What a Difference a Light Can Make – Let Your Light Shine!
This new chandelier is bringing bright light into my house. We are called to let our light shine – to be a light for the world around us. How can you shine brightly today?
Yesterday, we replaced the chandeliers that had hung in our living room and dining room since long before we moved into our current house 28 years ago.
We had never particularly liked them. They were more formal than we are. They might be described with words like traditional, classic, sweeping, or elegant – none of which apply to the rest of our living space with its hodge-podge of modest and mostly unmatched furnishings.
When our wonderful electrician positioned and wired the new fixtures and turned them on for the first time, our hearts soared – not just because of how they looked but because they brought so much light into the house.
Light can make a huge difference
The old chandeliers didn’t bring enough light to the table – literally.
I do most of my work at the dining room table. When I would try to read a newspaper or a document or the footnotes in my Bible, or grade papers back when I was a teacher, it was sometimes a real strain. When I was grading papers, I sometimes tried setting up a table lamp on the dining room table. Once, I even bought a floor lamp, just for use while grading papers. Nothing really worked the way a properly endowed chandelier could.
Similarly, my wife often does jigsaw puzzles on a table in the living room. One of our sons often joins her. I would often see them peering closely at a piece to try to make out details.
Now, with well-positioned, high-lumen lighting, those days are gone.
Last night, as I sat at the table, I looked up some passages in my Bible. I could read every word clearly, including the fine print of the footnotes. No longer will I need to go searching for supplemental illumination.
What a difference it makes when there is a bright light in the right place.
Let your light shine
As we basked in the light of our new fixtures, Sonia made a comment about letting our light shine. Suddenly, I saw that passage from Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount in a whole new light. Jesus says:
“You are the light of the world.... People don’t light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” (Matt. 5:14-16)
There are two keys to understanding this passage. First, people are always looking for a light that is bright enough to eliminate the darkness. Second, they need to put that light in the right place.
Because of our relationship with God, we have received his light and can shine it brightly. But we need to be in the right position for that to make a difference.
If we hide the light we have, we will not do much good. But if we allow God to put us in the right places and then fearlessly shine the light he has given to us, others will be able to receive the benefit of that light and may want to give praise to the One from whom it comes.
How does light shine in our world?
When God initiated Creation, he began by saying:
“Let there be light!” (Gen. 1:3)
How bright do you think the light was? Was it a puny candle? No, it was a Big Bang – so bright that it would have blinded you, though at frequencies that for humans are outside the visible electromagnetic spectrum. The universe then experienced a period of around 150 million years of relative darkness before erupting into light again with the formation of stars – the second moment of great light.
Billions of years later, God entered human history, taking on human nature in the person of Jesus, who said:
“I am the light of the world.” (John 8:12)
With his coming, a tiny corner of our world was bathed in light in a new way.
John writes of Jesus:
[T]hrough him was life,
and this life was the light of the human race;
the light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness has not overcome it. (John 1:4-5, NABRE)
We, the people Jesus calls “the light of the world” (Matt. 5:14), are the ones entrusted with the commission to spread his light to all the world.
The apostle Paul tells the Philippians:
[Y]ou shine as lights in the world (Phil. 2:15).
In another letter, Paul writes:
For God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to bring to light the knowledge of the glory of God on the face of [Jesus] Christ. (2 Cor. 4:6, NABRE)
Paul is saying something similar to what Jesus said. In what we say and do, we shine the light of Christ. We bring the knowledge of Jesus into the light, so that others can see Jesus.
So, from the Big Bang to the formation of stars, and onward from the appearance of Jesus to the presence of his followers in the world, the light shines.
It was not a puny light in the beginning, and it is not meant to be a dim light now. We are called to participate in shining a bright light – like the new chandelier in my dining room – to help provide so much light that are no shadows.
If you don’t feel like you have much power to shine
If you are feeling a little down, or insignificant, or powerless, remember this: Our new chandeliers didn’t shine brightly until they were properly positioned and connected to the right source of power.
Jesus isn’t asking you to manufacture light; he is inviting you to pass on his light. You’re the chandelier (the lamp); he is the electricity.
Spend time with him. Let him show you where he wants you to be. He will guide you to the right lampstand, so that you don’t stay hidden under a basket.
And then tap into his power. Jesus said to the apostles:
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you” (Acts 1:8).
You do not need to manufacture the power. The power comes from God. You just need to be open to receiving his power and be willing to shine.
How are you letting your light shine?
Where is your lampstand? What is your source of power?
The lampstand doesn’t have to be a place that is prominent in the eyes of the world. It only has to be a place where God can work through you. And that can be anywhere.
Anywhere that needs a little light – a word of truth, an act of service, a show of compassion – is a place where you can be empowered to be the light on a lampstand that gives light to the place where you are. Anywhere that needs the light of Jesus, the Holy Spirit is ready to empower you to be a light in the world. Don’t be shy about shining that light.
What can you do, what can you say, to shine a little light today? Be bold, like the chandelier over my head as I write this. Fill your world with the light of Christ:
Let your good deeds allow people to give glory to God, as they experience good things happening in their lives because of you.
Let your joyful spirit and compassionate words lift up the hearts of those around you so that they are drawn to the Light.
Let your confidence that the darkness cannot overcome the Light inspire others to have hope.
Let your way of life show the image of Jesus to others so that they are encouraged to keep their eyes on the Light and not wander off into darkness.
How can you shine some light today? Don’t be afraid to shine, and shine brightly!
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