THE LIGHT SHINING IN CHRIST
[p. 335] THE LIGHT SHINING IN CHRIST
This chapter is a very important presentation of Christ in the beginning of His ministry It brings out the great principles which came out by Him. 1. The temptation; 2. A great light had sprung up; 3. Christ is a great gathering point, a divine centre; 4. Service, that is preaching, teaching and healing. In principle all these things continue true. There is no change in Christ. There is a change in condition. He is risen from the dead and is at the right hand of God, but there is no change in Him. He “is the same yesterday, and today, and to the ages to come”. What He was down here will be the same when He comes in glory. These principles follow in divine order. Christ first overcomes the power of the enemy. He was permitted to be put to the test and then the light shines out. When the great light shines out, you get a centre, and when you get the centre you get the diffusion.
There is a power of evil in the universe. Scripture makes that clear. There is hatred and murder. There is a great deal of murder in this world which people do not call murder. There are three great steps in the overthrow of the power of evil. The first is in connection with Christ’s incarnation. The second is His death. The third is in His ascension. It is through death that Christ destroyed him that had the power of death, that is the devil. The ascension is the climax. If a man were called upon to be a martyr before the death of Christ it would be much more difficult than after. We see there is a way through death and we see the Lord. The very fact of Christ going through death has opened a way for us because we see Him on the other side. That is the second great step in the dispossession of the enemy. Morally the enemy has been overcome. The Lord was subject to temptation in three spheres: the natural, the spiritual and the worldly.
[p. 336] Satan was met and rebuked on every ground. Instead of overcoming, as he had been accustomed to, he was overcome. The strong man was bound. Then the Lord set to work to spoil his goods. (See Revelation 12: 4.) We get Satan represented in thee aspects: the tempter down here, the one who has the power of death and the accuser of the brethren in heaven. He was the accuser of Job in the presence of God. Satan is exposed in being overcome. When Satan offers worldly prosperity it is under certain conditions. The condition is to acknowledge him. It is a very great thing for us that Satan has been met, exposed and overcome. The very fact that the man child, Christ, has been caught up to heaven and to God’s throne shows that Satan is about to be cast out of heaven. It is a great thing to see that Satan is not all-powerful. It has been said that the higher you get in this world the nearer you get to the god of it. It is dangerous to wish to become conspicuous in the spiritual sphere.
Verses 12 - 16. A great light had sprung up to those who sat in the region and shadow of death. Jews and gentiles were there and all were under the power of death. Christ was the great Light. It meant the revelation of God. God has revealed Himself to man in Christ. Christ was full of grace and truth.
The point of grace was that God was not imputing trespasses. The mind of God toward man was one of grace. His mind toward Simon the Pharisee was the same as His mind to the woman. “He frankly forgave them both”.
It was the purpose of God to set the affections of man in divinely appointed channels. That light is still true. Nothing has been altered. Christ is still full of grace and truth. The Spirit is truth. No greater light could have sprung up. All the Lord’s miracles in regard of man were characterised by mercy. The good Samaritan came pouring in oil and wine. When God approached man, He approached him in grace and truth.
Verses 17 - 22. Christ came as a gathering point, a centre, that man might be attracted to Him. There never [p. 337] was a gathering centre before. John the baptist had some disciples but he was not a gathering centre. It was only the One who was the Sun of righteousness who could be a centre.
You are not in christianity unless you are in attachment to Christ. What is the Spirit given to you for? It is given to attach you to Christ. “If any man have not the Spirit of Christ he is none of His”. Every benefit of christianity is in Christ. Where is redemption? In Christ. Where is forgiveness of sins? In Christ. Where is salvation? In Christ. Where is sonship? In Christ. We do not realise anything until we are in Christ. All things in Scripture begin very low. David began as the servant of Saul. When the Son of God came into the world He came in the lowest possible way. The One to whom the four in these verses were gathered is now the centre of that universe of bliss. I believe that is the way in which God has appointed a world which will supersede this one. We have come into the great light of Christ. Hence we are acquainted with the mind of God toward man. God desires that all men should be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth.
Verses 23 - 25. We have now come to what I might call the influence of Christ. He was preaching and teaching the glad tidings of the kingdom of God and at the same time was healing. The Lord Jesus was the great teacher when He was down here, but now He teaches though the Spirit. The fruits of the Spirit are righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. What follows upon peace is joy. Righteousness, peace and joy are very great principles. They are the contrasts to lawlessness, confusion and murmuring. Instead of lawlessness, we have righteousness. Instead of confusion, peace; and instead of murmuring, joy.
Christ can heal all moral diseases. Moral diseases are, I take it, excitement and fleshly issues. What follows excitement is anger, and what follows fleshly issues is lust. We get healing now by the Spirit, really the virtue of Christ. In a natural kingdom, the government is [p. 338] established to maintain order; When we get into the gain of the kingdom we have everything regular. The point in righteousness is that I am simply and purely in my pathway ruled by the will of God. What follows that is peace and there is the accompaniment of joy.
Christ is concerned about your pathway. You are not attached to Him for nothing. You are under His care and influence down here. The apostle Paul walked through this world under the influence of Christ. He could say, “In that I now live in flesh, I live by faith, the faith of the Son of God, who has loved me and given Himself for me”. If you come under the influence of Christ how will it come out? You will be merciful according to Christ as you see in Luke 10.
Christ shows His mercy and says, “Go and do thou likewise”. There are three things which should characterise the christian: 1. He should pray in the Holy Spirit. 2. He should look for the mercy which is in Jesus Christ unto eternal life. 3. He should keep himself in the love of God. Christ abides in the love of God. All the power of the enemy has been overcome in Christ. He came here, a point of gathering for man, that we might be brought into the gain of the kingdom by the Spirit, and that we might be healed from all our moral diseases. You could not say anyone was in the kingdom of God except in the Spirit. The gain of the kingdom is the Spirit and influence of Christ — detachment from everything here and attachment to Christ. Christ is the great Physician and we are brought into attachment to Him that we might be liberated from all the moral diseases in the world.