They Followed His Light
“God is light, and there is no darkness in Him, not in any way” (1 John 1:5 AMP).
At the time of Jesus’ birth, God gave revelation-Light to a group of Persian astrologers (also known as wise men, priests or dream interpreters) concerning a never-before-seen star that had appeared in their skies (Jesus’ star).
Apparently, it was particularly bright and shining; and the revelation they received through their study of it was so extraordinary, they were compelled to follow it. They traveled thousands of miles over several years’ time before their revelation was finally fulfilled!
“Where is the child who is born king of the Jewish people? We observed his star rising in the sky and we’ve come to bow before him in worship,” they exclaimed to the people they met upon arrival in Jerusalem (Matthew 2:2 TPT).
Now Herod, the wicked king of the Roman Empire, was alarmed at such news. He had not been aware of the ancient prophecy concerning this apparent king. But he knew the Jewish God to be one of unexpected surprises. So he immediately conferred with Jewish scholars, inquiring as to what the Holy Scriptures foretold concerning a new king’s birth (Micah 5:2). Afterward, he met with the foreign travelers personally and instructed them to go to nearby Bethlehem to look for the child.
The Father’s specially appointed star had led the wise men straight to His Son, the Light of this World, Jesus, the long-awaited Messiah, the King of the Jews, Emanuel (God with us), and God in us, the Hope of Glory! (Colossians 1:26–27; 2:9–10).
A Demon Contends with the Light
Today, more than 2,000 years later, the same revelation-Light the Persian priests received from God shines on us (Isaiah 60:1–2). It still inspires us (John 1:5). Not only that: It (He) manifests in us (Ephesians 5:8).
We are not always aware that these things are happening until perhaps after the fact. For instance, I first became aware of the literal manifestation of God’s light in me just last year. It was a demon who originally brought this to my attention about four years ago! But I had forgotten until then—when I read about the incident again in my journal.
“You have light coming out of you,” the demon said. Wow, I didn’t remember that part of the story at all. I did recall rolling around on the floor! And trying to cast the demon out of my drunk friend, April!
The story about April began when my husband Larry called from our restaurant one night to inform me that she was intoxicated, again, and needed to be taken home.
Twenty minutes later, April and I entered her house, at which point she immediately collapsed to the living room floor. Then she rolled around on the carpet for a bit, giggling and laughing.
I had a fleeting thought of leaving her there to sleep it off. But suddenly her silly demeanor shifted. Now she was glaring at me, pointing an accusing finger.
“You have light coming out of you,” she said, with a rather smug tone. “And I feel love coming out of you.”
Ok, well, that’s good, I thought, though she was clearly annoyed with me about it. I hadn’t made the demon connection quite yet.
Should I stay and help April to bed, I wondered?
But my thoughts were interrupted by her continuing remarks. “I just need for you to go away and let me live my life the way I want to. You are judging me,” she snarled.
The Light Speaks
Finally, I realized “who” I was dealing with.
So I decided to get down on the living room floor and roll around, too!
How else could I connect with the real April—the one who wanted to love Jesus but who at that moment was being controlled by an evil spirit? I was determined to get through to the woman Jesus had spoken to in a memory healing we had conducted recently.
He had said to her, “April, you are a ballerina.”
“April, remember what God said!” I blurted out in a loud voice, hoping she would hear. “You are a ballerina! You are His! He has plans for you!”
Obviously, this was not the time for an extended inner healing session. But the truth needed to be verbalized, out loud, so she could “hear” it again. The demon also needed to hear the truth about what God said. So I reminded them both about the revelations God had given to April in her memory healing session a few months prior.
Then I continued to push back on the demon’s darkness: “The blood of Jesus and the mighty name of Jesus are more than enough to overcome you!” I declared, several times. I continued to focus my thoughts on what I knew to be true, speaking out loud, as fervently as I could.
Be Aware of the Light Within
At the time of this encounter with April in her living room, there were things going on that I did not fully understand at the time. Since then, as I have continued to work with various hurting individuals like her—many of them also plagued by addiction spirits and other culprits, such as fear, shame, abuse, and self-destruction—something about how God works in us and through us has started to make a lot more sense.
To start, God has continued to give me revelation of “the light within” each one of us. “The spirit (neshama) God breathed into man is like a living lamp, a shining light searching into the innermost chamber of our being” (Proverbs 20:27 TPT).
In my book, Invite Jesus into Your Traumatic Memories, I talk quite a bit about the construction of a human being, according to God’s blueprint (Genesis 2:7 and Zechariah 12:1) which shows that all humans have a body, a soul (mind, will and emotions), and a spirit.
Here’s what happened according to Genesis 2:7: He literally scooped up some dirt, made a human frame, then blew His breath into it (the Hebrew word for “breath” is neshama, defined as “spirit, wind, force, inspiration”). At that point, the frame, or body, along with the soul (mind, will and emotions), came to life. This creation package came complete with the “living light” described in Proverbs 20:27.
To review: the breath or spirit of God, neshama, is what gives life to us. Everyone who is “alive,” that is, “breathing,” has God’s breath or spirit in them. Additionally, this is the same breath or spirit that gives us light, direction, and revelation.
Seeking Connection to the Light
Every person’s spirit (or light within) seeks connection to the main circuit board, the Creator—through the Spirit of Christ, the Light of the World.
To further explain: After the fall, man’s spirit was “dead” unto God. A “dead” spirit is always seeking to come “back to life” through a reconnection to God’s Spirit, the Source of life. (However, there are hindrances to this reconnection that must be removed. This is achieved when a soul’s “will” determines to “turn” from his own ways. And to then follow God’s ways. This is called repentance.)
The term “born again” is used most often to describe the experience of our human spirit “reconnecting” to God’s spirit in this way. An important point about this connection (or reconnection, depending on how you look at it) is that it gives us humans the greatest “potential” of all!
Reconnection to God’s Spirit produces manifestations of His Light, Life, and Love in us. Greater revelations of our connection to God’s Spirit produce more and more of His manifest nature.
When I read in my journal that light was “coming out of me,” I remembered receiving a Facebook post from April who was celebrating three years of sobriety. I looked back through my phone to try to determine what that date was.
It was almost four months to the day after we rolled around on the floor that April went to AA and never looked back! She also started attending a local church, where she and her children continue to grow in their understanding of the Light, Life, and Love of God!
Yes, I believe God used His Light shining through me (and others) to “awaken” the light in April. Then she was able to “arise and shine.”
Now God’s Light in her is shining through a successful business—and a weekly podcast. Through the podcast, she interviews women who are “overcoming” obstacles that inhibit healing. She encourages and inspires them and all those listening to seek God’s help.
Arise and Shine!
This Christmas, I am thinking about God’s Light. The fact that He IS Light. And that He USES His Light to overcome darkness and reveal truth.
When we rise up to God, He uses the manifest Light in us to draw others into His Light.
Let’s loop back to the seekers of truth, the wise men who were able to discern the significance of Jesus’ star. Were they able to do so because of the Light that had shone in the heart of Daniel, the Jewish prophet, visionary, and dream interpreter, some 500 years prior?
The book of Daniel records how the Babylonians took young Daniel captive at the fall of Jerusalem in 605 B.C.—at which point he became attendant to King Nebuchadnezzar. The king then appointed him “master of the magicians”—due to his “light and understanding and wisdom” which was like “the wisdom of the gods” (Daniel 5:11 AMP).
Many scholars believe the priests who arrived in Bethlehem from the East likely came from a long line of stargazers trained by Daniel.
I encourage you to remember Daniel’s story and the connection he may have had to the wise men we read about in Matthew’s gospel. The Light shone through Daniel into a very dark world. The “dark” people noticed the Light. Some were attracted to it.
Many hundreds of years later, those still seeking the Light Daniel manifested sacrificed everything to follow it.
When they found the Source of the Light they had followed, the Christ child, they bowed down to worship Him. He was and still is the Light of the World!
(Note: King Herod had commanded the wise men to return and tell him where the child was so he could go and “worship” Him, too. But God warned them in a dream not to go back! They returned to their country by way of another route.)
This Christmas season and always, let us seek to understand the implications of all these stories. We ARE God’s Light in a dark world. Let us be what God made us to be: LIGHT!
“Arise [from the depression and prostration in which circumstances have kept you—rise to a new life]! Shine (be radiant with the glory of the Lord), for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you!” (Isaiah 60:1 AMP).
Emily Gardner Foppe helps people engage with the Light, Life and Love of God, through Jesus, the Light of the World. To purchase her book, Invite Jesus into Your Traumatic Memories, click here. To consult with her, click here.
Related Verses:
“And the teachers and those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness (to uprightness and right standing with God) [shall give forth light] like the stars forever and ever” (Daniel 12:3 AMP).
“For the Light of Truth was about to come into the world and shine upon everyone” (John 1:9 TPT).
“Then Jesus said, ‘I am light to the world and those who embrace me will experience life-giving light, and they will never walk in darkness’” (John 8:12 TPT).
“I pray that the light of God will illuminate the eyes of your imagination, flooding you with light, until you experience the full revelation of the hope of his calling —that is, the wealth of God’s glorious inheritances that he finds in us, his holy ones!” (Ephesians 1:18 TPT).
“Once your life was full of sin’s darkness, but now you have the very light of our Lord shining through you because of your union with him. Your mission is to live as children flooded with his revelation-light! And the supernatural fruits of his light will be seen in you —goodness, righteousness, and truth. Then you will learn to choose what is beautiful to our Lord” Ephesians 5:8–10 TPT).
“Whatever the revelation-light exposes, it will also correct, and everything that reveals truth is light to the soul. This is why the Scripture says, ‘Arise, you sleeper! Rise up from your coffin and the Anointed One will shine his light into you!’” (Ephesians 5:13–14 TPT).
“There is a divine mystery—a secret surprise that has been concealed from the world for generations, but now it’s being revealed, unfolded and manifested for every holy believer to experience. Living within you is the Christ who floods you with the expectation of glory! This mystery of Christ, embedded within us, becomes a heavenly treasure chest of hope filled with the riches of glory for his people, and God want everyone to know it!” (Colossians 1:26-27).
“For he is the complete fullness of deity living in human form. And our own completeness is now found in him. We are completely filled with God as Christ’s fullness overflows within us. He is the Head of every kingdom and authority in the universe! Through our union with him we have experienced circumcision of heart. All of the guilt and power of sin has been cut away and is now extinct because of what Christ, the Anointed One, has accomplished for us” (Colossians 2:9-11).