“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 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.” – Matthew 5:14-15
From a Christian perspective, spiritually speaking, our culture could easily be characterized as “dark.” In our society today immorality of all kinds is running rampant, wickedness is widespread, and at times what the Bible has condemned as sin is venerated.
As believers in Christ, thankfully we do not have to wonder or decipher how we are to live in this dark world. For centuries, Christians have lived in evil ages, and we today have the same command as our brothers and sisters in Christ before us. We are called by our Lord Jesus Christ to be light (Matthew 5:14-15) in the sphere in which we live and illuminate the darkness.
It is important to note that light is a force and is not passive. For example, when a light switch is flipped on the inside of a dark room the light forces the darkness out, as it is much more powerful. Never does darkness overpower light as darkness is truly passive and only fills a void where light is not present.
Consider this, light is such an overpowering force compared to darkness that the moment light is introduced in a dark room, darkness is instantly vanquished. What an encouragement, as Christians, we have a sure confidence that God’s light can never be extinguished by the darkness in our world. It is only when we as Christians are not engaged in our world is there a void for darkness to fill in our culture.
As the “light of the world,” we are the force God has specifically called to expel the darkness in our state, nation, and world. Let us be filled with great courage as we seek to influence our world for Christ and His truth as we know that whenever light is introduced darkness immediately surrenders and is vanquished.
LET US PRAY…
Father, help us to take seriously our call to be the “light of the world” and to not be passive. Lord, give us the courage to go out into our culture and to publicly take a stand for Your truth. Father, may our light never be hidden, but always on full display for the world to see so that the world may “see our good deeds and glorify You.” In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
