JESUS SPEAKING
“No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light. The lamp of the body is the eye. The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness. Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness. If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light” (Luke 11: 33-36.)
INSPIRED THOUGHTS
Lamps in the days of Jesus were nothing like our lamps today. Most lamps were round, hollow clay containers which were filled with oil. One end of the wick was plunged in to the oil, while the lit end of the wick hung out of the side of the clay vessel. The wick that came out from the oil was not the source of the flame; the source of the flame was the oil hidden inside of the lamp. The body is like the hollow basin of the lamp, and the Holy Spirit is the oil that fills that basin. The flaming wick is visible, as are the eyes of every person. The Holy Spirit fills up the body and pours out through the eyes, shining for the entire world to see. God’s purpose is that others who see that light will be drawn toward it (sadly, many will choose to remain in darkness; they will be repulsed by the light.)
When I first became a Christian, I remember looking in to certain people’s eyes and seeing something different; it was like looking in to crystal clear water; there was no turmoil, no waves of any kind; just a peace and a stillness. Their eyes also seemed wider, and didn’t dart back and forth like other people’s eyes (and they blinked less.) On the other side, I knew a man who was filled with evil; who was doing horrible things; his eyes were dull, and covered in a yellowish film (it wasn’t caused by anything biological, but spiritual.) As he began to grow closer to God, that yellowish film began to fade away. His eyes began to clear, his face began to warm, and a dead man began to live. (If you have ever seen someone have a seizure, you’ll notice that their eyes go blank; the lights go out so to speak, even when their eyes are wide open. This same type of thing happens to those who walk in darkness. They might be walking around, working, saving money, shopping, etc. but they are not alive on the inside; they are hollow. The eyes reveal whether or not a person is alive or dead on the inside.
Today, some are full of The Spirit, and some are partially full, and others are completely empty. How can we be filled? We need only ask God daily for His Holy Spirit. We can also take time to pray and to speak to God, by ourselves, or with others. Reading the bible is another way to fill up our tanks so that the light of God shines out from us in to the lives of others. Also, acting and behaving according to the teachings of the Lord is another necessity for our internal spiritual growth. Every time you act selflessly, every time you give, every time you share with a stranger, every time you love others with a pure heart, you are being filled with more of His Spirit. As God continues to fill you, others will see will see something different in your eyes. They will see a peace, a clarity, a purity, and a hope welling up within you, and pouring out from you. Be filled, and be a light for the Lord in this place.
“Lord Heavenly Father, we lift You up as an awesome and mighty God, full of grace and peace, and mercy. We ask that You fill us with those things as well. Come in to our hearts and push out the darkness and fill us with Your light. Help us to have eyes that are beacons of hope to others; eyes through which You can draw the lost to Yourself and to Your Son. May our eyes show all of Your glory, and all of Your goodness. Send the darkness out of hearts Lord for Your glory. We love You Lord, we thank You, and we praise You, and we ask and pray all of these things, in Jesus Christ’s name. Amen.”
Jesus Speaks 