Light of the World

Matthew 5:14-16 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 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. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

If being salt is about the transformation of the inner self more than changing those around us directly, being the light of the world is about how we interact with everyone else.  Jesus tells us how we are light and why: we do good deeds so that others will glorify God.  At the start of Matthew 6, Jesus picks this theme up again, warning, “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.”  This hypocrisy is one of the great sins that Jesus constantly rails against throughout this sermon and his ministry .  

We are the light of the world so long as we are showing God’s glory, not our own.  He is the light that we shine.  John 8:12 “When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”  This is the humility that Jesus urges us to have at the start of the sermon, the humility that should pervade our every thought, word and deed throughout all our days.

Coming on the heels of being the salt of the earth, by the power of His Holy Spirit transforming our hearts, minds and souls to love God and our neighbor, we can bring God’s love to those around us, showing them the Way, the Truth and the Life and being prepared to give an answer for the hope we have if they should ask why we are behaving so strangely (1 Peter 3:15).  Our own light is as dim as a distant star, where his is brighter than the noonday sun.