Sermon – David Simpson
Lanier Christian Church
February 19, 2017 Series: Revive! Sermon #5
Shine!
Matthew 5:16
In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
“Shine!” That one word says so much. It is a challenge, a command, and an inspiration to live boldly for our Lord…and it’s all wrapped up in one word. Shine! “Let your light shine…” are words from our Lord’s great Sermon on the Mount that he preached before crowds of people who had gathered to hear his masterful teaching.
“Shine.” It really has a ring to it doesn’t it? It’s hard to have a frown on your face when you say the word. Kind of reminds you of the days when your parents got you out of bed in the morning on a school day, and they said: “Rise and Shine!”
“Let your light shine…” said Jesus. (Say that with me)
Light is one of God’s greatest creations. It’s been associated with the presence of God (1 John 1:5 – “God is light; in him there is no darkness”); Light is associated with the truth of God (John 3:21 – “Whoever lives by the truth comes into the light”) and light is a description of God’s people. For instance, Ephesians 5:8 challenges us to live as “children of light.” You certainly don’t want to be known as children of darkness – that sounds like a horror movie, doesn’t it?
Before Adam and Eve were created, the Almighty brought light into being. In Genesis 1:3-4: “Let there be light; and there was light. And God saw that the light was good.” Throughout the Bible, light represents truth, grace, and the awesome activity of God, while darkness symbolizes sin, evil, and the works of Satan.
Then, Jesus comes on the scene and he literally shows us the light of God.
John 8:12 records the words of Jesus: “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
The light of life….Does that describe how you feel each day? Do you have the light of life guiding you throughout every day? Are you following the light of Jesus? If you are, then you have the light of life within you! And, if you have the light of life within you, then we must do something with that light. It should not be hidden. It should not be covered up. It should not be snuffed out. It should not be switched off.
Just preceding the “shine verse” Jesus says in Matthew 5: 14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 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. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
I want you to notice that Jesus doesn’t say that you are like light, or at some point in the future you will be light. He says, “You are the light of the world.” He also called us the salt of the earth. To bring flavor and healing and cleansing to our world. To prevent decay among the people God created.
This is what we’re called to be. Salt and Light. It’s who we are and why we live in this world. Once we are saved by the grace of God we automatically are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. The word “you” here is emphatic and in the plural. It literally means, “You, my followers, and none others, are the salt and the light.”
That simply means we are to have influence on others as a reflection of God in our lives. Others should literally see God at work in and through us! Light was made to shine and we were made to shine!
What a humbling thought that is, but it’s true. The light of Jesus shines through us. It’s how HE designed it to be. YOU are the lamp. YOU are the spotlight. YOU are the flashlight. YOU are the candle. YOU are the lighthouse.
We all know that the moon shines at night, yet it has no light of it’s own. It is simply reflecting the light of the sun. We, as Christians, not only have the light of life within. We are reflecting the light of the son – the SON – everyday!
A Peanuts cartoon showed Peppermint Patty talking to Charlie Brown in which she said, “Guess what, Chuck? The first day of school, and I got sent to the principal’s office. It was your fault, Chuck.”
Charlie Brown responds, “My fault? How could it be my fault? Why do you say everything is my fault?”
To which she declares, “You’re my friend, aren’t you, Chuck? You should have been a better influence on me.”
While Peppermint Patty was trying to pass the buck, she was also speaking some truth.
We should be a good influence on those around us. More than that, we should be a godly influence on those around us.
Jesus said: “let your light shine!” Allow God to be reflected in all you say and do, not so that others will applaud you…but so praise will be brought to God.
Many of you learned a song as a child: This little light of mine. It’s stuck with me through the years.
“This little light of mine – I’m gonna let it shine. Let it shine, Let it shine. Let it shine.”
Although we may have learned that song in our childhood, it’s truth is still valid in our adulthood. Jesus calls me to shine!
Another song you may have learned went like this: “Give me oil in my lamp, keep me burning.” (Give me gas in my ford…give me wax on my board)
Oil lamps were the light of Jesus day. We flip on a switch today, but they had small flat clay lamps with oil that burned and provided light. The oil of scripture represented the presence of God’s Holy Spirit. HE is the fuel that creates the light.
The energy, the power behind the light is God himself within us. That’s one of the reasons why you’re here today. To fuel-up. To re-charge. To get more oil so that you can shine your light effectively!
An oil lamp without fuel is just a piece of furniture. We were made by God to be more than a piece of furniture. We were not made just to look good. We were made to shine!
The most effective lights are those that dispel the darkness. The most effective lights are those what brighten a room.
The most effective lights are those that enable you to see.
The most effective lights are those that provide direction.
There’s a lot of light here today. Technically there are a lot of lumens present today – the measuring stick of how powerful the light actually is. The evidence of God’s grace and mercy and love is all around us here today at church. The more light – the more power. The more people see.
It’s like the light of a home out in the countryside. You may or may not see the light from that home, but you put hundreds and thousands of homes and businesses together and you have the lights of a city that can be easily seen.
Yes, there’s great comfort, security and peace when we are surrounded by light, but by tying together Salt AND Light, Jesus was saying to his followers: “I want you to influence and permeate and preserve those around you. I want your light and your salt to impact the world around you. I want you to pour on the love of God that influences and preserves in order that the rotting power of sin might not take over. I want you to shine the love of Christ in order that darkness may not overwhelm someone.”
Remember the song of old: “Brighten the corner where you are?” That’s our calling. Be light where you are. Be a light for Christ where you are. Bring light into darkness where you are. Whether you realize it or not, the light you shine may lead someone safely home to the Savior. You may never know it. You may never be appreciated for it. You may never be recognized as an effective light, but keep shining, because darkness flees when we shine our lights and hope is near when we shine our lights.
Remember… -Don’t shine so others can see you. Shine so that through you, others can see him. – C.S. Lewis
My parents live less than a football field length from the Baldwin County Airport. Every night, a beacon shines letting pilots know where the airport runway is located. Even in today’s world of computers and GPS systems, light is still used to guide planes and pilots to safety.
Our lives need to be the same way. There are people who need the life saving light of Jesus. If you’re not shining for Him, their lives may crash into the darkness. Never underestimate how powerful your light is. In a dark room, one match can clear out the darkness for a few seconds.
Imagine if you shine your light for Christ the impact that your light will have on others.
So, I have a searching question for you today (like I’ve had each week during our Revive theme). Are you shining your light? There are a lot of lights here today, you don’t see any darkness – but when you leave this place and go out into our dark world, your light is desperately needed!
So, shine your light!
I have a question for you here today. Is there someone following the light of Christ because of you? Has your light influenced someone else? There are a lot of lights here
today, you don’t see any darkness – but when you leave this place and go out into our dark world, your light is desperately needed. So, shine your light!
I have a question for you today. Are you suffering from power failure? Does your light need re-charging. Has your lamp run out of oil? Has your light grown dim because your power is failing? There are a lot of lights here
today, you don’t see any darkness – but when you leave this place and go out into our dark world, your light is desperately needed. So, allow the Spirit of God to re-charge your life so that you can shine your light!
Folks, look around you. We have plenty of re-charging stations available – seats I mean. We have plenty of room for people to come and be re-charged with the love and power of Christ each week. There are people living in darkness that need the light of Christ. There are people living without hope that need the hope-filled light of Christ. There are people lost and wandering that need the guiding light of Christ. There are people searching that need the clear answer of Christ to enlighten their lives.
And, YOU may be the only light they will ever see.
St. Francis of Assisi once said: “All the darkness in the world can’t extinguish the light from a single candle.”
Folks, you may be the only light in someone’s darkness. Shine your light! If Christ is shining through you, the darkness will never overcome you.
I also like what the great preacher of old, Dwight L. Moody once said: “We are told to let our light shine, and if it does, we won’t need to tell anybody it does. Lighthouses don’t fire cannons to call attention to their shining – they just shine.”
Speaking of lighthouses, a lighthouse warns of danger, but also beckons toward a safe harbor nearby. It is a welcome light in times of darkness and storms. It is not moved by the storms. Its light shines bright in the darkest night and the most threatening of storms.
Is that the kind of light you are? A life-saving light? Is the Holy Spirit the keeper of your light, so that you are always shining? Are you still shining in the fiercest of storms? Can your light be seen at great distances? Has the impact of your light been seen by others? Are you shining constantly, not just when your light is needed?
Our family goes to visit a lighthouse every year. It’s the Morris Island Lighthouse at Folly Beach, South Carolina. SL#14 The current lighthouse is now over 140 years old and has stood the test of time. It is a beautiful lighthouse and photographers and painters from all over the Southeast come to take pictures or paint the beautiful scenery.
But…one thing is important to note. The lighthouse doesn’t shine a light anymore. It hasn’t shined its light since 1962. It first succumbed to war. In 1862 the Confederate soldiers blew it up, so the Union Army could not use it for their advantage. Then one of the great battles of the Civil War took place at what was left of its base. The Battle of Ft. Wagner/Morris Island, when the 54th Massachusetts regiment, made up of 5,000 black soldiers, the first American unit to be composed of black soldiers stormed the fort and suffered a loss of 42% of its men. The union army had 1,600 casualties, compared to 200 for the Confederates. They lost the battle that day, but proved the black soldier was capable and willing to fight for a cause. A movie was made about this battle, called “Glory,” winning an academy award for Denzel Washington.
I wonder if the battle would have taken place if the lighthouse had still been there and not been torn down. The battle took place at night. Don’t you think the light would have removed any kind of advantage of a sneak attack? If the lighthouse had been operating, don’t you think lives would not have been lost so tragically, at least at that spot?
Later, after the lighthouse was rebuilt, it began to suffer due to the erosion of the beach. Artificial barriers had been placed out in the ocean to protect Charleston Harbor, but it caused a change of direction in the tidal waves, and Morris Island gradually began to disappear, so much so that the Lighthouse is now entirely surrounded by water and its light has been extinguished.
Shining your light, even if you’re a lighthouse, is not easy. You don’t just flip a switch and sit down and shine. You have to watch out. There are enemies out there who don’t like lights…the prince of darkness wants to extinguish your light.
Many of you here today have let the battles of life and battles with Satan tear down your lighthouse. The enemy has attacked and won. You don’t shine anymore. You let someone else do the shining.
Many of you have gradually suffered an erosion of your light. You have become dimmer and dimmer as the years go by, much like a flashlight with weak batteries. You have not recharged in years, and you are just a small fainting light. Some of you have allowed your light to be covered up by too much activity and things that seem more important than shining a light. You’ve hidden your light under a bushel. It’s still there. It just can’t be seen.
What kind of light are you? There is a lost and dying world needing to see your light. Will you let it shine? People want to see a sermon before they listen to one. The light doesn’t point to how good you are, but how wonderful He is. His love, forgiveness, and mercy, and grace.
Our lives should be lives that reflect something more than the world has, because we have more than they have, we have Jesus. He has saved us, forgiven us, changed our hearts, given us hope, put His love in us, given us joy, set our feet on the rock which cannot be shaken. If He does not make a difference in your life, then you either need to have your light rekindled, your batteries recharged, or you need to make a clean start.
And one other thing…lights are meant to be used in the darkness. Someone needs you to be their lighthouse…their shining light…their life saving light…the hope that points them to Jesus. You may be the only light they’ll ever see. So, shine…and never quit shining! As Jesus said: “Let your light shine!”
