(This is day five of the Rediscovering the Christmas Season Advent Study that can be found here. You don’t have to start at the beginning. In fact, you can jump in any time or go in any order. Care to join?)
Read Matthew 4:12-17, Isaiah 9:1-3, and Matthew 5:14-16.
Drive around town and look at Christmas lights. Think about this… Why do we have Christmas lights?
How is Jesus the “light of the world”? In what way is light the perfect illustration of who God created Jesus to be? Light reveals. Light can drive away fear. Light reveals hidden things. Light makes the darkness go away. Light brings hope. (How many times have you been up all night for some reason, and sunrise seemed to make things better?) Light is what makes things grow. I’m sure there are countless other things. But you know what I just thought? White light, the kind we think of when we think of light, contains all colors. Isn’t Jesus all things to us?
Why do you think Jesus calls His followers the light of the world? How would life change if we were lights in our relationships and situations? Like Jesus, shouldn’t we do the things listed above, at least within the capabilities He has given us? If I walked as Him at all times, things would be a whole lot different in my life, I think. I’d be a lot more deliberate with my words and thoughts and actions. What would it be like to spread joy and hope wherever I went? What if I stopped criticizing and started lifting up? What if I stopped complaining and started acting? What if I stopped reacting and started responding?
How has your life been a light to those around you? That’s a hard question to answer. I always see where I could have done better, could have done more. It seems like I can never quite get it right. Maybe I never want to think I have it right, because that might be the point when I grow arrogant. Who knows? But I do know I never need to stop trying to get it right.
-JB
Dawn Lucowitz says
1. Many of these thoughts are similar to Jodie’s, but I will share them anyway. Light helps us to see (reveals). Light can draw us in. Light (like in the sunrise) brings forward a new day. Light can help take away fear (of the dark, or unknown).
2. There are several reasons we are called to be the light of the world. The biggest reason I can think of is because we are called to strive to be more like Jesus every day, and if he is light, certainly we need to do our best to be light. We need to allow the light we have in, shine through to help draw others in. I kind of think about how bugs are draw to a light source. We need to be the kind of people that others are drawn to in order to share the good news. We need to let that joy and peace God has given us shine through so that others will want to have that too.
If we were lights in our relationships with others, there would be much more truth. There would be more caring and compassion all the time. There would be much more listening and less speaking. We would be slow to become angry!
3. It is so much easier to see how others have been amazing light around me, but it is so much harder to see where I have been light for others. It is funny that Jodie has a hard time seeing the light that she shines all around her, when she has been a huge bright spot in my life. I have another amazing friend who is total light in all she does. People truly “flock” to her and are drawn to her because of all the light she shines. It comes out in so many forms, but I think it manifests the most in total, complete joy. I am working so hard on my light. I want to be an example of the faith I believe. I want to help bring others to the truths I have come to know. It is awesome how we are all suppose to be light because all of our light shines in different ways, and when you put us together we make a beautiful masterpiece!