mentioned already, it is the fear of God. This is the true foundation for a lasting and genuine walk with God. Once again these virtues need to be nurtured. I have always believed and preached that our lives should be built on the Word of God. The one quality that will cause the Word of God to remain a final authority in our lives is the fear of God. Walking in the fear of God is to have a healthy reverence for Him. It is the beginning of wisdom. (Proverbs 9:10) Little wonder why wisdom is a scarce commodity amongst many today. The fear of God causes us to esteem God’s Word as precious, worthy of our submission and deserving of our surrender to the demands in His Word. The Word carries the ability to overrule our human feelings as we subject all things in us to His expectations of us. We are not robots and He is not asking for a mindless, thoughtless obedience but an intelligent and willing acceptance of His authority to rule over us as Lord. Without the fear of the Lord, the presence of the Lord will not be a regular occurrence in our lives. Joseph had the fear of the Lord, experienced the presence of the Lord and he knew his boundaries. He avoided sinning against God when he was given opportunity to have an affair with Potiphar’s wife. His intimacy with God and his understanding of boundaries produced in the young man a strength that could carry him through the falsehood he had to face. To be continued........  Rev. Kola Ewuosho  --------------------------------------------------------------------- Please visit our various websites for further studies, view/listen to clips of our latest messages and order products online. You can also refer your friends to our websites: www.fowm.org www.cybermessages.info www.dtnbroadcast.org www.kolaewuosho.com www.wisdomestore.com Streaming Faith Network Fountain of Wisdom Podcast Live Radio Webcast Live TV (Video) Webcast |
Author Rev. Kola Ewuosho on 21st February, 2009. 02:54
Printerfriendly version · E-Mail article · Read 187029 times
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