THE FATHER OF LIGHTS

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the FATHER of LIGHTS, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning” – James 1:17

Almighty God is: “the FATHER of LIGHTS, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning” (Jam.1:17). He is the Author of everything that is good and the Finisher of every perfect gift. He is Light, Creator and personification of all that is light. Light was the first thing He created in the very beginning of time: “God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good” (Gen.1:3-4). Light could not exist without Him. God's very first gift to the primeval earth was the good gift of light. And without light, there could be no life on the earth. God is the Source of light and every luminary – the stars, moon, and sun.

“Father of lights” infers in a broad sense that God created light and all ‘lights’ – the sun, moon, stars (Gen.1:3-5; 14-18). David affirmed: “When I consider Your heavens, the works of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained” (Psa.8:3). God says, “I – My hands – stretched out the heavens, and all their host I have commanded” (Isa.45:12b).The phrase also connotes the holy character of God – all that is pure, good, and honest. He “dwells in unapproachable light” (1Tim.6:16). Scripturally, light represents what is holy and good and darkness, what is corrupt and evil. God reflects, sustains, and dwells in righteousness, holiness, purity, and truth. He is all that is good and right; there is no sin in Him (1 Jh.1:5).

The Sun, imperfectly, speaks of the character of God (Rom.1:20). For, even at its brightest, it can only give a glimpse of His glory. Unlike the sun, our Father has “no variation or shadow due to change.” The sun has its daily deviation; rising at a different time each day, and setting at various hours in the course of the year. It is sometimes clouded or eclipsed. It also has tropic; or, turning. It turns its chariot to the South, until, at the solstice, God commands it to reverse its rein. God is immutable. He is superior to all figures or emblems. The sun shifts, mountains melt, oceans recede, the stars often wither from the vault of night; but God, and God alone, remains ever the same. He is the Immortal, Immutable, and Only-wise God!

God does not change with circumstances, like shifting shadows; and there is no iota of darkness in Him. He never changes in His power, justice, knowledge or decree. His love is unchangeable and everlasting, without variation. Therefore, we should not be deceived or allow sin to “conceive” within us (vv.12-18). Rather, we should trust in and praise Him who “brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures” (vv.16-18). That is, God's children are called to demonstrate His righteousness and imitate Him, trusting that He who sustained all His luminaries throughout all generations will sustain us through temptations and trials. We should bring forth, do, and sustain that which is very good (vv.21-27).

God is the Creator of the heavenly lights, the Father who provides light in and for us, and the Father of You and I – His shining lights (Mt.5:14-16; Phil.2:15). He is never in shadow. At times, shadows may fall on us, but He is ever light. If we turn away from Him, we go only deeper into shadow. Turning from God in order to escape tough times is as ridiculous as hiding from the sun in an effort to escape darkness. When faced with challenges, we should seek the One who can make all things new.

Praise God for the Lord Jesus Christ, the True Light (Jh.1:9). His transfigured face shone like the sun (Mt. 17:2). God the Son has revealed God the Father of lights to us (Jh.1:18). And now, it gladdens the Father’s Heart for us – the children of Light – to show forth His Glory, as we walk in the light, live as light, and shine as lights piercing the darkness of the world.