God is incredible. His eternal light is bright, and the sweet aroma of salvation is His endless gift of good fruit. This experience comes from the ones Christ receives from God (John 17:24).
Christ is impressive in the way He teaches God’s truths. One of His greatest messages is making a real believer the salt and light of salvation (Matthew 5:13-16).
In other words, living in the Lord’s kingdom is full of flavor and filled with eternal light. And this means we must show those around us the impact Christ has on our lives through our Christian actions.
In our study of the Sermon on the Mountain (Matthew Chapters 5-7) we come into contact with Christ’s remarkable way of sharing God’s truths. Last week the Beatitudes gave us a glimpse into the Lord’s designed plan for righteous living.
To put it another way, those truths hold us accountable to show others the way the Lord wants us to live for His purpose. This is important to realize because Christ’s next discussion is taking those internal changes and displaying them to those around us.
Since God saves a soul through His grace (Ephesians 2:8), then we need to attract others into His light. For this reason, He delivered Christ to us so we can shine above our carnal selves and radiate the sweet aroma of a saved life.
And when we live by God’s will then our lives are a bright spot to those around us. For one thing, the Holy Spirit gives us the Christian attributes needed to help others overcome adversity. It’s in Christ we find the wisdom to comfort those in distress.
Shining Christ’s Light to those around us comes with responsibility. The first thing to remember is God watches the way we treat our neighbors.
Remember we don’t choose who Christ places in our paths. It’s easy assisting others we love, but the more challenging testimony of our faith is when God asks us to shine His light on someone we want to avoid. In this case, the Lord is asking us to go beyond our personal preference and offer our selfless services. And failing to not act on God’s commandment opens the door for a hardened heart.
Living a distasteful life brought me negative results. My life full of bitterness, resentment, and jealousy. The way I conducted myself left a horrible taste in other mouths. I was vulgar and rude causing people to turn away from my ungodly behavior. This immoral way of living left me alone, afraid and at odds with God.
I’m pleased to announce to you I’m no longer bearing rotten fruit. God stepped in and pulled me out of the black hole of despair and everything changed. And for the first time, I saw His shining Light. Today even in my imperfections Christ’s never dimmed His light. I now know the fruits of salvation, and this keeps me seeking the will of God.
It’s not by accident we cross paths with other believers. Since our bond is with Christ, God attracts us through the Holy Spirit and this unity strengthen His kingdom.
As long as we keep faithful our place in God’s house is secure. It’s important to realize Christ makes sure our light is bright, and this allows us to share with others God’s everlasting reality.
Expressing love, reaching out to others and giving more than expected are the results from Christ’s light and leaves the greatest impression to those receiving it. This is even more rewarding when we show the ones we dislike the same as those we love.
The experiences of Christ’s light are many, and we have touched on a few of them. Christ provides us many opportunities to shine. God’s salt heals because it never goes flat. And when we show others, the source of our Light this pleases God because we are professing His truth.
How do you shine Christ’s light to others?
This is a great series Walter.
To shine God’s light, I try to do what God asks of me. Sometimes that means sharing an encouraging word to a stranger or helping someone in need. Other times it just means–“be kind and gracious.”
Blessings on your good work.
thanks my brother
Good to hear from you, Keith. Thanks for saying hello. GBY, your wife, family, friends, and ministry.
Hi, Deb, and thanks for stopping by. I always get encouraged bearing witness to your walk in God. I to have found the same when living in Christ’s Light. I know when I’m struggling with a problem and someone reaches out in kindness it connects me with God’s love. Jesus always knows when I need comforting. I’m grateful God has connected us Deb.
I have really enjoyed reading through your series! I really enjoyed this post as well, and was a good reminder. It’s hard to look back on the person that we left behind, but enlightening to realize the person that we have became from leaving that one behind! I absolutely love the gospel of John, from the first verse on. It’s amazing! Thanks for sharing! May God bless you!!!
Hi, there Stacy and it’s always good to hear from you. I love your faith it inspires me to strive harder. I agree with you wholeheartedly about the remarkable changes Christ makes in our lives. We are blessed to understand the way of God. GBY, Stephen, your children and friends. Until next time my friend.