22. Sermon on the Mount Secrets - You are the light of the world - Part 1

You are the light of the world. (Matthew 5:14)

We're discussing this passage Matthew 5:14, but in John 9:5, Jesus also said, “While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” We don’t know the chronological order of these two statements, since they are recorded in two different gospels, but the implication is that once Jesus left the world, His representatives became the light of the world.

One interpretation of this scripture is that we must do good works and say good things that bring light to the world and make Jesus known to them. There is not much wrong with such an idea except that it places the focus on man, giving him the ability to determine whether the light will shine or not. 
We know that “God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5b). We must also agree that God the Holy Spirit lives in us, together with all the light that He is.

            The Greek word for light in verse 14 is “phos.” It is the root of the word “phosphorous,” an element which re-emits light it has been exposed to or intensifies light to a white brilliance as we see in fluorescent lamps. “Phos” means to shine or make manifest, especially by rays. It can mean the light emitted by a heavenly light such as that which surrounds angels when they appear on earth. It can also refer to anything emitting light: a star, fire, a lamp, or a flashlight. In other contexts, it can mean light or the brightness of a lamp.

Believers are light. We can’t choose whether or not we want to be light. We can’t be light when we are good and darkness when we are bad. Jesus said "you are the light of the world" and not "you should be the light of the world." We are the light in the same way as He was the light, and should have faith to measure up to His example (John 14:12). 

Ephesians 2:8-10 deals with our position as light. “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of —God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good  works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” We must accept that, when we are born again, we automatically become the light of the world. It is by grace that we are light. It does not come by works; otherwise we could boast about what a great light we are. As verse ten tells us, good works are pre-planned - the result of the light which the Holy Spirit emits through us. 

            Jesus uses the temples of the Holy Spirit (that's the believers) to make Himself manifest in the form of rays of light for the world to see. Sometimes people can see something shining from us, a light of sorts, as when a stranger cleans up his language in your presence. That is why He says, “You are the light of the world.” We are the vessels by which the subtle, brilliant light of God reaches the world. People sometimes see the purity of God in you. Maybe the Holy Spirit opens their eyes to see the light that we cannot.

            A man once asked evangelist Reinhart Bonnke, “Are you a Christian?” Bonnke was astonished. “How did you know?” The stranger said, “I can see Jesus in your eyes.”

Afterward, Bonnke explained that the eyes are the windows of the heart, so the Holy Spirit, being resident in you, must shine out sometimes.

The world is in darkness. Without God there is no light. “God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). Jesus said that we are the light of the world. As people see our light shining, they want to know more about it. In the process, they see our good works and end up knowing God. If we love the Lord, the works come by themselves without any effort on our part. We can’t help doing good works. This is what separates God-lovers from the world. When we think of the element, phosphor, in this context, we realize that, as phosphor absorbs and re-emits light, our emitting of light will be more evident and powerful as we absorb more light whilst spending time in God's presence and whilst responding to His commands in obedience. Religious people do good works in order to feel good about themselves, to buy their salvation, to earn acceptability, or to impress their peers. When those outside Christ see the difference, and believe me they do, they will be drawn to God. To be continued.

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