January 11, 2021 (Matthew 5:14-16 NIV)

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.

Our world is broken. We see the results of sin all around us. Our leaders and many in the media continue to glorify evil while belittling those who would follow Christ. It’s as if a spiritual darkness has taken hold of our world and we can’t do anything about it. The temptation is to seek a place to hide and avoid the fallout from that kind of society. Jesus reminds us that His light can’t be hidden.

You are the light of the world, the light of Christ given to this darkened world. You were redeemed from the darkness of sin to shine God’s light and make the world look at you. You’re not called to hide from or in the darkness; you’re called to overwhelm the darkness with the power of light – the light of Christ.

In past years, our church held a Christmas Eve candlelight service. At a certain point in the service, all the lights in the sanctuary would go out. Then, the pastor would light his candle and use that candle to light a few other candles and then, the light was passed from person to person until every candle was lit. One small light overcame the darkness of the auditorium which then glowed as each person shared their light. It was a beautiful picture of the lesson of this verse.

Lord, overcome the darkness of this world. Use me to shine Your light in a world that needs to get out of the darkness and experience Your presence. When people see Your light in me, may they glorify the God who put that light there. .