Shine! – Matthew 5:14-16, Part 2: Shining Jesus

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, 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, NASB).

When Jesus said to let your light shine on people, He didn’t mean His light should reflect off me. He meant that His light should be emitted from me.

I should emanate His light! I should exude His light!

Jesus meant that I should be a source of light and He is the source of power for my light. I am the light that should shine in the world, but He is the power that causes my light to shine brightly.

So, letting my light shine is not about being a reflection of the Light, it’s about being the Light! To let my light shine, I must be light, I must be the light!

But, how do I let my light shine? How do I emit His light? Jesus told us precisely in His talk with Nicodemus: “But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.” (John 3:21, NASB).

When I shine my light, I actually should shine His Light so that all I do (and say) will manifest God.

In Part 1 of this meditation, I acknowledged that my good works aren’t to show how good I am or even to show how good Jesus has made me. My good works are to show that God is good so that God can be glorified, so that God can be manifested, by my shining light.

My light should shine to put our glorious God and His redemptive love on display! My light should shine to spotlight Jesus!

Jesus doesn’t want His light to reflect off me; He wants His light to flow through me. Jesus doesn’t want me just to shine, He wants me absolutely to illuminate!

So, God wants my shining light to reveal more than that I am a good guy for Jesus. God wants my light to shine to show how good Jesus is, that Jesus is the source of my light.

And then you will see that He can be the source of light in your life, too!