Believers as Light (2) By Babatunde Olugboji
In Matthew 5:13-16 Jesus addressed His disciples as the salt of the earth and the light of the world.
Last week, we began a mini-series on believers as light, and we concluded that light is first and foremost something which is meant to be seen. The mini-series ends this week.
Jesus was pointing out that our Christianity should be perfectly visible to all, visible in the shop, at work, in the factory, in the kitchen, on the golf course, in the butcher’s place. Everywhere. It should be visible in the way we treat our employees or serve our employer, in the way we play a game or drive or park a car, in the daily language we use, in the daily literature we read. Isn’t it instructive that Jesus didn’t say, you are the light of the Church, but the light of the world, meaning that person’s Christianity should be evident to all?
SOME ESSENTIAL QUALITIES OF LIGHT:
A light is a Guide.
So, then a Christian must make the way clear to others. This means a believer must be an example. One of the things which this world needs more than anything else is people who are prepared to be spotlights of goodness. It is a believers’ duty to take the stand which the weaker brother or sister will follow, to provide the lead which those with less courage will follow. The world needs its guiding lights; there are people waiting and longing for the lead to take the stand and to do the thing which they do not dare by themselves.
A light can be a warning light.
A light is often the warning which tells us to halt when there is danger ahead. It is sometimes the believer’s duty to warn others. That is often difficult and hard to do in a way which will not do more harm than good; but one of the most poignant tragedies in life is for someone, especially a young person, to come and say to us, “I would never have been in the situation in which I now find myself, if you had only spoken in time.“
The light which can be seen, the light which warns, the light which guides, these are the lights which the Christian must be.
Jesus’ statement that the disciples must let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to the Father contains two important elements:
- Men are to see our good deeds.
In Greek there are two words for good. One is ‘agathos’ which simply defines a thing as good in quality; then there is ‘kalos’ which means that a thing is not only good, but that it is also winsome, beautiful, and attractive. The word which is used here is ‘kalos’. The good deeds of the believers must not only be good; they must also be attractive. There is a goodness which attracts and a goodness which repels. Our goodness attracts.
- Our good deeds ought to draw attention, not to ourselves, but to God.
So, the question is, are you drawing attention to God or to yourself?
Have a great week.
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