"If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: How that by revelation He made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto His holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;" (Ephesians 3:2-5) You got a light?
Real quick before we go any further, this is very important. A phillumenist is one who collects matchbooks and matchboxes. Now, reason it's so important is because I know without a doubt that you're going to want to integrate it into your workaday vocabulary. So awesome and underused a word as it is, it may even inspire you to become one. Scour the streets and sidewalks and gutters for them. Because you never know when someone might "need a light". If you wanna get real specific and particular, the literal meaning of the word is "lover (as in "phil-") of the light" (Also, it's compound Latin/Greek in origin. That's rare.). And as believers, we all could use a little more heat and light and warmth from the Lord during our day. You will go up in flames even as you bring everyone around you along. It can't be helped.
"And God said, Let there be light: and there was light." (Genesis 1:3)
"The path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more until the perfect day." (Proverbs 4:18)
God speaks the light into being in Genesis and He again speaks at the beginning of the New Testament with Jesus. "Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying I am the light of the world:" (John 8:12a) Then Jesus speaks again about light when He says "As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." (John 9:5) Now, we know that Jesus has since left us here to see His kingdom come to fruition with the help of the Holy Spirit. Doesn't mean He's not still in charge but it's up to us to see His light diffuse throughout this world. It starts in our heart and grows with each interaction in love and worship. Like a struck match that in turn lights all the ones in the book and the box. A match that will never burn down to a cinder. "Ye are the light of the world" (Matthew 5:14) He tells His disciples. Thing is, Paul came along after Jesus, and called by Him to keep the fire going. Not that it was in any real danger of going out--just that it needed a little stoking and tending in order to conflagrate into what we have today.
Up in smoke/Down in flames
"But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. Wherefore He saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light." (Ephesians 5:13-14)
But think about the concept of light as something enabling you to see God and without it only a dim and incomplete picture will form. This is what light is intended to reveal. God speaks light into being in Genesis and then Paul takes a hold of it. According to him, those prior to Paul did not get to know what we barely and incomprehensibly grasp at presently. Namely, the fact that we are truly alive for the first time. That God is creator and in believing in and walking with and loving Jesus, we get access to all of Heaven we need. Our imaginations and perceptions and notions are overhauled. We gain access to the throne of God, cutting in line, so to speak, in front of angels, principalities and powers. Paul continues on to say "in whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of Him. (Ephesians 3:12) This, from so simple a beginning. A lit match. A tiny strike in the dark that shines and glows and burns hotter and hotter. If you don't feel it as yet, ask the Holy Spirit to touch you. And if you don't know Jesus, He's standing by for the introduction. See, it isn't enough to just collect the matches that sit idly by unlit and rotting. You truly have to love the light. And Jesus is the light of the world and guess what! He loves you.
God bless you.
