The Father of Lights

Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. - James 1:16-18


Today I was attempting to access an old online account that I had not updated in years. I knew my user name but could not figure out my password. It was probably one of those passwords that you think is really witty and that you will definitely remember... but then you forget it in a week. Anyway, after trying all of "the six passwords that unlock everything in Matt Bostrom's life," and still not getting in, I shamefully resorted to the "I forgot my password" box. I was led to a personal question prompt that read, "He is the Father of." The box next to that phrase had a blinking cursor that waited impatiently for me to figure out who "he" was and what exactly he had been fathering. I stared at the screen blankly for about 5 seconds before it clicked. He (God) is the Father of Lights! That is one of my all time favorite names of God, and ever since I joined facebook around five years ago, the Father of Lights has been listed as my first interest.

Remembering that name created an itch to dig deeper into the God who is light, and led me to many passages where God presents himself robed in light. Let us scratch the surface...

First let us look at the passage in James. Everything good that we experience, and every promised blessing, is as a beam radiating down from his throne. In him there is no shadow of change, no flicker to disrupt his perfection as it emanates to his children. The fourth question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism asks, "What is God?" The answer to this succinct and overwhelming question is, "God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth." He is eternally unchanging, Being; from which all else is derived. "[He] is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen. (1 Tim 6:15-16) Moses asked to be shown the glory of the Lord in Exodus 33, and God replied that it would destroy him. Yet God placed Moses in the cleft of a rock and covered him as his presence passed by and allowed him to glimpse the Lord's back. When Moses returned from the encounter, he had to cover his face when talking to the people, because even though he only saw a poor glimpse of the light of God's glory, his face radiated light so that the Israelites were terrified to look at him.

In the beginning God spoke light into being by the word of his command, and in the same miraculous, authoritative manner calls us into the light of his life. "For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." (2 Cor. 4:6) In the same way that God called light out of nothing, he has shown the light of his Gospel into dead hearts and given life through that knowledge of Christ. There is an illumination that takes place at our conversion, an awakening of the heart to the new life in the Spirit. And this is not of our doing, any more than light had a hand in its inception. It is the creative power of God that bursts into the soul of a dead carcass and infuses it with life. Jonathan Edwards called this, "A divine and supernatural light immediately imparted to the soul by the Spirit of God."

I remember as a kid when our church started to use the more modern version of the Apostle's Creed in church. I remember several times after we read the part, "From there he will come to judge the living and the dead." that my Dad would tell me how he wished we still used the old "From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead." He really liked the term quick in place of living. I think when I was younger I just thought he was weird and it was strange that Jesus was going to judge fast people... but now I too prefer the original quick.

In Noah Webster's 1828 dictionary the first definition of 'quick' is: "Alive; living; opposed to dead or unanimated; as quick flesh." To quicken is then the verb form, the act of making alive; to endow with life. When looking up these terms I also found that, in medical terms, "The moment of quickening refers to the initial motion of the fetus in the uterus as it is perceived or felt by the pregnant woman. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, to 'quicken' means 'to reach the stage of pregnancy at which the child shows signs of life.'"

Here are a few examples of 'quick' and 'quickening' I found when comparing the King James to the ESV:

2 Timothy 4:1
-I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: (ESV)
-I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; (KJV)

Psalm 80:18
-Then we shall not turn back from you; give us life, and we will call upon your name! (ESV)
-So will not we go back from thee: quicken us, and we will call upon thy name. (KJV)

John 5:21
-For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will. (ESV)
-For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will. (KJV)

That gives such deeper weight and meaning to Charles Wesley's hymn 'And Can It Be' when he wrote:
Long my imprisoned spirit lay,
Fast bound in sin and nature’s night;
Thine eye diffused a quickening ray—
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.

I love this imagery! When we were bound in sin and the natural darkness that made us dead to reality, God looked upon us in mercy. That gaze of the Father of Lights effectually kindled a blaze of glory that made us alive, tore through the bounds that held us, and freed and animated our affections to follow and love him! That is irresistible grace; When a heart is quickened by such light and there is but one path it can tread, and with great joy: the path that leads to the Father of such glory! This path is too straight to branch and curve to the whims of fancy, too narrow for us to haul all of our earthly baggage and not fall away. It is a path that guards and protects the broken, for it is our kingdom and rest. The path is Jesus.

The passage in James which we first looked at tells us that we were brought forth by the Father of lights by the word of truth... and the Word of Truth is the Light: Christ Jesus. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." (John 1:1-5) His coming marked the fulfillment of a promise that there is hope for the renewal of creation and a dawning of a kingdom of light. As Isaiah prophesied: "The people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned." Jesus came not only to bear the punishment for the sins of his people, but to bring the light of his Father to restore the order and peace of all things. Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (John 8:12) We have but to follow him.

As easy as that may sound, I still try to run and hide in the darkness. I am still pressed by the need to veil myself to the light. I doubt when I look away from his light and try to find my own way. But thanks be to God that his light always pursues and drives me onward, sustaining me! "But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved) (Ephesians 2:4-5 KJV) God make us alive with and through Christ, binding us to the light of Christ so that his glory becomes ours by marriage to the light. We are chosen by him, and are made sons and daughters of the Father of lights, we are lights reflecting his glory. "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven." (Matthew 5:14-16) "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light." (1 Peter 2:9) As children of light we are witnesses in the dark to the wonderful excellencies that he has in store for those who love him. As one candle touches the wick of another and so sets that one aflame, so our lives should rub up against others with the spark of the gospel.

One little candle with one little flame
Appears insignificant, a soul without name.
But one little candle burning out bright
Can pierce through the darkness and turn blindness to sight.

We are a chosen people of God, called out of darkness into hope. Just as the Son of Light came once to purchase our life, so too will he come again to collect what is his. This time it will not be as a lowly babe, but when he returns again he will come with the power and authority of the full glory of God. "And he said to the disciples, "The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. And they will say to you, 'Look, there!' or 'Look, here!' Do not go out or follow them. For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day." (Luke 17:22-24) Jesus is warning his disciples not to follow counterfeit messiahs, or be sucked into teachings that Christ has already returned in secret... Jesus is saying, "Look, you want to know what to look for when I return? I will fill the sky. Like a perpetual lightening blot that rips through a black night, so I will be in broad daylight. In my glory, all will know that I am Lord, and all will bow in awesome joy or terrible fear at the rumbling of my approach." Our hope and our promise is in his return. And in that final Glory when all wrongs will be destroyed and all will be restored in a new Heavens and Earth, he will dwell with us and be our light. "And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, and its gates will never be shut by day - and there will be no night there. (Rev. 21:22-25)

So Christian, take heart. The darkness you see now will lift, the wrongs that destroy will die in the light of His glory and grace. And even though we wait with longing for the future kingdom, we have a present hope and Guide. Unlike Moses, who had to be hidden and veiled, we have access to the Father of Lights and to the warmth of his smile in Christ. "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another." (2 Cor 3:18) We are being transformed; mostly unseen, often painfully, but all for our good. O what joy has been set before us! May we eagerly yearn as we spread the fire of the Gospel! "I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning." (Psalm 130:5-6)

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Christmas Parties and Other Thoughts

Last Thursday RUF at UF had its last official event of the semester: Christmas Party! There was a great dinner, many desserts, and a white elephant gift exchange. It was a fun night and a wonderful ending to the fall semester. It made me very thankful for what God has been doing in my life this fall, and excited to see him work in the semesters to come.

It was a good ending because I knew it was not a true ending. It would be very hard for me, at this point, to walk away from this RUF and its amazing group of students. I am very thankful that this is still a beginning, that I am going to be serving these students for another year and a half. I believe next semester will be even better than the fall: I know my way around (for the most part:), have relationships to disciple a lot of the guys, am going to be leading a Bible study for guys who are newer to the ministry, and am at a place to better reach and equip those at UF with Christ. Lord willing, he continues to bless and grow this ministry so that graduates looking back would not simply remember a few good Christmas parties, but would be able to say that Christ became the love of their lives in college. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas season, and are able to reflect on past blessings and look foreward to future graces in Christ!

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Working out Guilt

This semester in RUF large group, we had 'God at Work' moments, where a student would share how God had been working in his/her life. It was a great opportunity for the students to hear from their peers what God was teaching their friends about himself and about life. In late October I had the opportunity to share during 'God at work' (meaning that no one else volunteered at the leadership meeting, and I offered). I did not know what I would talk to the students about until the night before RUF, when I realized I could offer nothing greater in myself than the truths of the gospel. My weakness in and of myself and Christ's power to raise me to his side is all that I can ever offer to anyone. A message that is not cross centered, Christ exalting is a poor message at best. Here is what I shared:

I have struggled for the last several days with what I was going to talk to you about when I knew that I would be speaking tonight. It wasn’t until last night at Bible Study that I finally decided what I would say. Originally, I think my main goal was to dazzle you all with what God has been doing in my life and after speaking of his work, take my seat again to thunderous applause and acceptance… It’s funny, but sad that it is true. I have always been a people pleaser and struggle with wanting people to like me and think I am awesome in whatever I do. Because of this I feel that much of my life is lived struggling with performance and acceptance; looking at myself and either falling into self-righteousness and thinking I am better than others or being bogged down in guilt for my sin of not living up to the mark. For me recently I have been weighed down by guilt. I have seen how I have not been disciplined in my life, not loved God, even directly opposing him with my heart and actions. I know I could be doing better in so many ways, and have not felt worthy of my calling here as an intern with RUF.

Last night as he opened Bible study, Michael told us some of the crap that was going on in his life, and we went around and shared struggles and what was going on in our lives. The outlook as we finished sharing was fairly bleak… which led us into the study of Romans 3 and what it means to be Justified by God apart from our works. It was very good for me to hear those truths again and hash through what it means to be truly loved by God. Listen to these words from the passage in Romans 3:

“For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. But now [and as Michael pointed out this is probably the biggest ‘but’ in the Bible] the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it--- the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation [or atoning sacrifice] by his blood, to be received by faith.”

In this passage it says that we are Justified by God. Our justification is a legal standing… we are either guilty or innocent, and in Christ, God declares us not guilty… for sins past, present, and future. It is a gift that he gives, one that we could never earn. He canceled our debt and so much more than that adopted us into his family to live in intimacy with him and share in the riches of his glory. It is the greatest news imaginable, but so often I live like it isn’t true. One of the greatest powers of sin is the blinding to Truth, and I am blinded to the joy that I am fully accepted by Christ’s merit alone. So I strive to make myself worthy, but this only leads to more guilt and shame. It is only by grace that I can see that through the finished work of Christ, there is now no condemnation in my life, nothing that can tear me from my Father’s hand… even my own sin and apathy. The Christian life is not about looking good or doing the right things to make a grade. The Christian life is a relationship with the personal, infinite God of the universe and living in deeper dependence on the grace of his love.

I need to preach these truths to my heart every day. Like the Psalmist crying out, “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.” It doesn’t matter if I have the best day ever and lead everyone I talked with to Christ, or if I have a terribly unproductive day and fall into sin patterns that have gripped my heart like a vice for years… God the Father still looks on me and with the same fierce, jealous love and says, “this is my son in whom I am well pleased.” In Christ this is not some theoretical wishful thinking… It is more concrete and true than anything in all creation. And one day someday we will fully be able to see and believe that promise.

In Amazing Grace, John Newton wrote, “Twas grace that brought me safe thus far and grace will lead me home.” It is not performance that leads me home to my loving Father, but his love and grace that draws me back, pursuing me again and again when I run away from home. I pray that I and all of us in RUF will, like little children, begin to trust more fully and deeply in the sufficiency of our Loving and Gracious Father.

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O Where Has the Semester Gone!

It is December! It is finally cool enough to wear shoes and a sweater at night, and I haven't seen a lizard for a week. Time has flown by, packed with much goings on, but unfortunately my blog has been empty and sad the last few months. I shall try to give you the 100 mph overview-update of the life of RUF at UF.

In early October, the six RUFs in Florida got together for the annual Fall Conference. There were over 150 students that spent the weekend fellowshiping and growing in their knowledge of God. It was a great time to get to know people outside of the weekly routine of campus. This pic is of the group that came from UF, around 80 students!

Of course there have been many Gator football games, I have been fortunate to have gone to all but one of the home games in the Swamp. Here a hardcore group of RUFers painted, "Vandy is Gatorbait" for the Vanderbilt game.




In early November we had a worship night in the Swamp! It was cool being in the 90,000 person stadium at night singing and praying to the Lord of the universe. UF has some musical talent!





Campus Crusade had their annual Barn Dance, and there were probably about 30 RUFers that showed up. It was a fun night of line and square dancing, and amazing to see how a little twang brings out the country in people.





In mid November, RUF had a service project day, where we tore out old disgusting carpet in an elderly lady's home, and helped her clean and organize the house. I don't think the home had been cleaned in twenty years; It was gross at times but a great oportunity to be involved in mercy ministry in Gainesville.



On the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, Faith Pres. hosted a Thanksgiving dinner for the RUF students. There was plenty of amazing food, and after dinner we went around the room sharing what we were most thankful about and how God had been working in our lives.




Last friday night, RUF hosted the second 'Parent's Night Out' of the semester. Parents came and dropped off their kids and we played and kept the children entertained so the parents could have a night on the town, without having to pay for a baby sitter. Here as you can see, RUF students are having more fun coloring than the kids are!







For more pictures of the semester you can follow the photo links on the right.

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