11.1.25 ~ A Little More Light Please

Good morning!

Last night's zoom call: Relationships: When to cling and when to let go

Life is all about the amount of light an individual is given (1 Jn. 1:7).

But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. (1 Jn. 1:7)

When any event takes place, people will see different things based on who they are, how they are positioned, the environment they are in, their current mindset, the amount of light and even how they are trained to view things in life. What they will see is true to them. Individuals see the event from their own perspective. It doesn't mean they are correct, but it's how they see it.

There are multiple factors that influence how we see anything and everything. And there are influences that can actually affect our memory on how we saw that particular event…the way that we see things can be very tricky. The most varying characteristic on any given event is the amount of light that is shed on the event.

Many of you who follow the Torah cycle have gone through the book of Genesis (Bereishit); a book I reference just about every day. Each story reveals to us inter-textual and structural commonalities from one story to another. I’ve come to see, from my own perspective, the light I've been given, some of the themes behind each one of these stories. I’ve also recognized that each character saw the events from the amount of light that they were given. Sometimes we see, in our mind’s eye, their actions and wonder ‘how could they do such a thing’? Like how could Abram say Sarai was his sister (Gen. 12:13)? Or how could Sarai give her handmaid, Hagar/the stranger, into the bed of Abram (Gen. 16:13)? Once again, individuals are going to see things from their own perspective.

In life it’s easy to be misunderstood for why we did something. As so many of the stories in Genesis, it’s difficult for us to see how the woman could have taken and eaten from the tree? Or, why would Cain get so upset at Abel? Or, why would people rebel against their creator so vehemently? Or, why would men try to make a name for their own glory? Or, why would Yahweh ask Abraham to offer Isaac? Or, why would Esau sell his birthright? Or, why would Rachel have Jacob deceive his father? Or, why would Laban switch Leah for Rachel? Or, why would Laban deceive Jacob? Or, why would Rachel steal her father’s Teraphim? Or, why would Jacob show favoritism to one son and hate the other? Or, how can simple dreams be so misunderstood? Or, why wouldn’t any of the characters in these stories think of the latter end of their decisions? My oh my, it’s easy to be the ‘judge and jury’ when you’re not in the plot!

Each of these handpicked stories are viewed based on the amount of light that we have to the culture, the amount of information given and how we view it in our mind’s eye. The amount of light we have determines everything.

Yeshua told us to ‘let your light shine before men so that they may see your good works and glorify our Father in heaven’ (Matt. 5:16).

Our actions, even those in ignorance or rebellion, are based on the light that we’ve received. And others will ‘see’ our actions based on the amount of light that they have reflecting off of our actions. Some will see it one-way and others another. Could each observer be correct? Could they both be incorrect? Could they think they saw something when in actuality it was their mind playing a trick on them?

Have your actions ever been misunderstood? If they have, what can you do? Some will try to explain till they are ‘blue in the face.’ Others will defend their position in other ways. And some will go back and check their own heart and trust the ‘viewer’ into Yahweh’s hand.

Today, on this day after the godless holiday of Halloween, where there is no light, you will have an opportunity to let your ‘light’ shine before men and they will ‘see’ your good works. A question we might ask ourselves is, ‘will they see those actions in the right light and glorify our Father who is in heaven’? Or will they mistake it for something else? Let’s hope it’s the former!

Let me encourage you this morning (since we all see so clearly :-), to remember that people see life through their own lenses. They see individually. Just as they see things from their ‘limited’ spectrum of light, may we acknowledge the same in what we see? Only Yahweh see’s clearly, because He never judges a matter based on what He sees or what He hears (Isa. 11:3,4). He looks at what cannot be seen; the heart (1 Sam. 16:7). Together, with our limited vision, we can see the big picture a little clearer what’s really happening in front of our eyes.

Maybe that's why Paul, using the source of faith, God's Word (Rom. 10:17) which is our light (Psa. 119:105; Prov. 6:23), said, that we should walk by faith and not by sight (2 Cor. 5:7). You see what I mean?

Keep discovering yourself/lech lecha

Shabbat shalom!

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