Light of the World

The Light of The World

Matthew 5:14-16 KJV ¹⁴Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. ¹⁵Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. ¹⁶Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

Jesus is teaching the disciples and what a beautiful and graphic picture He paints for them, ¹⁴Ye are the light of the world. As much of a lesson for them as it is today for Christians, Jesus is describing the essential mission of the Christian to the world. Our light is to clearly shine forth into the darkness of this sinful world so that those with eyes to see can find their way to the Christ who called Himself the light of the world.

John 12:46 KJV I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.

John 8:12 KJV Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

How incredible the Master gives those who are His own the distinctive title He appropriates to Himself and rightly so for as the moon is only a luminary of the sun, the Christian can only be a luminary of the true uncreated Light of Christ who resides within Him. We have no light within ourselves but can only shine forth with His light. We who live with the Holy Spirit indwelling us, and having the same mind as Christ should function as burning and shining lights for the world to see. To be filled with the Divine light of the Son and keep it hidden is to deny the glory of the Savior and condemn those who live in darkness. To deny our relationship and responsibility as Christians, to hide the fact that we are sons and daughters of God is to deny the hundreds of thousands of lost who watch to see Christ in us so they can make a decision for Him. Not all Christians are gifted as teachers, pastors or evangelist. You may not be able to stand on a street corner and preach but each of us can live our lives even through the harshest of persecution and ridicule to let the love of Christ shine through us so as to touch other lives.

Darkness has been described as an absence of light, darkness is in reality just the absence of light. Light we can study, but not darkness. In fact we can use Newton's prism to break white light into many colors and study the various wavelengths of each color. We cannot measure darkness. A simple ray of light can break into a world of darkness and illuminate it. To know how dark a certain space is you measure the amount of light present. Jesus described Himself as the light of the world come into the world to save mankind from darkness. Since we have no light of our own we must shine forth by the Holy Spirit which indwells each believer. To suppress the Holy Spirit is like lighting a candle and covering it with a bushel basket. It is by how we live our lives that others can see there is something different about us and desire their lives to be a light. Light expels darkness which helps the lost to see. Without light the lost will wander in darkness. Light reveals that which is otherwise hid by darkness. Those whose deeds are evil hate the light and will hate those who allow their light to shine. But those whose deeds are good love the light because the light glorifies the Father in Heaven. Jesus describes believers as the "light of the world" so should all be who claim the name of Christ. Darkness is a term used by man to describe what happens when there is no light present just as evil is a term to describe what happens when God is not present. LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE!

An example we find in everyday life is that during the winter, especially in far northern areas, the lack of sunshine causes a condition in many humans that brings on depression which can even bring deadly results in some cases. Light is of a three fold nature: natural, artificial, and spiritual. The light of the sun is natural; that of a lamp artificial; that of Christ and those who believe in Him is spiritual for He is the light of the glorious Gospel, the light who brings salvation to the world. Man, who was made in the spiritual likeness of God, must have the light of Christ to lead a full and abundant life here on earth and an eternal life with God in heaven. Without light man is destined to live a life of darkness here on earth and condemned to an eternal darkness without God. So no matter what your particular gifts are it is intrinsically important that you live your life so as to be a spiritual light for all to see and thereby glorify God each day of your life.

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