Psalm 97:11

Psalm 97:11

Light and joy

What an amazing verse, there is so much depth to this that it’s a job to know where to start! Firstly, we need to remember that our God is the One who introduced light to the world and He has been a light to His people ever since. He was a light in the darkness when the Children of Israel stumbled for 40 years in the wilderness. He was represented by the Golden Lampstand in the Tabernacle and the Temple, and when Yeshua arrived amongst us He declared Himself to be the light of the world.

Notice that the light is shed upon the righteous. Our God lights up our path by guiding us and directing us and showing us the way that we should go. If we have difficulties in understanding how to proceed, then His light will shine and direct our path. We do not have to stumble around in confusion and in darkness, if we live His way and obey His commands, all will become clear! 

Our God is also the light of truth, and He has written everything we need to know in this life, in His Book of Truth. If we never read anything else during the rest of our time on earth, we would never exhaust the depths that He can take us to in His Word. It is a never-ending supply of surprises and increasingly amazing revelations, so much so that a familiar passage may jump out and speak to us as if we had never read it before! It pays to walk in righteousness with our Lord because all of these secrets are waiting to be revealed but only the righteous get to experience them!

Not only do we benefit from the light that our God shines upon us but the upright in heart, those who seek Him with integrity and in obedience, will know ever-increasing joy. This is his gift, by His Spirit, and the world has nothing that compares with it. Joy comes from outside of us, it is not sensual nor is it earned, and it is not subject to our moods. It is a deep-rooted contentment and wonder that comes from being in the light. So, let’s walk in righteousness and not let sin spoil what we have been given! 

 

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