SNT 0874 The Light Of Life
The Light Of Life
Explains that people who don’t have God and His Word don’t have light; when believers hold forth the Word, they shine as lights.
SNT – 874
August 14, 1977
Format: audio
Publication Date: 08-14-1977
Victor Paul Wierwille was a Bible scholar and teacher for over four decades.
By means of Dr. Wierwille's dynamic teaching of the accuracy and integrity of God's Word, foundational class and advanced class graduates of Power for Abundant Living have learned that the one great requirement for every student of the Bible is to rightly divide the Word of Truth. Thus, his presentation of the Word of God was designed for students who desire the in-depth-accuracy of God’s Word.
In his many years of research, Dr. Wierwille studied with such men as Karl Barth, E. Stanley Jones, Glenn Clark, Bishop K.C. Pillai, and George M. Lamsa. His formal training included Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Theology degrees from Mission House (Lakeland) College and Seminary. He studied at the University of Chicago and at Princeton Theological Seminary from which he received a Master of Theology degree in Practical Theology. Later he completed his work for the Doctor of Theology degree.
Dr. Wierwille taught the first class on Power for Abundant Living in 1953.
Books by Dr. Wierwille include: Are the Dead Alive Now? published in 1971; Receiving the Holy Spirit Today published in 1972; five volumes of Studies in Abundant Living— The Bible Tells Me So (1971), The New, Dynamic Church (1971), The Word's Way (1971), God's Magnified Word (1977), Order My Steps in Thy Word (1985); Jesus Christ Is Not God (1975); Jesus Christ Our Passover (1980); and Jesus Christ Our Promised Seed (1982).
Dr. Wierwille researched God's Word, taught, wrote, and traveled worldwide, holding forth the accuracy of God's "wonderful, matchless" Word.
Opening, Prayer
Pioneers On A Love Frontier
Keep Singin Those Gospel Songs
He Gave Me Love
Give Christ A Try
In His Mercy
The Gathering of the Family
Prayer
God's Way People
Gen 1:3; Rev 22:5; 1Jo 1:5; Joh 4:24; 1Jo 1:7; (2Ki 6:14-17)
2Ti 1:7; 2Co 4:1-4; (2Ti 2:15)
2Co 4:5-7; Mat 5:14-16; Joh 8:10-12
Joh 8:13; Eph 5:8; 1Th 5:4, 5; Phi 2:13-16
snt-0874_the-light-of-life(vpw)-DRAFT
I was tremendously blessed this evening during the manifestations. The great number of times that I heard the word ‘light’ used. Because I knew in my heart what I wanted to share, and it was just sort of like a benediction, a blessing upon what I’d had in my heart that I knew I’d present to you people tonight. And then to hear that literally just brought great joy and thanksgiving to my heart.
I the first chapter of Genesis, the first thing God said when he got this earth ready for us was, “Let there be light.” When God got the earth ready for man to inhabit, after the cataclysmic occurrences between verses one and two, the first thing God said was,
Genesis 1:3:
… Let there be light: and there was light.
And almost the last thing he says in the Book of Revelation is regarding light, in the 22nd chapter. Talking about the new heaven and the new earth, in verse 5 of chapter 22, he says,
Revelation 22:5:
And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord… giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.
In other words, the Book of Genesis opens with God giving light, and the Book of Revelation closes with God being that light. So in between Genesis 1:3 and Revelation 22, the greatness of all that God ever did is light. God is light.
1 John. Go back a book – two books almost. Jude, Revelation then John. Before that 1, 2 Peter. 1 2 3 John. Look at 1 John chapter 1 and verse five.
1 John 1:5:
This then is the message which we have [what?] {heard} of him, and declare unto you, that God is [what?] {light}, and in him is no darkness at all.
God is what, people? {Light.} All the way from Genesis 1:3 through to Revelation 22, all the way through the Word it’s, “God is light.”
Now, how in the world can anybody then say they have light if they don't know the true God? It's a counterfeit. It has to be a counterfeit. Either that or the Bible is a counterfeit. Nobody can say that he has light until he has God, until he knows God and God knows him. That’s right.
God is light. And if anybody is ever going to have light, he's got to have God, ma’am. And the only way you ever get around to getting God is getting to His Word. For God is spirit. John 4:24. Remember? God is what? {Spirit.}
Therefore, the only way you can ever know about God is you've got to get to His Word. His word makes known. It declares God; makes known God who is spirit. And people, they have to have that light in order to know God. And until they know God, they're going to walk in darkness. They're going to say, well, I have light, but somebody saying it is sometimes far removed from the reality of having it.
And also in verse 7 of this wonderful 1 John,
1 John 1:7:
… if we walk in the light, as he is… the [what?] {light}, we have fellowship one with another,…
God is light. His word is light. So we go to the Word to find out what God is all about. We believe that Word and God does what we sang tonight – that tremendous miracle of the new birth. Then we stay in that household and walk in that household, in the light, in that fellowship. And in that household in fellowship is fantastic strength.
In the Old Testament, time and time again there was just one man that stood in a community, for instance, and the whole community was blessed because of that one man. There's a record in the Old Testament about a prophet. He took his servant with him and they sort of holed up at a certain place. And the wicked king found out where that prophet was, and he sent all of his Marine Corps down there to get him. Maybe it’s army, navy – I don’t know what they floated over there. They surrounded the whole city. The whole city was surrounded by the might of that king and all the armor, and inside of it was just one man of God. And when he got up in the morning, the servant was tremendously shook and he called the prophet and said, look, look, look, look, they've got us surrounded.
And the prophet said, don't get excited. He said, there are more with us than with them. And he and the servant were the only ones standing there. Then he prayed that the servants eyes might be [what?] {Opened.} And the Word of God said that the prophet was surrounded with like chariots of fire. One man. One man standing.
Look, people, that's Old Testament. They were servants. Certainly you and I do not have less after the Day of Pentecost than they had before the Day of Pentecost. If that is true, then Pentecost should never have come; then Christ should never have needed to die.
But Christ died, Pentecost came, so that we could have more than an abundant life. That's why some day when The Way believers get to see the greatness of the Word and they really believe it – really believe it – that it's just no longer talk but that it’s the basic walk, honey, you and that community make a majority. And that's why I see the Word over the World. Because any one person in a country, that country's got to get blessed. Any one person in a town, that town has to be blessed. For God's there, you're there, and God's no piker.
Man, God is what the Word says He is. God is light. In Genesis, the first thing He gave was light in revelation. The last thing is light. It's God, people. And wherever you are, it's God in Christ in you, the hope of glory. And you've got to rise up and stand tall, not because of who we are but because of who he is in us. Boy.
Look at 2 Corinthians chapter 4. Listen to this before I read 2 Corinthians 4.
2 Timothy 1:7:
… God hath not given us the spirit of fear;…
The word ‘fear’ is cowardice. God hasn’t made cowards out of us. He didn't give us the spirit of cowardice,
2 Timothy 1:7:
… but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
That’s 2 Timothy 1:7.
God makes more than conquerors out of people. He doesn't make cowards out of us. That’s right. God makes the winners, not failures. God is in the business of delivering people, not defeating them. Not giving us the spirit of cowardice, but a sound mind.
If the Bible is right, then anybody who does not know the true God has an unsound mind, and an unsound mind is an insane mind. And I think all you need to do is be honest; look around you in the world and you'll see a fantastic bunch of people who are insane. That's right. They may stand at the top echelon of what the world has accredited, but the Word still says they have an unsound mind. And if you would just check it out, you will see that the things that they're proposing do not agree with God's word, and that's insane.
For God's word is God's will. And, people, this Word has stood the test of all the critics of all the times, and it's still the Word. No critic has ever broken the Word. They've only broken themselves upon the Word. That Word still stands tonight. It'll stand tomorrow. It's the Word that makes known Jesus Christ. The Word makes known Jesus Christ, makes known God to us through His Word. He didn't make any cowards, he made men and women who are more than conquerors. He made men and women to have an abundant life, more than abundant life.
That's why 2 Corinthians 4 it says,
2 Corinthians 4:1:
Therefore… having this ministry,…
“Seeing we have,” is a participle form in the text. Having.
2 Corinthians 4:1:
Therefore… having this ministry, as we have received mercy,…
Claudette sang about it tonight. Tremendous. One of the great hymns of all time.
2 Corinthians 4:1-2:
… we faint not;
But [verse 2. But] have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty,…
Hidden things of dishonesty is the shameful secret things. And you know what the shameful secret things are? Not smoking behind the barn. No, no. The shameful secret things are that these people, they deliberately met together to plan how to promulgate their dishonesty, how to deliberately fool the people. And they did this because they walked in craftiness. Sly. And this is what they messed on. They handled the Word of God, how? {Deceitfully.} That's the hidden thing of dishonesty. That's the walking in craftiness; that they couldn't handle the Word of God deceitfully.
2 Corinthians 4:2:
But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.
“Oh, Genesis 1:1 doesn't really mean that.” “John 3:16 doesn’t mean God so loved he gave his only begotten Son, it means he gave God. Come on, baby. Baby.”
Let's get honest. Men, women, let's get honest.
Therefore, having this ministry, we receive mercy and we don’t faint at it. We don't lay down on the job and soon. That’s right. But we have renounced, we absolutely have renounced the shameful secret things; walking in craftiness. We have renounced the handling of the Word of God deceitfully. Because the one thing we want to do is to rightly divide the Word of truth.
For men and women will stand approved before God if and when they rightly divide the Word of truth. And, to the end they rightly divide the Word of truth, they'll have the true Word. To the end it's wrongly divided, they think they have the true Word, but they can't have it.
2 Corinthians 4:2:
… by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.
And conscience isn't worth a hill of beans in a hail storm unless your mind is renewed on God’s Word. Conscience is nothing but habit pattern. That’s right. Your conscience bothers you because of habit patterns. So you put on the mind of Christ, not handling the Word of God deceitfully put on the mind of Christ, then your conscience will sort of gear you and steer you on the Word. Right? Shoot yes.
Verse 3.
2 Corinthians 4:3:
… if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are… [perishing. ‘Lost’ is perishing.]
If our gospel, if the gospel of the deliverance of God, not walking in craftiness, not handling the Word of God deceitfully – if that gospel is hidden… And the word ‘hid’ is veiled. You know, veiled; you can see there's something behind it but you can't really see it until you get her to the altar and take it off of her. That's veiled. It is hid to those who are perishing in the process of getting lost. Is what it says.
So, let's say someone you're witnessing to laughs at you or ridicules you. You're going to let that shake you? {No.} Going to make you feel bad? Send you back to the pit and start confessing your sin all over again? No. The Word of God says the reason they won't accept it is they're veiled and they are in the process of perishing. Because outside of the Word, sir, there is no light. It's the Word that's light.
And then in verse 4 it says,
2 Corinthians 4:4:
… the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them…
Blindness is opposite of light. He is always in the business of blinding people. Sometimes he shows his light so blazingly bright that the light of it blinds people. He makes everything look like it's beautiful. But the whole purpose behind it is to blind you.
2 Corinthians 4:4-5:
… lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
[verse 5] For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus [what] {the Lord}; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake.
We are sons of God in a perpendicular relationship. God is our Father, we are His children. We are sons of God this way, but we are servants to our brothers and sisters on an horizontal level.
2 Corinthians 4:6:
For God, [verse 6]… commanded [commanded] the light…
God commanded. In Genesis 1:3 He said, let there be what? {Light.} And when God said it, He meant it and there was what? {Light.}
2 Corinthians 4:6:
Here, God… commanded the light to shine out of darkness, [and] hath shined in our [what? {hearts}, to give [shined in our hearts to give]…
The word ‘give’ is properly supplied. It's an ellipsis. It’s a figure of speech. But the word ‘give’ is properly supplied.
2 Corinthians 4:6:
… shined in our hearts, to give [to give]…
To give. To give. Not to hold back on it, not to store it up, but to do what? {Give.}
2 Corinthians 4:6:
…to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face [or through the face]…
It’s a figure of speech meaning through the work, through what Jesus Christ faced up to, to what he did.
2 Corinthians 4:6:
… [We] give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of [what?] Jesus Christ.
Isn’t that fantastic? We give light. We are not in the business of leading people into darkness and giving darkness. We are not in the business of deliberately setting ourselves craftily to handle the Word of God deceitfully. We are the living reality of the presence of the power of God, endeavoring to rightly divide the Word, setting men and women free. That the light of the knowledge of the glory of God can be seen by the work of Jesus Christ, His Son. Which in turn he has wrought in our hearts by the Holy Spirit.
Now, that doesn't say we're not going to make mistakes. That's right. It doesn't say that. As a matter of fact, the Word does teach we're going to make a few. But when we do make a mistake, it's not a deliberate, crafty perpetration of wrongly dividing the Word. Just because we don't know better. It isn't that we don't want to know better, we just don't know better. Maybe next week we know better, then we change. Then we change. That's what life's all about.
Verse 7 is fantastic.
2 Corinthians 4:7:
But we have this treasure [this what?] {Treasure.}
And the Word of God says if the treasure is big enough, a man would sell everything he had to buy that one treasure. There’s a record in the Gospels, remember?
The
2 Corinthians 4:7:
… earthen vessels [is the body. But we've got this fantastic treasure in that physical body] that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
Isn't that beautiful? You just get to the place and life, people, you just got to let go and let God. You hold forth the greatness of the Word to the best of your ability to your friends and enemies, your neighbors and non-neighbors. Every place you go. One thing you do is talk the Word, talk the Word, talk the Word. Got anything better to talk about? {No.} Then why not talk about the best, the Word? Some people are going to laugh, but don't worry about it. God always has the last laugh. That's right. Because it's His what? {Word.}
And if there is any one thing the world needs today, it's the Word. They don't need give-away programs. They don't need enslavement programs. They don't need armament. They don't need airplanes. They don't need machine guns. They need the Word.
All these things, other things can be added on to you, but without the Word, never going to work. And nobody has dared to stand up and proclaim the Word. They talk about it, they read round about it, but they just don't get to the Word and the integrity of it and the greatness of it. And that it's God’s Word, and it stands if it never comes to pass. Still His Word. That’s right.
And we have this treasure, people. Man, you and I have only one life to live and give. We might as well give our utmost for His highest. It’s all we got, one life. We might as well just give the greatness of it for moving the Word. We’re still going to be able to do our professions. We’re still going to be able to work in the shops and factories, and have homes and all the… Though the great thing of life is the Word.
Look at Matthew 5. Matthew 5. So much familiar material in here at all of you beautiful saints. Just want to hit a few of the highlights. Matthew 5, verse 14.
Matthew 5:14-16:
Ye are the light of [what?] {the world.} A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
Neither do men light a [lamp. It says candle but it’s lamp]… , and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick [a pillar]; and it giveth light unto all that are in the [what?] {house.}
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
Let your light. Let your light. Not your negatives, not your doubts, not your fears, not your worries, not your operations.
Matthew 5:16:
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is where? {in heaven.}
Look at John chapter 8. John 8, verse 12. Fantastic record about somebody wanting to stone somebody. They’re real anxious to stone her. Jesus wasn't quite as anxious as they were, praise the Lord.
John 8:10-11:
When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?
[And] “She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I [what?] {condemn thee:} go, and [what?] {sin no more.}
Jesus Christ is not in the condemnation business. And if you feel condemned, you're playing in the wrong league. He's not in the condemnation business. He is in the light business, not the darkness.
John 8:12:
Then spake Jesus again unto them,…
He had to keep telling those birds all the time. And he said to them again. He had talked to them before, now he says it to them again.
John 8:12:
… I am the light of [what?] {the world:} he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of [what?] {life.}
And the next verse you got the religious gang. They said,
John 8:13:
[Oh] thy record is not true.
That verse 13, where the men who handled the Word of God deceitfully, the crafty gang. Jesus Christ is the light. He did follow the records of God in Christ Jesus doesn't walk in darkness, but shall have, absolute tense, the light of life. The light of life.
Jesus Christ is the light as God is the light, as you are the light when you hold it forth. And to that end that people accept the light, people, they will have light. They've got to get to the light of God through His Word in order to have life, or they'll be in darkness.
In Ephesians chapter 5. Acts, Romans, Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians 5. Five, verse 8.
Ephesians 5:8:
For ye were sometimes darkness,…
The word ‘sometimes’ is also the word ‘once’. Darkness is the word blindness. You know, if you're blind, you're in darkness, can’t see.
Ephesians 5:8:
… but now are ye light in the [what?] {Lord:}…
Light in whom? {The Lord.} He's the one that took the blindness out of our eyes. He's the one that took the darkness out of our souls. He's the one, when he saved us, who made us what the Word says we are. And because of what he did, we walk. We walk, we…
Ephesians 5:8:
… walk as children of whom? {Light.}
That's of Jesus Christ, who is God's only begotten Son. And that walk in the light of Jesus Christ makes known God the Father.
1 Thessalonians chapter 5. Talking about the return of Christ, which is a fantastic truth. Verse 4.
1 Thessalonians 5:4-5:
But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a [what?] {thief.}
Ye are all the children of [what?] {light}, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of [what?] {darkness.}
That's right or not of blindness, we're not of the night. We are the children of light, we are the children of the day. And if people want to see, they got to look at you. So give them some light to look at, because you have the knowledge of the Word to accurately share it with people. And that Word is lightning.
Look at Philippians chapter 2, verse 13
Philippians 2:13:
For it is God which worketh in you…
One of the text reads, “For it is God who is at work in you.
Philippians 2:13-:
God is at work within you]… both to will and to do of his good [what?] {pleasure.}
[Therefore, verse 14, don’t cry about it] Do all things without [complaining]… [without] disputings: [without arguing about it.]
You know, the murmuring and the complaining is, “Look, I've been out witnessing for three days. Nothing happened. Golly 60. I don't know. God dead?” Hey! Noah, 120 years he witnessed. He didn't get discouraged. He took a ride on the boat too. If he’d have got discouraged, he'd have been drifting behind it.
Hey, sometimes people have difficulty standing one day for the true God – not if you know the word and believe the word. One man of God stood three years and six months so it wouldn't rain. That’s a long time, three years and six months without any rain. But all the [inaudible 00:30:01] out of business and everybody else in that period of time. Right.
It says do things without what?{Murmuring.} Right. And disputing.
Philippians 2:15:
That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of [what?] {God}, without rebuke, [without blemish. Without any blemish] in the midst of a crooked and perverse [what?] {nation}, [that’s right] among whom ye shine as lights in [what?] {the world;}
You shine as lights in the world. You don't put it under a bushel, you put it on a pillar. You walk with your head high and your shoulders back, with an agility in your soul. Because it's a treasure that God has placed within you.
And that's why the great next verse says,
Philippians 2:16:
Holding forth the word of [what?] {life;}
Holding forth the word of life. The word of life is the Word, and that gives the light that makes it possible for men and women to be born again of God's spirit, filled with the Holy Spirit, be saved, walk on the greatness of God’s Word. And we shine as lights, and we hold forth that Word of life. This is why we’re going to rock. That's right. Just to share the light of that Word and the life of that Word.
And then to have the joy of sitting with believers, rapping with believers. To have that love of God among us. Because the unbeliever out here in the world, whom God knows is never going to listen to Him, never going to hear His Word, that unbeliever doesn't give one hell in a hailstorm about you or me. It's the best word I can think of. That's right. That unbeliever out there doesn't give one hoot about you, ma’am. Doesn't give one hoot about you, sir.
But it isn't the unbeliever who saved us around or unsaved us, it's God who saved us. And God says He loves us. That His people are like the apple of His eye. You tried poking it lately? Doesn't feel so good. And to go to a Rock of Ages with the gathering of as many people as we can, for that period of time to be together and just let the love of God bless and heal.
There's not much of that love out there in the world, but it sure in God's people.
And then we go from that mountain top down to the valley of human need all over the world, and carry the greatness of the Word from the rock, because it's going to be the year of outreach. It's Word.
Father, I sure thank you for your love and grace and mercy, and Father I thank you for the faithfulness of that Word. Thank you that that Word has stood the test of all time and has been the critic of all critics. And I thank you, Father, for the joy and rejoicing in our hearts this night through Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.
[end: 00:33:42]