Matthew (13)
This Little Light of Mine!
Matthew 5:14–16 (NLT)
14“You are the light
of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden.
15No one lights a lamp
and then puts it under a basket.
Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house.
16In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all
to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.
Jesus again uses a metaphor to tells us who and what we
are supposed to be! Last week it was salt, and salt can be painful and cleansing,
bitter and hard to swallow. So, Jesus gives the second part of our mission, the
softer side of our mission. To be the light!
Light can be used
for a lot of things!
·
It heals
·
It guides
·
It exposes
·
It warms
·
It allows us to see
o There
is no darkness
o Darkness
is simply a void of light
·
It boosts our mood
o It
can set the mood
o Bright
light gets us excited
o Low
light calms us
Dark is the opposite
·
It hides things
·
We can’t see where we are going
·
When the sun goes down it gets colder
·
It can be devastating to the mind
o Light
depravation is used in torture
·
We get scared when we can’t see
o We
avoid dark places
·
It can be harmful!
Light is a big
part of our world
·
Today we view light as a necessity of life
·
Light brings everyone hope
o When
you travel the streets a light for safety
o And
we see the lights of the city and feel safe
·
We all carry flashlights
·
And I don’t think any of us could survive
without the life giving power of light
Biblically
Light is used to symbolize God, faith or holiness
throughout scripture.
Psalm 119:105 (NLT)
105Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a
light for my path.
Psalm 119:130 (NLT)
130The teaching of your word gives light, so
even the simple can understand.
Light is used to
explain who God is
1 John 1:5–7 (NLT)
5This is the message we heard from Jesus and
now declare to you: God is light,
and there is no darkness in him at all.
6So we are lying if we say we have fellowship
with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the
truth.
7But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with
each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.
James 1:17 (ESV)
17Every good gift and every perfect gift is
from above, coming down from the Father of lights,
with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
1 Peter 2:9 (ESV)
9But you are a chosen race, a royal
priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may
proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
Revelation 21:23 (ESV)
23And the city has no need of sun or moon to
shine on it, for the glory of God gives
it light, and its lamp is the Lamb.
·
It’s no wonder why Jesus uses light to explain
what we are to be to a lost world
·
We are all created to be image bearers of God,
and if God character is light
·
We also are to be light in the hearts of man
Now to Jesus text,
and I want to break it down in to three parts
1. for there to be light it has to be lit
2. once lit, it has to be placed in the right place
3. and it has to keep shinning, to keep the dark at bay
1. And for there
to be light in has to be turned on!
14“You are the light
of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden.
·
Your light only comes from one place!
Genesis 1:2–4 (ESV)
2The earth was without form and void, and
darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over
the face of the waters.
3And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
4And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness.
·
God is the only one that can give light!
·
But he expects you to carry the light and share
it
·
So, if you have the light of God, it’s our
obligation to share it
The world is a
darkl place in need of light!
Proverbs 4:19 (NLT)
19But the way of the wicked is like total
darkness. They have no idea what they are stumbling over.
·
Sin has created darkness
o In
every person on this earth
·
The un saved are walking around in darkness
o Stumbling
around
·
What happens to you when you are stumbling
around for too long
o You
get frustrated
o You
get anxious
o You
get hurt
o You
feel lost
·
And that is what everyone living in the dark
feels like!
So it’s your Job
to share you light!
·
God has given you a wonderful gift
·
The gift of light
·
Of hope
·
Of understanding
·
Of humility
·
And it’s your job to keep it lit and stoke the
fire!
·
So others might just receive the same gift of
light that God gave you!
2. Where to you
place a light?
15No one lights a lamp
and then puts it under a basket.
Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house.
·
Where do you place a light in your house?
·
I put mine where I get the most benefit from it
·
I don’t put it in the cabinet
·
I put it where all the light shines where I need
it!
You are Gods lamp!
·
You are a lamp
·
God gave you a light
·
And God will place you where it can be best
utilized
·
How many people complain about their job
o Their
family
o Their
friends
·
Asking why me God
o Why
here
o Why
now
o Probably
because he needs your light to shine
·
Stop hiding your light!
o Be
the light God calls you to be where ever you are
o Stop
hiding your faith
o Stop
conforming to the world
·
You don’t have to say anything just shine!
3. this little
light of mine! I’m going to let it shine!
16In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all
to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.
Our light should
be:
• Reflective
o Jesus’s
light should bounce off you like a bullet off of Superman’s chest
o we
should live our lives, so Gods light is reflected to all we come in contact
with
• Seen and Recognizable
o You
light should be seen by all who knows you
o People
should know you’re a child of God
o Even
if people reject it we have to make our light visible to all
o Sometimes
like cock roaches when you shine the light people may run
o Is
there any person you know that if they found out you were a Christian would be
surprised?
It's not about
making people uncomfortable
• Jesus
did not go around beating people up
• He
showed grace
• He
showed mercy
• He
showed people there was a different way
• He
loved people and hurt for them
• He
died for us all
• Do
talk them to death! Let your light shine in your actions!
Close!
Light always wins!
Charles Spurgeon:
The darkness, though it does not understand or love the
light, is nevertheless compelled to yield to it; for the battle between light
and darkness is short and decisive. Up to the measure of the light is the
measure of its conquest. Though only a few beams should irradiate the eastern
sky, yet so far the arrows of the sun have pierced the heart of the night; and
as that light shall glow into high noon all trace of darkness must fly before
it. Beloved, if God has given light to us, he has put within us a principle
that shall go forth conquering and to conquer. Let the darkness be as dense as
that which plagued the Egyptians, yet must it yield to light. A conflict is to
be expected, but a conquest is guaranteed.[1]
·
For light to win it just has to be turned on
·
There are still dark places
·
But where you place your light it will shine
·
Jesus wants us to be salt
o To
spread the gospel
o To
preserve and disinfect
·
But he wants us to do it with the warmth and
security that light offers
·
Our actions
·
The way we live our daily lives will impact so
many if we just turn the light on
·
What you say doesn’t matter if you don’t have
the actions to go with it!
[1]
Spurgeon, C. H. (1881). The Candle. In The
Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons (Vol. 27, p. 219). London: Passmore
& Alabaster.
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