Lighting up the Dark World
As you can see, this is the name of
my blog, and it’s based off of Matthew 5:16, which says, “Let your light so
shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in
heaven.” This is my goal, as it should be all believers’ to bring glory to God
and to please him. As believers, we should be letting our light shine for Jesus
and not be hiding it. Romans 1:16 says “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of
Christ…” we cannot be truly shining our light for the LORD if we are ashamed of
the gospel.
The world is a horrible, twisted
place where evil abounds. Since Matthew 5:16 clearly states that we are to be
lighting up the darkness, I want you to imagine this: You are driving down a dark
street, where maybe a few people have dim motion-sensor lights that flicker on
when you drive by, and then, as you come around the bend, there’s a house
that’s decked-out in bright white Christmas Lights (even though it is not
Christmas). Now let me define a few of the things that I mentioned. The houses
with dim lights that only brighten when someone is looking represent what I
refer to as “Christians”.
“Christians” (please note the
quotation marks) are the ones that have the motions down, and they appear to be
pretty good believers when someone is watching, but behind closed doors,
they’re the same (if not worse) than people of the world. The next think I need
to define is the street, which signifies the path of your life. All of the
houses lining the streets are everybody you meet in your life and everyone that
is around you. The very bright house with all of the lights represents how a
Christian should look. I’m not talking about showiness, and not like a “Look at
me, I’m doing this, this, and this” mentality, but a heart that has one goal,
and that is to serve the LORD and glorify Him in all that we do.
What does it look like to be that
house shining for Christ? Well, look at Romans 1:16, which says, “I am not
ashamed of the gospel of Christ…” are you ashamed of the gospel of Christ? What
you love the most will spill over into every area of your life, whether your
talk, your actions, or your thoughts. Do you talk about God constantly or think
about Him constantly? Or is it Call of Duty, sports, movies, or your
girlfriend. Those things aren’t necessarily bad, but if that’s your main focus,
then I have a news flash for you. When it has all been said and done, your
death-to-kill ratio, or knowledge of World Series winners, or ability to quote
nine movies WILL NOT MATTER. God isn’t going to sit there and say, “Wow!
Christian you know the Phillies’ roster and statistics like the back of your
hand! Get in here!” No, He is going to say, “Do I have a relationship with
you?” If yes, you are welcomed in, and if no, He says, “I know you not, depart
from my sight.”
I truly hope that if you are a
Christian, God is the NUMBER ONE thing on your mind and in your conversations.
A couple of years ago, I was a fanatic about pretty much every sport, except
hockey. I could tell you almost every professional baseball player and their
stats, but I wasn’t reading the Bible, and I was not exactly following Matthew
5:16. This past year I’ve taken a step back and ditched my original priorities
list and started a new one. There is a three-step process to changing your
priorities and basically changing your life. Step 1- Put off the old man
(Colossians 3). Step 2- Renew your mind. Step 3- Put on the new man. Simple as
that. Pray, and ask the LORD to draw you closer to Himself, you’ll be amazed at
how much it changes you. So, let me conclude with this one phrase, “Our goal is
to be a light in this dark world, but if we are not adequately equipped for fulfilling
the task of illumination, we must renew both mind and body to be of use to the
mission before us.”
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