The Lord God said, “Let there be light”, and there was light. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world”. The apostle John said about Jesus that He is the “true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world.” Jesus gives light to every man who comes to Him and believes in Him. It was said of John the Baptist, that he “came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe.” Jesus said to His disciples, “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” If you believe in Christ then He lives in you. And if He lives in you, His light is in you. You have a choice – either you can hide that light, or you can let it shine. You cannot alter the fact that light dwells in you. You cannot put that light out. You can only block the light by your sins and your unwillingness to let it shine. But the light doesn’t go away. Christ said, “I will never leave you or forsake you.” We forsake Him often. Like Peter, we deny we know Him. We pretend we are not Christians. I just watched a portion of the old movie “The Robe”. There was a Christian named Demetrius in the movie. At first he was noble and Christ-like. But after a while, after going through a lot of painful experiences, he seemed to get hardened, and even ended up denying Christ and acknowledging that Caesar was the only Lord. You see, we either let our light shine, or we deny the Lord. If we hide the light of Christ, then people only see us. When we let our light shine, they see good works God produces and give Him glory. By hiding the goodness and love of Christ who lives in me, I am by default seeking to honor only myself. Unless I let the light of Christ shine through me, I cannot honor the Lord. What does it mean to let our light shine? Albert Barnes said, “Let your holy life, your pure conversation, and your faithful instruction, be everywhere seen and known; always, in all societies, in all business, at home and abroad, in prosperity and adversity, let it be seen that you are real Christians.” John Gill said, “His sense is this; that the light of the Gospel, which he had communicated to them, the spiritual knowledge of the mysteries of grace, which he had favored them with, were to be openly declared, and made manifest before men. Light was not given merely for their own private use, but for the public good of mankind; and therefore, as they were placed as lights in the world, they were to hold forth, in the most open and conspicuous manner, the word of light and life.” Do you have the light in you? Do you let the light shine through you? Publicly? Openly? Conspicuously? Is there any doubt that those around you can see that light shining and know that you are a follower of Jesus Christ?
