“But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.” (Prov. 4:18)
I have not seen any glowing Christians in my life, so I must presume that what is spoken of here are those whose presence brings to others the light of Jesus Christ, the glory of the Father shown through Him.
“No man, when he hath lighted a candle, covereth it with a vessel, or putteth it under a bed; but setteth it on a candlestick, that they which enter in may see the light.” (Luke 8:16) “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” (Psalm 119:105) “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?” (2 Cor. 6:14)
These are just three verses that support this supposition, yet when Jesus appeared with Moses and Elijah (Matt. 17:3) He shined brightly, when John turned around, he saw a brightly glowing Jesus Christ. “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” (1 John 3:2)
I think we may literally shine in heaven, some more than others, the Lord the brightest. But that is not the point of this short letter, the shining we are to exhibit here in this life is, and I contend that most who claim Christ as Lord believe that means a smile on their face and a happy demeanor in front of all they meet, in fact all the time, or they would not be exhibiting a Christlike attitude.
I ask you, how are we to shine in such a manner as this, and hate evil at the same time? (Prov. 8:13)
There are no contradictions in the Scriptures, there are many who are not blessed with Spiritual discernment in this are of the Word of God though, they have much difficulty in differentiating between joy and happiness, between loving their neighbor and hating the evil. It has gone so far in the wrong direction that many believe we are to love the sinner but hate the sin, thereby in essence excusing the actions of those wicked people and bringing into existence the enabled and all-inclusive society we find ourselves in, one where if we speak against the evil, the evil that is indeed wicked and sinful in the eyes of the Lord, we are accused of hate speech. And so those who will not contemplate and apply these truths in their lives who call Jesus Christ Lord shine a false light.
I and others who speak and have been blessed with the truth in this area are not set apart for a specific task here, all of the children of God are to hate evil, to stand in the days of evil, we do not need to look at Revelation 12:11, “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.” to understand that our brothers and sisters yet to be in Christ will not become a part of the society of sin that is approaching, there have always been men and women of God willing to lay down their very lives for Him, there has always been those that shine brightly.
This idea of love without reproving, of accepting without correcting, of never judging with righteous judgment (John 7:24) for fear of seeming judgmental is not the way of Christ, it is a false Christianity that seeks the praise of men above the things of God, it is self-serving, and not Christ-centered, it is based on the fear of the possibility of personal repercussions and not anywhere near Philippians 1:21, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Yet many today believe a happy attitude, a positive outlook, a smile on the face is what determines the amount of the light of Jesus Christ that shines through us by the power of the Holy Spirit.
The apostacy is upon us, and many do not even realize it.
Evil is growing exponentially, and words of rebuke are held in check for fear of self, of loss of items, of loss of stature and standing in the eyes of others, and for fear of loss of life. “He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.” (John 12:25) Personally my friends, it sickens me.
Far too many who call themselves after the name of Jesus Christ see a contradiction, or at best a change of attitude towards how we are to approach evil people in this day in these two verses. “I hate them with perfect hatred: I count them mine enemies.” (Psalm 139:22) And “Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.” (Matt. 5:43) God does not change, He never has, have you?
