Jesus

In John 8:12 it says this, Jesus speaking, “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’”

In Jesus’ light sin is exposed and all who love darkness hide from His penetrating light for fear that their evil deeds will be exposed.  When Jesus came into the word He shed his light into everyone’s soul.  Everywhere He went people were convicted in one way or other, and the same thing still happens today, when we come into the presence of the Lord.  Many people don’t want to come to Jesus today because they hate the conviction they feel over their sins.  If you are a believer, I am sure you have noticed how you are rejected and excluded from different venues and how some people shun you when they see you.

Read what Luke says about this in Luke 6:22-23, “Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man! Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven; for so their fathers did to the prophets.”

As a believer I have talked to many people over the years and some have been downright hostile towards me and some of these same people claimed to be Christians, or at least had a church affiliation of some kind.  But, on the other hand I am sorry to say that some of this hostility was my own fault because of the way I presented the Word of God.  I have heard it said something like this that new believers can be obnoxious louts and I am afraid that I had fit that description many times.

Read what it says in John 1:1-5, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

It is one thing to be criticized for witnessing but when you bring it on yourself it is quite another.  Now read this in 1 Peter 2:19-20, “For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God.”

Jesus said this in John 8:12, “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’”

As Christians, we have the light of life.  At this time Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees in the part of the Temple called the treasury, you can find this in chapter 8 verse 20.  This is where they burned candles to symbolize the pillar of fire that led the people through the desert in the book of Exodus.  In this setting Jesus called Himself the light of the world.

Check out Matthew 5:14-16, “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

We can choose to light up the darkness in people’s lives or we can choose to allow the darkness to overshadow our light by our actions and the way we speak and what we say.  We need to reach out to people with love and not our condemnation and judgement, because our attitude will make a big difference in the lives of the people we come in contact with.  If we are just obnoxious louts then we can blame no one but ourselves if we are mistreated and shunned, but if it is the truth they reject and get hostile, we are blessed.

So let your light so shine before men that they will see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven, praise the Lord!!  Something to think about!  Have a super day and may the good Lord bless you and yours and remember to thank and praise the Lord!!