“He also said to them, “A lamp isn’t brought to be put under a basket or under a bed, is it? Isn’t it to be placed on a lampstand? For nothing is hidden except to be revealed, and nothing concealed except to be brought to light. If anyone has ears to hear, he had better listen!” And he said to them, “Take care about what you hear. The measure you use will be the measure you receive, and more will be added to you. For whoever has will be given more, but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.”
—Mark 4:21-25
Jesus is clear–believers are to let their light shine before men, fueled by His mercy and love. Our spheres are to see our good deeds and praise the Father in heaven. He who gives the power also gets the glory–the light within us is to point to the One who put it there. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus said:
“You are the light of the world. A city located on a hill cannot be hidden. People do not light a lamp and put it under a basket but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before people, so that they can see your good deeds and give honor to your Father in heaven.”
—Matthew 5:14-16
A light is meant to both shine and give direction. Light also dispels darkness. It unmasks the hidden, bringing out in the open those things that are concealed and secret. We do those around us and ourselves no favors when we hide the light of our words and deeds. In our age of tolerance we often muffle the truth in an effort to keep peace and not ruffle feathers. Often we choose not to refute with truth and mercy thinking our lack of words and actions to be Christ-like when in reality we are driven by fear or indifference or weakness or ignorance or some other wrong motivation.
We carry around in our jars of clay a precious treasure, do we allow others to see it?
“But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that the extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us.”
—2 Corinthians 4:7
“To believe in the God over us and not in the God within us – that would be a powerless and fruitless faith.” -Phillips Brooks
In the last sentence of our verses for today, Jesus is basically telling us: “Use it or lose it.” As believers, we are often guilty of sitting in a “holy huddle” feasting upon God’s truth and yet never pouring it out to the world. We must allow the Holy Spirit to make the Gospel come alive through our actions or words. We are meant to be conduits of His love and grace!
In the Parable of the Talents, makes this same point:“Someone asked, ‘Will the heathen who have never heard the Gospel be saved?’ It is more a question—Whether we—who have the Gospel and fail to give it to those who have not—can be saved.” -Charles Spurgeon
“Then the one who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Sir, I knew that you were a hard man, harvesting where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.’ But his master answered, ‘Evil and lazy slave! So you knew that I harvest where I didn’t sow and gather where I didn’t scatter? Then you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received my money back with interest! Therefore take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten. For the one who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough. But the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. And throw that worthless slave into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
—Matthew 25:24-30
Take It to Heart
Believers are to be conformed to the image of Jesus leaving the “aroma of Christ” everywhere in their wake:
“For we are a sweet aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing – ”
—2 Corinthians 2:15
We are to radiate and point others to a path of wholeness that is achieved through His power. Our influence is to be evident, like a city on a hill or a lamp upon a stand. Is your sphere of influence a different place because you bring Jesus there?