In this episode I discuss the difference between the light of Christ/Spirit of Christ (/Spirit of God/Spirit of the Lord – yes, all synonymous) and the Holy Ghost, having recently read a little book called The Spirit of Christ by one Daniel K. Judd.
Basically the Holy Ghost is a member of the godhead, an actual personage, who has no body so that he can dwell in our hearts, which an embodied person, like God the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ, cannot do. (Nor can we, as long as we have a body, but Satan and his unembodied followers can.) The Holy Ghost reveals specific knowledge to man, in the form of words, visions, dreams, etc. It’s detailed, it’s specific, it’s stuff we may have never had any idea of before. Then the Holy Ghost reveals it to us and the knowledge is seared into our spirits in a way that’s more sure than sight, and more permanent. The Light of Christ is much more general, makes manifest to every man good from evil in every situation, and is actually the same light that lights our understandings in general, and our eyes, and is the power by which the universe was made, as I understand from the scriptures. According to Joseph F. Smith it is the spirit that strives with man to move him to do good, and which will cease to strive with him when he’s past a certain point of rejecting it, I guess. And according to one explanation at least, it’s the medium by which the Holy Ghost itself works, bringing intelligence to our minds.
Lot I don’t understand yet, but this is a start. Enjoy!
Maybe I should mention that the Holy Ghost has synonyms too – Holy Spirit, Comforter, and Spirit of truth are the ones I know for sure. I don’t know if the scriptures use the Spirit of the Lord and the Spirit of God to refer to the Holy Ghost or if that’s the Light of Christ/Spirit of Christ always. Maybe read and see what you think!