“Lord's Illuminating Guidance Helps Throughout! (L.I.G.H.T)”  

By Ramesh C.Reddy
Pittsburgh Standard

April 07, 2009

SCRIPTURE:
Then Jesus told them, "You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. The man who walks in the dark does not know where he is going. Put your trust in the light while you have it, so that you may become sons of light....I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness." (John 12:35-36, 46, NIV)

Background:
Jesus' dirty/stinking feet were washed on Saturday when Mary poured a pint of nard, an expensive perfume and wiped his feet with her hair. The next day Jesus rode on a donkey though He was a King and the people praised Him. We know it as PALM SUNDAY or the TRIUMPHAL ENTRY. Then Jesus talked about how Salvation is achieved for Jews and Gentiles. Now Jesus is talking about Himself as the Light for the world.

 I am going to focus specifically on Jesus declarative statement from John 8:12 which is rephrased to an extent in John 12:35-36, 46.

“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’" (John 8:12, NIV)

Observations:

I asked myself, what stuck out in my mind when reading these verses?
What stuck out in my mind is 'light'

It is mentioned two times in this verse.
1. I am the light of the world.
2. Have the light of life.

Two comparisons and contrasts were found too:
1. Light v.s Darkness
2. Followers of Jesus v.s Followers of self  

I also saw a connection between these 2 contrasts:
1. Followers of Jesus will have Light.
2. Followers of self will have darkness.

I realized Jesus is speaking this verse to the Pharisees and Scribes who originally brought to Jesus a woman accused of adultery. Jesus addresses that situation at hand and now personally addresses them.

Interpretations:

I asked myself why would Jesus refer to Himself as “I am the light of the world” to the Pharisees and Scribes?

It occurred to me that they would be well versed in the law and the Books of the Torah. It is very possible they had head knowledge without practical application of Scripture.

With that head knowledge, they could recall that Jehovah addressed Himself as ‘I AM’ to Moses so Jesus utilizes that!

Now Jesus goes a step further and says that He is the ‘I AM’ that they know of from the Torah. Jesus does not stop there but lets them know, “I AM the Light of the world”

I asked myself what’s the significance of Jesus’ claim to be the light of the world?

To know the significance, first I thought about the functions of light. What came to my mind is visibility, pathway, and direction. This is what Jesus is telling them that He can be in their lives.

They are supposed to know the Torah well. That means they would already know that Jehovah revealed Himself as ‘I AM’ to Moses and the Israelites. Not only that, but during the Israelites escape from Egypt, the Pharisees and Scribes would have known that VISIBILITY, PATHWAY, and DIRECTION played a crucial role for the Israelites deliverance.

This is because the Lord intervened in the Israelites life to give them visibility, pathway, and direction as they fled from Egypt during the night.

Guess in the form of what?

The Lord intervened in a pillar of fire to give them visibility, pathway, and direction so they can have light in the night to travel. This is evidenced by a verse in the Torah that the Pharisees and Scribes should have known:

“By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so they could travel by day or night. Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.” (Exodus 13:21-22, NIV)

The Lord was ahead of them and all they needed to do was to follow. If they did not follow, they would not have had visibility, pathway, or direction. Instead, they would have continued to be lost in the darkness. If that continued, they would have become prisoners again to Pharaoh because they did not follow the light but decided to walk in the darkness and get captured.

Now Jesus is making a profound statement to them by claiming, “I AM the Light of the world.”

Jesus wants them to know if they follow Him they will be guided by the light of life but if they do not they will walk in darkness without having visibility, pathway, and direction. Jesus wants them to follow Him as He walks ahead of them giving them the light of life.

They have a choice to follow Jesus and experience the light of life or continue to follow their own ways and eventually find themselves in the darkness of death.

Implications:
I saw important implications for my own life. Just as God revealed Himself to the Israelites as ‘I AM’ and later went ahead of them to give them light so they can be delivered from the bondage of slavery from the Egyptians as long as they followed Him, Jesus has revealed Himself to me as ‘I AM’ + the ‘Light of the world’.

As long as I follow Jesus in this world walking before Him, I will have visibility, pathway, and direction for He will be leading me in His Light. This means I will not me stuck walking in the darkness, becoming a prisoner to the bondage of sin. 

Majority of the time sin manifests itself in the darkness but Light exposes it.

Jesus wants to be my Light so I can have the light of life when I follow Him and be delivered from darkness in this world. It starts with following Jesus and His ways. Jesus is the captain who gives the visibility, pathway, and direction for my life. That is so exciting to know!

As the stars light up the sky they become really bright as you draw closer to them. The closer you draw near to them, they shine more. Yet, far away too you can see their radiance.

In the same way, as people inspect my life closely, I want them to see that I shine brightly as a light because I choose to live for the Light of the World. And that my light comes from the Light of the World.

Even far away if people hear about me what I want them to know is it is Jesus that lights up my life as I seek Him daily for visibility, pathway, and direction.

If they know about me, I want to use that opportunity to help them know about Jesus Christ this HOLY WEEK so as He works in their lives, they can come to know Him personally as their Lord and personal Savior too!

Light covers over the darkness and helps people find the right pathway. Jesus can be that Light for you.

I ask you now dear friend, what light do you follow this Holy Week?
Friends, I say 'what light' because some people think about ‘bud light’ or ‘cigarette light’.  I am going to give both of them a personality and write two personification poems called 'BOOZE ON THE RUN' and 'NICOTINE OF TO DIE' and then reveal the only LIGHT to follow....

BOOZE ON THE RUN
By Ramesh C. Reddy

Making you a prisoner they call me booze.
Have a tendency to make you loose.
If you hang around me too long.
Your loved ones will sing a dirge song.
You think getting drunk is cool.
You won’t when I rule.
I give a black out.
And a stinking mouth.
Make no doubt.
You have entered a killer route.
Heard about sclerosis of the liver.
Well I am the giver.
Heard about abuse.
Well I let you blow a fuse.
I become your boss.
I can your life toss.
I have never come to a loss.
Some take me in as Coors
Every body it negatively tours
Some take me in as Miller lite or Bud light
What ever the name, me you won’t be able to fight
Addiction is my secret weapon of choice.
I only fear addicts listening to the Lord’s voice.
Cause His voice has the healing power through the noise.
He has a way of bringing my addicts to the cure.
Making my business go down for sure.
Then I am stuck.
Unable to make the buck.
Cause the Lord is real.
Sending the help to heal.
The pain I will feel.
I am booze on the run.
My future is done.
With the Lord on your side.
Cause He will be your guide!

‘BTW, I do not believe drinking is a sin unless you get drunk but different people’s body metabolism is different so it is just best to stay away from the drink before it makes you sink.

NICOTINE OF TO DIE
By Ramesh C. Reddy

Destroying life, my name is Nicotine!
I am no worse than a guillotine!
Some smoke me to be cool.
Others smoke me because I rule
Once they are hooked, they are mine
Their life is cooked as they dine
In the long run not feeling fine
My Tobacco companies are making a killing for dough
Regardless of whether sickness becomes your foe
They tell you to look at the Camel, Joe
Being surrounded by beauties and blondes as you go
Giving you a false message, you need to know
They tell you to look at the Marlboro man
Encouraging you all to be his fan
Not minding killing anyone they can
You are all my pawn
I can manipulate your life and money at dusk or dawn
In my clutches, your money and life is soon gone
Only a few have escaped from me
Once you let me in, your partner I will be
Before you divorce me from your life, you will see
I would have already collected a huge alimony fee
And money still to come becomes my profit key
I am loving at first when you take your first puff
But later I deal death that’s rough
To escape from me, you are not tough
I am a drug that will give you a bug
I make sure I get my way
Even to this very day
I am glad I get my pay
Only Christ I fear, I want to say
He has a way of keeping my business in a bind
Healing and recovery from my addiction, people find
Once they have Christ’s love and healing touch, cigarettes they mind
They always turn to Christ, who is so loving and kind
I heard He’s a Great Physician who heals
Hope, faith, and love He always deals
No matter what other's have done, compassion He feels
And with His cleansing Blood, sin He seals
I am Nicotine with a guillotine!
My opponent Jesus Christ is the Light
He alone I cannot fight!
So I hope to keep you away from His sight
I am afraid of His healing might
That will make my profits sink day or night!

These two can hurt us in the long run from having visibility, pathway, and direction if we let them be the light in our lives.

But, there is a Light that can give you visibility, pathway, and direction. Jesus claims to be that Light for He is the Light of the world and promises that if we follow Him we will not stumble in the darkness but living light will flood our path.

Don't wait until you give up drinking or smoking to come to Jesus. Come as you are and give Him your life to be the true Light in your life. Allow Him to work in you and don't feel you have to take the burden on your own. Jesus is there to take your burden. Yes, He is friend!  Sometimes it happens overnight miraculously and at other times, it is a process but do not give up!

The best thing Satan would want is to discourage you and make you feel that you are not fit to be in the Kingdom of God if you get drunk or smoke, but Jesus came for those who are weak and struggle, not for those who think they are righteous. So hold on to Jesus and you will be holding on to hope!

That can happen in your life too friend. Jesus wants to be your Light. He loves you so much and wants to go ahead of you and wants you to follow Him.

He wants to deliver you from whatever you are faced with that is making you a prisoner in the darkness. Yes, He does!!! He loves you and offers Himself to you.

Won’t you take the only Light that matters?

Allow the Light of Jesus to permeate your life this HOLY WEEK and allow Him to be in your life for He wants to! He will bring change and transformation in your life. That is exciting to know!

Ask the Lord Jesus to light the fire in your heart again if you know Him but have gone your own way. He will friend, yes He will. He loves you so much. No matter what we go through, He is there even through the trials and tribulations. If you don't know Him, come as you are and let Him help you overcome your sins and set you free by His Light.

Listen to the song, 'Jesus Hope of the Nations'.

Lord’s Illuminating Guidance Helps Throughout! (L.I.G.H.T)/”What light will you follow this HOLY WEEK?”

If you want to know the Light of the world, pray this prayer with me and mean it in your heart this HOLY WEEK!

Prayer:
Jesus, it is so exciting to claim your promise for what you have claimed. You are the Light of the world and if we follow you, we will not walk in the darkness but will have the Light of Life! Thank you Jesus for offering your light to me! Jesus I want to have your Light in my life as you go ahead of me so I can have visibility, pathway, and direction in my life. Help me Jesus. Right now I am in darkness and need deliverance from the bondage of sin. I cannot deliver myself without following you for you are the initiator to deliver and I want to follow. So right now, I say I am so sorry for my sins. I repent of my sins and confess of them. Please forgive me and help me to turn from them. Thank you for wanting to be my Light. This means a lot to me. I accept you Jesus into my heart and make my heart your home. Please come in Jesus and Light the darkness of my heart with your blazing light. Light the fire in me, purifying me by your Holy Spirit dwelling in me please Jesus. Thank you so much Jesus and I will live for you and serve you the rest of the days of my life as I accept your cleansing of my sin with your precious cleansing blood. Now I do acknowledge you as my Lord and Personal Savior. Thank you for being my Lord and Personal Savior. Thank you that you have heard my prayers and answered me. In Your Name I Pray Jesus! Amen! Thank you that I belong to you now and you have become my Light! Amen!

Friend, we need Jesus because we have been separated from God due to our sin. Because of our sin, Jesus had to pay the price to become our bridge so we can reach God now not of our own good works but because of the finished work of Christ, the Lord on the cross.

"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9, NIV)

May you come to know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Personal Savior becoming His offspring so you can spend Eternity with Him. He is waiting for you. Come as you are. Please do not reject the gift of God.

May you be uplifted knowing Deliverer openly understands bringing total Salvation! Amen!

If you would like to invite Jesus Christ into your heart and make Him a daily part of your life, you can this very moment. You will never be alone. You can claim God's promises for you in the Bible and see them come true, before your eyes, in His wonderful timing. You don't have to wait for a special time to come to the Lord. You can come right now as you pray this prayer, meaning it in your heart and finding your new identity in Christ Jesus.

Make this your prayer. Don’t let the enemy deceive you into thinking you need all the answers before coming to Christ. Let me just assure you though you may not have all the answers right now before coming to Jesus, He will answer them slowly. Yes, He will for I know our Redeemer will! Amen!

Prayer:
Dear Jesus, thank you for foreshadowing once again about SAVING US when you spoke to the disciples about the KERNEL OF WHEAT. Thanks for dying for our sin so we can have Eternal Life and be saved when we turn to you. The previous day, you allowed Mary to wash your dirty/stinking feet. Anything you do has a reason and you foreshadowed what you would do for us one day on the cross. You washed away all our sins with your precious cleansing blood on the cross. Thank you so much Jesus.  No matter what we have done or where we have been, we can know that you love us and paid the ransom to deliver us from the stench of sin. Thank you Jesus. I accept the antidote you offer and want you to wash me clean with your precious cleansing blood so I can have new life. My sin I give it all to you so you can cover me with your righteousness. Help me Jesus. I don't want to live like I have been living. I don't want my life to smell because of the stinky/dirty sins of my life. I know you offer cleansing and washing so I come to you now and receive it. Thank you for forgiving me of all my sin when you paid the price on the cross for me which I accept now. Please give me new life Jesus. Come into my heart and make my heart your home. Live in me Jesus and I will live for you and help me to serve you the rest of the days of my life so I can say, "Lord Jesus, ANYTHING, ANYTIME, ANYWHERE, I am ready" as you strengthen me and walk with me and talk to me. I love you Jesus. I accept you as my Lord and Personal Savior. Please be my Lord and Personal Savior. Thank you for helping me learn about what Mary did for you and the implications for our own lives. Thank you that you have heard my prayer and answered me giving me new life. In Your Name I Pray Jesus! Amen!