There’s a very large difference between light and darkness. When you’re surrounded by darkness, even a little bit of light is a vast improvement. And THAT is a lesson we could all benefit from.
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In yesterday’s devotional we spoke about light, including the offensive and defensive aspect of a photonic barrier. (Which is essentially a wall of light.)
There was so much more that could be said yesterday, but at well over 5000 words I overshot my self-imposed daily limit by a good bit. But I did want to follow up with two more thoughts on the topic, so I confess that this is a bit of a “double-whammy” post. I’ll be deliberate about keeping it short, as a balance to yesterday’s devotional.
First, let me redirect our attention to the fact that the LORD HIMSELF is the source of our light. When we come to Him with faith in His resurrection and confessing Him as our Lord, He is the one who recreates us, cleanses us, adopts us and fills us with HIs Spirit. HE is the light we have within us. The psalmist says it this way, “The Lord is my light and my salvation.”
The point that I felt needed to be reiterated here was one that is brought up to me often. It comes in various flavors, as it were, but the core is essentially the same; an “I’m not that good” approach to being the light that Christ has called all believers to be. People say things like, “You’ve been a Christian for so long” or “I’m not a clergy person” or “I don’t know the Bible all that well.” These are lies that the enemy uses to keep you from being who you are — who you TRULY ARE — in Christ.
Letting your light shine is not a matter of grand training or ecclesiastical ordination; it is simply a matter of letting the love of Christ touch those around you who need to be touched.
Imagine you were out for a walk. If you saw a car misjudge a turn and strike a young boy, injuring him by breaking his leg, What would your reaction be? Picture the victim lying on the ground, crying in pain; confused and hurt by what has just happened. You’d immediately rush over to comfort him, doing what you could to make certain he did not cause further damage to his injury. If you had a mobile phone, you’d call for an ambulance. If he’d struck some other part of his body in the fall and was bleeding, you’d take whatever you had at hand to help control the bleeding. And you’d stay close by until further help arrived.
In short, you’d do what you could IN SPITE of any lack of medical training. No one would cross to the other side of the street and simply walk by, saying to themselves, “Well, I’m not a doctor.” You’d allow the need of the situation to overcome any other reticence on your part. You would simply be YOU, and let the care and compassion you have meet whatever needs it could in the moment.
THAT, my friends, is letting your light shine. Jesus told His disciples, “While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
In case you hadn’t noticed, Jesus Christ is not physically here walking around somewhere on the planet. His “while I am in the world” days are over.
This is where today’s verse comes in –
YOU ARE THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD
He has ascended into heaven. Physically, He is no longer here. But now HE is in US, and now it’s not HE but WE who are the light of the world.
The same psalm I quoted above actually continues with a question.
“The LORD is my light and my salvation — whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold of my life — of whom shall I be afraid?”
Since He is your light, your salvation and the stronghold of your life, you do not need to fear! God will keep your lamp burning brightly as you step into the lives of those around you who need Him. Learn “the question” (If I were going to pray something personally for you right now, what would it be?)- and use it once. Let your heart be amazed by the response. Watch how God works through you. The joy will be overwhelming. You’ll see.
Second, and briefly (I promise) — Read the bible and allow God to teach you through His word. You’ll find it to be life-changing. If you don’t know where to begin, I’d suggest the Gospel of John. Then perhaps continue with the Acts of the Apostles and afterwards the Book of Romans. (Those three books follow one after another, so it will be easy to find them.)
So, go out and be the light you were meant to be. Day by day, place by place.
Because, as a follower of Jesus, YOU ARE THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD. And ONE LIGHT really does make a difference.
