"You are the light of the world. A city set on hill cannot be hidden, nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lamp stand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven." Matthew 5:14-16

We must allow Christ to live His holy and righteous life in us - this glorifies our heavenly Father. Jesus is the True Light which enlightens every man - He must be free to live His life in those whom He has purchased with His own blood. We are chosen vessels prepared to receive the holy dwelling of His presence through the Spirit. We must not quench the Spirit of Christ and live according to the principles of the world. We must be faithful to His Word and be honorable, truthful and trustworthy if we are to be His lights in this dark world.

In today’s Church there are so many places where Christians war against the Spirit, which is the very presence of Christ. Just recently I read a news report that Banks are foreclosing on Christian Churches and Ministries at a record pace. The last thing a Bank wants to do is foreclose because they often lose money. The reason for these foreclosures is obvious - many Churches and Ministries are not paying their debts. This is not honorable but is a disgrace. Lending institutions have found that Christians are no more trustworthy than non-Christians and in fact are worse in many cases. As a result Christianity has lost much respect as people are thinking, -"Your actions are so loud I can’t hear a word you are saying."

As a Minister who has done radio broadcasts since 1995, I can tell you that Radio stations have virtually no trust in preachers to pay their debts. They always require payment in advance and freely give the reason why - they have been left holding the "debt bag" too often. The airwaves are constantly filled with pleas for money from those who listen yet many of the same Ministers are delinquent on their debts - it should not be this way.

It seems that we live in an entitlement era where most people have come to believe that they have a "right" to have housing and food provided for them, but this is not what the Bible teaches. In fact, the Church was taught to work and eat their own food, -"Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from every brother who leads an unruly life and not according to the tradition which you received from us. . .we did not act undisciplined among you, nor did we eat anyone’s bread without paying for it, but with labor and hardship we kept working night and day. . .For even when we were with you, we used to give you this order; if anyone is not willing to work, then he is not to eat either. . .For we hear that some of you are leading an undisciplined life, doing no work at all. . .Now such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to work in quiet fashion and eat their own bread." (2 Thes.3)

 I think I can safely say that this "command" by an Apostle of Christ is rarely taught or obeyed in today’s Church. The Apostle also taught that a man who does not provide for his family is worse than an unbeliever even saying, -"he has denied the faith." (1 Tim.5:8)

To be a light is to be Christ - Christ that others can readily see in you. Let us ask ourselves, -"What do people see in me?. . .Am I allowing the true light of Christ shine forth from me as I interact with others. . .treat my family. . .work my job. . .as I shop. . .as I play sports. . .as I do business. . .as I pay my debts. . .in how I react to a wrong suffered. . .in how I respond to temptation, etc?"

Are we being good citizens, employees, employers, fathers, mothers, sons and daughters, husbands, wives, friends, etc. We must be living honorable lives for Christ to be exalted and to be His light in the darkness. We cannot be a part of the darkness. We are called to be a part of the solution, not a part of the problem. We are called to a holy calling and must live worthy of it. If others cannot respect us they will not respect Christ who dwells in us, nor the testimony of His Word.

Now for balance let us understand that what we aspire to in Christ is very high indeed but is rarely attained in our daily walk. As we examine ourselves we must painfully admit that in our behavior and actions we fall short of God’s glory every day. Paul acknowledged this himself when he said that with his mind he agreed with the Law of God but in the flesh found that he often practiced the very things he hated. However, he concluded that it was only sin present with him and that since he was in Christ there was no condemnation.

God sees us as we are in Christ - pure and blameless, without the stain of sin. But the world will notice your every sin and every failure and hold you and Christianity accountable for it. This severely limits our ability to witness for Christ, so though we glory for who we are in Christ, we must be also be conscious of how the world sees us. Do they see us as bearing the light of Christ, or do they see us as no different than those in the darkness? Do they see a person who would not lie to them? Do they see a person who can be trusted to fulfill his responsibilities? Do they see a extraordinary employee, employer, friend, etc? Do they see a person who is compassionate and who often sacrifices himself for the interests of his God and his fellow man?

Now, let us understand that we are going to make mistakes and when we do the devil will make sure that others in the world will notice. Do not let the world judge you in your failings. Do not allow those who have no real regard for truth and for what is right judge you when you fail. Always remember that you are trying to live righteously. You are aspiring to honor God and do His will when others are not. So, never allow the wicked to use the righteousness of God to judge you. They may accuse you of being no different than them, but the real difference is in your heart. You care about what is right - you want to set a good example for others - you desire to please God and walk according to His will - and God knows all of this very well.

While the Word of God will convict the hearts of the righteous, the wicked will attempt to use the Word of God to bring the righteous into condemnation. But the righteous are righteous, not because their deeds are righteous but because God has clothed them with the righteousness of His Son, -"He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." (2 Cor.5) A Christian is not righteous because he practices righteousness, he practices righteousness because he has be made righteous.

Beloved, we are called to do the Work of God and to proclaim His Gospel and His truth and it is the ministry of the Spirit which empowers us and leads us in this holy mission. We can only do this if others are willing to hear us. This is why we must be careful in our walk - no one will listen if they do not respect us. We must aspire to live as worthy of our calling as possible for the sake of the Gospel of Christ and the truth He preached.

We are called to expose sin, something we cannot do as we practice sin ourselves. I will leave you with the words of our beloved brother and Apostle Paul, -"Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them;. . .But all things become visible when they are exposed by the light, for everything that becomes visible is light. For this reason it says, ‘Awake sleeper! And arise from the dead. And Christ will shine on you.’ Therefore, be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. So then, do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is." (Ephesians 5)