You Are The Light of the World

 

I grew up in New Jersey and lived all my life there until I moved to Texas to go to college. After I had been there for about a year, I came back to New Jersey to visit. My friends and family told me that I had begun to develop a “Texas accent”. Once I took the time to actually listen to myself speak, I had to admit that they were right.

 

We face the same situation spiritually. We will tend to become like the people we associate with. This can be a blessing if we are associated with other believers. It can be a challenge if our associates do not share our Christian beliefs and lifestyle.  It is much easier to go with the flow than to go against it. As Christians, we are called to be in the world but not of the world.  Paul states that, if we wanted to avoid associating with sinners, we would have to leave the world (1 Cor 5:10). John cautions, “Do not love the world or anything in the world…..The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever (1 Jn 2:15, 17).

 

Jesus gives us some advice and encouragement in the Sermon on the Mount, “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl…..In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (Mt 5:14-16). If the light of Christ is evident in our words and deeds, we need not worry that the darkness of the world will blot it out.