Matthew 5:
14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
In John 8:12, Jesus says He is the Light of the world. So how does Jesus being the light relate to His followers also being the light. As I thought about this passage of scripture, I realize that this simply means that we are a reflection of the God who IS THE LIGHT.
If I am a reflection, one of the things that I need to do to have the best reflection of Jesus that I can is to keep my heart as clean as possible. A heart that is dirtied by sin doesn't reflect well the image and character of the Lord God. I don't produce the light, I reflect it...so, I must maintain a right relationship with the Lord. According to Psalm 24:3-5 "Who may ascend the mountain of the LORD? Who may stand in his holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god. They will receive blessing from the LORD and vindication from God their Savior". This tells us that if we are to stand in that Holy place where the light of God can properly shine forth from us and give glory to our God.
The light is not to be wasted on ourselves. God shines on us for a purpose. We are to dispel the darkness by living life in Jesus Christ openly for the whole world to see. The light that God gives us is designed to share. This is what Christ was saying when He told us to put our light on a stand so that everyone could benefit from it. The nature of light is to cause the darkness to yield what is lurking there. Many people live their lives in darkness and are deceived into thinking that this is normal and okay. When someone who walks in fellowship with the Lord, we show forth the glory of God and the inconsistencies of living life in the dark are revealed. Many people have been drawn to Jesus because of how attractive a life reflecting the nature of God can be.
What we do, who we are can be a powerful force of God...just the simple things can make others notice God is us. Just today, a friend of mine shared that he has been reading the companion book to "Courageous, Honor Begins At Home".The book is called "The Resolution for Men". He has been reading it faithfully at work and several men have asked about it and shown great interest. My friend has been able to share with them what God is doing in him and his family through the principles in the book. He is impacting others just by openly sharing what God is doing. He is a reflection of the light of God and others are seeing that light in him.
Being the light of the world is simple. Keep your life clean so you can properly reflect the light of God and let your light shine in front of others so that they have cause ask, "What's up?". All of us who are in Christ can do this...if we will...that's what I've been thinking...
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