In Your Light We See Light
What happens when a person is brought from darkness to light? What is the process of this transformation? In In Your Light We See Light, Paul C. Uyen presents a Reformed theology of divine illumination.
The Economy of Illumination
In the foreword by Kevin J. Vanhoozer, we are introduced to author Paul C. Uyen as a former gang member who is now a visiting professor of theology at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, Illinois. Uyen’s book serves as an academic testimony to what has happened in his life.
Uyen begins by explaining that the contrast between light and darkness is the contrast between wisdom from above and wisdom from below, as introduced in Genesis. Uyen shares how we must receive a new heart and mind in order to be in the light and to see as God sees.
Uyen presents a shift in perspective—a way of seeing all things, especially Christ, no longer according to the flesh (2 Cor. 5:16)—in a process he calls “the economy of illumination.” This refers to God imparting knowledge promised to His people in the new covenant. It involves both an initial lighting that brings us into covenant union with Christ (2 Cor. 4:6) and ongoing lighting that draws us deeper into contemplative union with Christ, from glory to glory (2 Cor. 3:18). This illumination draws us close to God and brings us into union with Him. It is a deeply personal aspect of transformation.
Communion
Next, Uyen shares insights from ante-Nicene theologians, especially Clement of Alexandria. Clement reflects on Ephesians 5:15, suggesting that baptism is illumination—because it is where we receive the Spirit, who cleanses, unveils, and enables us to participate in the light of the Son, Light from Light, for communion with the Father, the source of light.
Contrasting traditions, Uyen notes that while in Catholic theology illumination may emphasize sacramental grace, in Orthodox tradition, illumination allows us to partake in God’s energies rather than His essence. It also opens up communion between us and God. In the Reformed tradition, the economy of illumination is the process by which God awakens the elect from sin and death through the Spirit, bringing them to life and union with Christ. The Spirit and Scripture work together to give us spiritual sight.
After examining these traditions, Uyen develops this definition: “Communion with God is a new covenant fellowship with God through union with Christ, which flows from the mind and will of God in eternity and is actualized through the person and work of the Son in the history of redemption for elect sinners who receive the gospel by faith through the Holy Spirit.”
Open the Eyes of Our Hearts
Through the example of Paul, we see the Trinity at work: the Father opens the eyes of our hearts to behold the Son—the image of light—through the Spirit, the presence of light. From God’s perspective, we are granted the sight of light. It is a transformation of both mind and will.
Uyen shares how we “put on” and live out the life of light in God—how we participate in this illumination: (1) Being illumined in reading Scripture, (2) Being illumined in praying Scripture, (3) Being illumined in obeying Scripture, (4) Being illumined in partaking of Scripture via the sacraments, and (5) Being illumined in singing Scripture. In this way, Uyen concludes, illumination is not passive—but participatory.
Uyen ends with the thought that the economy of illumination will continue to open the eyes of our hearts to behold the face of God, as His love and light never end. And in the afterword, Matthew Levering shares how Christians share the light with one another — the type of Christian I want to be. This is a magnificent book, enlightening the eyes to behold the glory of Christ.
I received a media copy of In Your Light We See Light (Amazon, 5% off at Westminster Books with code DIVEINDIGDEEP) and this is my honest review. Find more of my book reviews and follow Dive In, Dig Deep on Instagram - my account dedicated to Bibles and books to see the beauty of the Bible and the role of reading in the Christian life. To read all of my book reviews and to receive all of the free eBooks I find on the web, subscribe to my free newsletter.