xxx. 26. _Moreover, the light of the moon, &c._
These words, doubtless, look forward to the restoration of Israel.
But there are spiritual truths implied in them, which are of present
and immediate application. We have here different _kinds_ of light;
different _degrees_ of the same light; and also the _seasons_ which
such increase of light is vouchsafed.
I. THE LIGHT OF THE MOON. It is a real light, but it is reflected
light. It does not come to us direct from the sun, but is thrown
first upon the moon, and from her it comes to us. Hence its
peculiarities. It is a dim light; it does not warm and quicken; it
does not make things grow and vegetate. It is a waning light;
sometimes it is full, but it soon begins to decline, and for a season
it is wholly withdrawn. It is a light which never makes day; even at
its fullest, it is still night; men occasionally walk and work in it,
but usually they rest and sleep.
Why do I notice these things, which are obvious to all on a moment's
reflection? Because I believe there is important Divine truth hidden
under them. All Nature is a prefiguring or shadowing forth of grace
and truth (H. E. I. 5, 6).
We have been describing the religious knowledge of not a few. It is
moonlight; it does not come to them direct from Christ, the Sun of
Righteousness, the Source of all true light; it is hearsay; they
have learned it from their fellow-men. It is not experimental, and
hence its deficiencies. It is a vague, dim knowledge; they see
nothing clearly, neither sin nor salvation, neither Christ nor
themselves, neither law nor gospel, neither grace nor glory. It is a
cold, heartless knowledge; it does not warm, quicken, stir their
affections, influence their wills. It is a waning knowledge;
sometimes they seem full of it--after a stirring sermon, or when they
are in the company of frank, lively Christians--but a short time
passes and it is all gone, as if it had never been. It never makes
them children of the day, it never arouses them from the sleep of sin
and worldliness, nor sends them forth to work for God and for
eternity.
Such is this moonlight knowledge. Still it would be something if it
led those who have it to Christ, the true Light. The people of Sychar
had the moonlight when the woman on whom the Sun had just arisen came
and cast a portion of her light upon them. But they did not rest on
this; they went out of the city and saw and heard for themselves, and
so many believed and were saved. But this is what many fail to do in
revival times. The Lord has visited His people, and refreshed and
saved them; and others speak freely of the good they have received,
sing gladly their new songs, and are for the time stirred and
affected. But it is only moonlight; they have never come to Him who
changes not; and so when the warmth and stir of the revival passes
they fall back, and perhaps become worse than before. Not a few are
still in the moonlight, and are satisfied with it. You hear about
Christ, perhaps can talk about Him, but this is not salvation
(H. E. I. 3148).
II. THE LIGHT OF THE SUN. This comes immediately from the sun, and
hence its excellence. It is a clear, bright light, and so things afar
off and near at hand are distinctly seen. It is a warm light; there
is heat in it; it thaws and chases away the winter; it makes spring
and summer; it causes all things to grow and vegetate. It is an
awakening light; it makes day, and men arise and go to their work,
and wild creatures and evil-doers retire. It is a constant light. The
sun never waxes or wanes; he is ever the same. True, there are wintry
days, dark, dreary days, but still the sun is there, shining through
the clouds, and shining them away, and soon breaking forth again in
his glory. Is this the character of your religious knowledge? [Work
out the details of the comparison.]
III. DIFFERENT DEGREES OF LIGHT. "The light of the sun shall be
sevenfold, as the light of seven days." Here there is only a change
of degree. There is no new luminary; it is still the sun, but it is
far more intense and continuous. We can conceive what would be the
effect of this in the natural world. Things now invisible from their
minuteness or indistinctly seen from their distance would then be
clearly revealed, and fruits and flowers which cannot at present be
reared in our climate would then be common and indigenous among us.
There can be a sevenfold Divine light and Divine warmth. Christ has
it to give. He will one day give it to all His people, and the weak
shall be as David, and David as the angel of the Lord. Even now He
grants it to those who seek Him with the whole heart. The patriarchs,
prophets, apostles had it. Nor are these peculiar, exceptional cases.
I believe there is more of it than we are aware of and probably there
would be more if we did not straighten and hinder the Lord by our
want of desire and expectation.
IV. THE TIMES WHEN THIS BLESSING IS VOUCHSAFED. "In the day that the
Lord bindeth up the breach of His people, and healeth the stroke of
their wound." This evidently looks forward to the time when the long
alienation between Israel and their God will be healed. But is He the
God of the Jews only? Nay, of the Gentiles also. There are two
opposite errors into which men fall on the reading of these promises.
Some see only the Jew in them; others do not see the Jew in them at
all. But there is room for both in these green pastures. Even now
there are fulfilments of this promise in its truest, highest sense.
Even now the light of the moon becomes as the light of the sun, and
the light of the sun as that of seven days. It is so, for instance,
often at conversion; it is a passing from darkness into marvellous
light. It is often so when the backslider returns. Look at David in
the 51st Psalm, what light he has got! It is so often in times of
sore affliction. Then the exceeding great and precious promises come
out into view, as darkness shows us worlds of light we never saw by
day (Ps. xciv. 12). It is so at death, when the soul leaves its cage
and soars away into heavenly light and liberty. It will be so when
the Lord comes on the resurrection morn. And once more, oh! the light
there will be when the Lamb opens the books and makes every mystery
plain! (H. E. I. 3127, 3128).--_John Milne: Gatherings from a
Ministry,_ pp. 114-122.