1/17/2023

Revelation leads to knowledge. And knowledge leads to understanding. Understanding leads to wisdom. Wisdom is the ability to apply knowledge and understanding in a way that is obedient and consistent with the Word of God. First, we must seek revelation.

So, what IS revelation and how do we get a revelation? Revelation is the uncovering of a truth, and it is not something we come up with on our own. We CAN have personal “revelations,” that is things that we learn over time. As in “OH, So it works THAT way! I get this with computer programs. I’m currently learning how to use quickbooks, a bookkeeping software, but those “revelations” are not what I’m talking about here.

In the spiritual sense, “a revelation” is revealed by Holy Spirit to our soul, and it is often in response to sincere questions or quests for truth regarding the things of God. It is a result of a seeking after His will in our lives with thoughtful prayer and meditaiton upon His word. Once a revelation is given to us by Holy Spirit, we need to do something with it to hold onto it. Otherwise, because we are human, we will forget what we were shown and fall back into old ways and thought patterns. 

It makes me think of  the story of the 10 Talents in Matthew 25, in which the servants were given a different amount of talents (equivalent to about 15 years wages). Those who did something with the talents (invested) were given more upon the master’s return and the one who buried the talent had that small amount taken away from him altoghether. Jesus then says: “For to everyone who has, more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away.”

This story brings then brings to mind a verse in Hebrews 11:6 that says:

 “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”

So, in reflection of what Paul says, I would say regarding the story of  the “talents," that the currency in the life of a believer would be faith. In a way, it follows a similar pattern: We have to invest it, use it and the most wonderful thing about it is, that it is a gift to us (see Hebrews 11), just as the master in Matthew gave the talents to the servants. We all get faith as a gift to use. We don’t have to come up with it on our own. So striving for faith, having too little or too much is not possible.

This revelation in turn leads me to Jesus' teaching in Matthew 5:14-16 which says:

 “¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead, they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.  ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

It may be just my tendency to take things I read somewhat literally, at first, but in the past, when I would read this passage in Matthew, I would think about a light shining as something I did. That if I lit the light of Christ in my life, than I should not hide His presence. This was my understanding or “my revelation," and personal revelations often sound good, but they are not always accurate with all of what scripture teaches. The revelations from God to our spirit reveal a truth and are always consistent with scripture and are always something we would not have otherwise thought of.

Regarding Matthew 5:14: Unlike my previous understanding, it isn’t we who light the lamp, We ARE the lamp God lights. Did you see that? I totally missed it for years. If you saw it, you are ahead of me! LOL. So WE are a light on a hill. WE are God’s creation to do the good works prepared in advance for us to do, (according to Paul in Ephesians 2:10). God did not create us to hide us. Therefore, I cannot simply choose to “follow Jesus” and keep it all a personal endeavor behind closed doors. I must shine as God intended, upon a hill, for all to see according to His design within me.

This leads to an aside I’d like to share:

 I cannot adopt another person’s way of following Christ just because I think I’d like it better or it would be fun and call it “God’s plan for me!” It would totally burn me out in every way, eventually. I know because I've tried it.  For example, just because I CAN teach (and did), doesn’t mean that I should assume a teaching certificate (again) and teach 3^rd graders. Okay, if I do, but unless it is quite clear to me that is what I should be doing, there is a better way to use my teaching gifts that edifies the Kingdom of God. I’ve discovered over the years that when I am obedient to the leading of Christ, what he has for me to do does not “burn me out” at the end of the day, week, month, year, etc…God’s plans for me don’t cause burnout unless I run out of “oil” to draw on. Sure, I can get tired, but usually it’s quickly remedied when I realize we haven’t kept the connection with God as I should, or a retreat of some kind is in order. We all have a part to play in the plan of God and we must be faithful to that plan. If we don't know it, seek it, try out things.

When I am obedient to His leading, shining the light of His presence takes no effort. Lamps don’t work or strive, they simply draw on the power given (oil in their day, electricity in ours). Therefore, we must simply draw on the oil He provides. It’s a covenant relationship and God is always faithful to provide the oil. We must in turn be faithful to draw on that oil and let the light of His presence shine in the way He has designed it to shine within each of us. The light often involves revelation of His intent for his people.

Next time we will look at “knowledge”

Blessings

Anne