“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.”

Matthew 5:14 – 16

I grew up singing a Sunday School song, “This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine.”  We went through the motions – putting a bowl over the light and pulling it away so that the light can shine brightly. That little song stuck in my memory, and it is still there.  I had no idea what I was singing but came to know later.

First, when we are born anew by the Spirit of God by the cleansing of the Blood of Jesus then a light appears in us and wants to shine, shine, shine.  That is how the world is made aware of hope.  We find ourselves like a town built on a hill top, for all to see.  We know the light that shines is in fact the light of Jesus in us. We have no intrinsic light.  It is Jesus in us.

Then, do not let anything hinder that shining, nothing!  We live in a dark world and that world will try to dowse that light. Be careful to walk in the light of God that the light will shine in all its glory.  God is the light, our responsibility is to make sure nothing hinders the glory of that light.

Finally, our new life in Christ will result in good deeds, helping others, and so on.  Those good deeds are the direct result of the new light that burns within us, a light that never fades, but burns brightly until the day of our leaving the earth.  Doing good reminds people that we are simply doing what the Spirit of God is doing in us. All good works point to God, not to us.  We just do what Jesus does in us.

What a life!  Let us shine with the glow of God.  So all will see what God is like.