"Here's another way to put it: you're here to be light, bringing out the God - colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We're going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don't think I'm going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I'm putting you on a light stand. Now that I've put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand - shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven." - Matthew 5:14-16 (MSG)
When you go to see a movie and the movie is crazyyy, off the hook. You're guaranteed to go and find anyone you can, just to brag on how good the movie is and suggest they go a see it. When your friends see you cross up your opponent on the basketball court it's definitely going be something to talk about. The same goes with sharing Jesus with others, but to properly get the message across to others it must be something personal to you first. When it's personal and something you're passionate about then it makes it easier to talk about with others.
Take a Lite Brite for example. It starts out with a blank, dark canvas with a bunch of colorful pegs and a blueprint/directions on how to make different pictures with the pegs.
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| People who accept Jesus at Passion City Church in Atlanta put their lights on the Jesus Is Life Wall. A great picture of what it means to be a light in a world of darkness. |
The only way the pegs will light up is if they're connected to the canvas (world), the only way to be connected is if they go into the world. As you add more and more pegs to the canvas the image gets brighter and clearer to see. The image can be love, grace, long suffering, etc. but all of that together makes an even bigger image, which is Christ. As more pegs continue to be added the focus no longer is the small pegs but now the big picture. Although the work may be done by us, we are ultimately made to bring glory to God and let Him be seen in us by others. The only way to make the big picture seen is for us as believers to come together. Apart we can't do anything, apart we are powerless.
In all of this we ourselves need to stay connected to the source and not become dead pegs. How can we let our light shine and refrain from becoming a dead peg?
Be Imitators of Christ
Pegs that are dead have no light and when there is a dead peg within the picture, the picture can be seen yet it's distorted and unclear to those who look at it."Pattern yourselves after me [follow my example], as I imitate and follow Christ." - 1 Corinthians 11:1 (AMP)We cannot be imitators of Christ if we don't know what He likes, who He is and what His word says. In order to be prepared for a test in school we must firstt learn the material, whether by the teacher teaching it or by reading and doing the work. To know Christ, we must study Christ and our textbook is the Bible.
Don't Become a Dead Peg - Stay Connected to the Source and Light Up the World!
