A CHRISTIAN, A LIGHT

MATTHEW 5:1

A. "YE ARE THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD"
  1. Light is indispensable in a world filled with darkness: Isa. 60:1, 2
  2. Men walking in darkness will stumble: Isa. 59:10; John 11:9, 10
B. THE LIFE OF A CHRISTIAN IS LIKE THE WAY OF THE SUN
  1. The sun works silently:
  2. God's ways are, in most instances, silent:
    1. Elijah had to experience this truth - 1 Ki. 19:11- 13
    2. It is a test of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in our hearts - Isa. 30:15; 32:15, 16
    3. "The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace" - Ex. 14:14
    4. "Be still and know that I am God" - Ps. 46:10
  3. The sun is regular and dependable:
    1. Think of what would happen to all life on this planet, if the sun was not regular and dependable.
  4. A true Christian is dependable and regular:
    1. Enoch was - Gen. 5:22-24
    2. Daniel was - Dan. 6:10
    3. Job, too, was dependable and regular in his relationship with God - Job. 1:1-6
  5. The sun is sure:
    1. Nothing can stop it from shining.
    2. A well balanced Christian is sure and dependable. "If God be for us, who can be against us?" Rom. 8:31-39
    3. Abraham is a good example of constancy and reliability. Of him God said, "I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment." Gen. 18:19
  6. The sun is a dispenser of:
    1. Light.
    2. Heat.
    3. Energy.
  7. A true Bible Christian, too, is:
    1. A burning and shining light - EXAMPLES -
      1. John the Baptist was truly a burning and shining light - John 5:35
      2. The Philippians were a burning and shining light in a crooked and perverse world - Phil. 2:15
    2. The pathway of a Christian is as a shining light that shineth more and more unto the perfect day - Prov. 4:18
C. BLESSING OF A TRUE BIBLE CHRISTIAN
  1. They are God's agents to bring light and hope into dark hearts and lives:
    1. Paul and Silas in the home of the jailer. The lives of Paul and Silas never were more useful than when a would be suicide was saved with all his house - Acts 16:30-36
    2. That was true of Peter in the home of Cornelius - Acts 10:1-48
    3. Dorcas, too, gives us a vivid example of a true Christian who let her light shine in the most effective way - Acts 9:36-42
  2. The object of the Christian light is:
    1. That men may see their good works, and glorify God - Matt. 5:14-16
    2. They who let their light shine reveal the virtues of Bible Christianity - 1 Pet. 2:9-11
    3. There is no more effective way to make converts for Christ than by showing Christianity in our daily lives.
    4. Christians are, as Paul states it, a savor of life unto life - 2 Cor. 2:15
    5. All this adds up to the mission of the church of the living God in this world; it shows that we are to shine and shine unto the perfect day.


Design © John Bryant 2011