Characteristic Features of True Light

Thus John was not uncertain light. True, “«he was a lamp, burning and shining»” (Jn. 5:35), like all the God-enlightened luminaries: but in all of them the light was not their own light but borrowed; they were not sources of light…. The source of light is outside and beyond them. As planets direct the observer to the sun for explanation of their brightness, so all the God-enlightened point to the beginning of their light in God and in the Lord Jesus Christ. He is “«the true light,»” the genuine and only light illuminating “«everyone who comes into the world»” (Jn. 1:9).

Thus the characteristic feature of true light is illumination of all. This does not mean that everyone is already illuminated by it—no, many remain unilluminated by it—but that if anyone is illuminated, he is illuminated only by him. Whoever is not illuminated by him shows only a semblance of illumination, no matter how they call him illuminated. Apart from the Lord Jesus there is no light; all else is darkness and murky gloom.

The illumination granted by Jesus Christ is spiritual illumination. Spiritual darkness consists of ignorance of God and his good intentions toward us, connected with the absence of fear of him, from confusion of conscience and sinful impurities with negligence and carelessness, and from heart tormented by passions and satisfied by nothing, with spiritual tastelessness and insensibility. The Lord, and only the Lord, takes away this threefold darkness and fills the soul with all-sided light. From him comes fear of God, awakened by the word of truth handed down by him about God and our complete dependence on him; from him—peace of conscience through the forgiveness of sins by the power of his death and strength to withstand all that can disturb conscience; from him—and satisfaction of heart, satisfied only by him. He wipes away every tear, removes every burden, and gives complete rest according to his promise: “«Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest»” (Mt. 11:28). Therefore whoever clings to the Lord becomes so bright that even strangers can see it in the brightness of his face and in the gladsome state of his spirit, reflected in words, deeds, and movements. Within them is full of light. They are bright from the enjoyment of goods received and hope to receive yet better and greater goods—bright with love and goodness, bright with piety and childlike godly fear. And all this the Lord Jesus Christ gives them, the incarnate Son of God, who taught us the truth, suffered for us, merited for us the spirit of grace, and opened to us the doors of the heavenly kingdom, into which he himself has already entered as Forerunner, drawing us all to himself and awaiting us all. There are many self-appointed lights, but not one of them drives away our darkness or gives true brightness. May the Lord grant all who seek illumination to find the true light and not be led astray by these semblances, which do not illuminate but increasingly darken!

The second characteristic feature of true light is hiddeness. “«He was in the world, and the world was made by him, yet the world did not recognize him»” (Jn. 1:10). It does not shine such that, whether you wish or not, you must be illuminated by it. In itself he is all-bright, all-radiating, all-illuminating; yet only his own, only those who open in themselves the corresponding organs of their spirit, perceive his light and receive brightness from it. All in the material and human world proceeds in its accustomed course: and spiritual illumination is accomplished in its hidden ways, which proceed undisturbed amid all the turmoil and changes of external circumstances, like a ray of light through air stirred by wind.

So it has always been, so it is, and so it will be. So the Lord was pleased to ordain it, first of all on account of the character of this light, which is life-giving; but the paths of life or life-giving actions and movements of it are everywhere hidden from the eyes of the curious; and then to avoid casting pearls before those who could trample them (Mt. 7:6), so that the brightness of light not bind free will but illuminate only those wishing and seeking and draw to itself only the worthy and fit, so that those going to the light show a certain self-activity and have merit in that they have recognized the true light. This is like parables. In parables truth is hidden; one who has the beginning of or premonition of truth understands it, but another understands nothing in it: for his mind’s bent, rules of life, and heart’s tastes are completely different. All his store of experiences and concepts is different. The same here too: for understanding and receiving true spiritual light from the Lord there is needed a ready organ of the spirit. Whoever does not have this does not recognize and will not receive it. As only he who has ears to hear hears, so only he who has eyes to see sees.

The organ for receiving the light of truth is the spirit placed in our nature. It exists in everyone, and no force is able to destroy it. Suppress, stifle, clog it is possible, but destroy it cannot. The spirit in us is fear of God or the feeling of divinity with the consciousness of our dependence on him, conscience, and dissatisfaction with anything created. He who is not absorbed in the world, keeps conscience, and preserves fear of God will recognize the true light in the Lord at once, as soon as it is proclaimed to him. Sin suppresses our spirit, closes the organ for recognizing and receiving light—the Lord: but consciousness of one’s sinfulness opens it again and makes it ready to meet the Lord. Publicans, sinners, and repenting women—all flowed to the Lord as soon as they met him and all were illuminated. Such recognized the Lord; those of another kind did not. The elders of the people almost all did not recognize him and led the people astray from the path of truth. “«Have any of the rulers believed in him? …but this people»” (Jn. 7:48-49). The people felt his power and clung to him. They were darkened by those for a time: but as soon as the light of the resurrection illuminated them, they again went fearlessly after him. Even before the ascension, more than five hundred brothers saw him on the mountain; after the descent of the Holy Spirit, at once three thousand cling to him; shortly after—five thousand more; then the number of such grew and grew, and the light of Christ, having illuminated all capable of illumination in Israel, soon spread beyond its bounds and shone throughout the world. “«To all the earth their voice has gone out»” (Rom. 10:18)—the gospel proclamation, and all capable of illumination by the light of Christ are illuminated and are illuminated by him. But throughout all ages this has been accomplished and is accomplished secretly, invisibly, by ways known to God alone. And among those bearing the name of Christ not all are partakers of his light. External enrollment in the flock of Christ is not yet sure testimony of inner illumination. The worldly spirit even among Christians repels the true light of Christ.

“«He was in the world,…yet the world did not recognize him»” (Jn. 1:10). “«He was in the world»” in his creative and providential activity, especially in arranging events in preparation for his manifestation. All this was very evident to those having eyes to see, and yet not the whole world recognized him; the recognition of him was not common knowledge, a common feature of all and everyone, but only of those who understood him. Therefore, when he came to his own, his own did not receive him, for they did not recognize him. They did not recognize because they submitted to other principles, developed other needs, taking care of satisfying them, and began to be nourished by other hopes. This gave them their own internal bent, by which true light became inaccessible to them.

And among his own the Lord walks, and from his own many, very many do not receive him. The reason for this is the prevailing spirit of the world; “«the world did not recognize him.»” In the word: “«world»” is pointed out the reason for incomprehension. The world—people cleaving to the world and thinking of the worldly and in a worldly way; and nothing so darkens the mind as passionate love for the world. The spirit of the world is the spirit of godforgetfulness, of egoism ready to sacrifice everything—even piety, conscience, and faith itself—for itself, and a spirit of all-sided comfort through power, visible position, worldly learning, pomp, gratification of the senses—of hearing, sight, smell, taste, and touch—and every sweet irritation of the flesh. This is a dark realm. Like a thick cloud, it separates from the soul and hides the light of Christ, and not a single ray of it penetrates into it, while this spirit prevails in it.

The third characteristic feature of true light is new creation, spiritual rebirth, and as a consequence, sonship to God. “«Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God»” (Jn. 1:12). The fallen had no other way out than either to perish or, by the power of salvation, to rise to the higher degree of sonship to God. The goodness of God chose the latter. Why was the sentence not carried out: “you will surely die” (Ex. 21:16, Mt. 15:4, Mk. 7:10)? Because then already the Son of God intervened for us, and the power of his intervention then began to work. But since he, the Intercessor and Advocate, is the Son, all partakers of his intercession are raised to sonship. The Son of God became the Son of Man, while all sons of men, becoming one with him through faith, become sons of God. And this is not merely by external acknowledgment but by internal transformation. They are all rebuilt anew, born anew of God with spiritual birth. The hidden light of divine grace, penetrating inward, sows the seed of new life after God and forms then a new, «hidden in the heart of mankind,» in incorruptibility, “«of a gentle and quiet spirit»” (1 Pet. 3:4). Its conception and formation are not of mankind but of God; therefore he is God’s, God’s child. All believers have been changed by a wondrous change and have “«the right to become children of God,»” not by his favor alone but by an inner transformation and vital communion with him, maintained, grown, and brought to perfection by him.

The condition for entering sonship to God is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. To believe in his name means to confess with the heart that he is the Only-begotten Son of God and God incarnate for the salvation of us sinners, and to recognize oneself as a sinner destroyed and unable to escape misfortune brought by sin except through the Lord Jesus Christ. The believer in the Lord Jesus Christ carries in his heart such a conviction: I have destroyed myself by sin and I am saved only by the power of the Lord, crucified for me and made me alive by his grace. Consciousness of sinful helplessness and sinful destruction brings one to the Lord Savior and draws him, for he came to save sinners.

Such are born of God. How they are born is known to God alone. The new life in Christ is an incomprehensible mystery. Speaking of coming events, the Lord said that of two grinding “«one” “will be taken, and the other is left»”; of two walking through the field “«one” “will be taken, and” “the other” “is left»” (Lk. 17:35-36). This parable is precisely being fulfilled in spiritual birth. From among sinners and sinners one or another is seized and becomes new; while all others are left to go their old way. By what paths the light has touched some and others present here do not feel it—no one can say, not only outsiders but even those themselves whom the light of God’s grace has touched. The best solution to this: “«they are born of God»” (Jn. 1:13), without asking how much and to what extent human self-will and self-activity participated here. Neither natural birth, nor position in the world, nor degree of education, nor all other external influences—nothing here matters. All is from God…. Spiritual birth is aroused by grace through his word and is accomplished through the holy mysteries. The word of God, whether received externally and understood inwardly or uttered directly within and received, pours forth light and power, awakens and strengthens, and in the mysteries creates anew, as at the beginning when God spoke a word and all appeared in existence. Therefore all reborn children of God are “«begotten…»” “«by the word of the living God, …abiding forever»” (1 Pet. 1:23).

How far from truth are those for whom Christianity is merely a certain view of all that exists and a certain order of rules of life! Seek new birth from God so as not merely to be called but to become children of God, not merely by his favor but by a new life received from him and maintained by living communion with him, grown and brought to perfection.