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"IS YOUR LIGHT SHINING FOR JESUS?" "Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." (Matthew 5:14-16)You'll never read or listen to a better sermon than this one found in Matthew, chapters 5-7. The whole sermon takes about 15 to 20 minutes to read, and that alone should speak volumes to us. The Lord Jesus didn't pull any punches in His Sermon on the Mount, did He? Careful examination tells us here that His message was one that aimed straight for the heart. He didn't start out by telling comical stories or funny jokes, rather, He began with the Beatitudes, which blesses and builds by giving comfort and confidence to those who suffer persecution for believing right and behaving right.Now to begin with, John 8:12 clearly tells us that Jesus said He is the light of the world: "...I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." Those who are followers of Jesus are lights for God in a dark world (Philippians 2:14-15). Like a city on a hill, we will be seen by many and like a candle on a stand we are able to give light to others. Just as a candle is not hidden but is put in a place where it gives light, Christians will not hide themselves but will live and work in places where they can help people to know and trust Christ for salvation. When we hold up the pure light of the Lord Jesus before the evils of the world, the lost will hate the light which exposes their sin. They may tolerate you and me, but they will not tolerate the light of God that shows the darkness of their sin which they are in love with (John 3:19-20).Well now, no sooner do we begin reading Jesus' sermon here, we find ourselves at verse 14 and note three truths our Saviour gave us from that little statement, "Ye are the light of the world."First our Lord said, "[YE ARE] the light of the world." He didn't say, "Ye WILL or Ye SHALL become the light of the world." According to Jesus, Ye ARE the light of the world right now. We don't become the light of the world by trying in our own strength and feeble attempts. We ARE the light of the world by trusting in Him and allowing Him, Who is the Light of the world, to shine in us and through us.Next, we find in that same verse He said, "Ye are [THE LIGHT] of the world." Friends, you and I are LIGHT. Light is used to give sight. Light doesn't hide the path to Truth, it highlights it. It never conceals the way of truth; it reveals the way. As LIGHT, it's not our job to save anyone. Our job is to show everyone.Finally, we see from this verse, "Ye are the light [OF THE WORLD]." We're not the light of our own Cause or even Christianity itself. No, we're the light of the world. Our world involves our countries, our counties, and our communities where we live, and may I add, it also includes the course wherever our journeys may take us.When Paul was writing to the Church at Corinth about charity (or love) in the 13th chapter of his first epistle, he ends that chapter in verse 13 with those words, "And now abideth FAITH, HOPE, CHARITY, these three; but the greatest of these is charity." (caps mine)When I compare that verse in 1 Corinthians with Matthew 5:14, I see:By FAITH, "[YE ARE] the light of the world.By offering [HOPE] in the midst of darkness, "Ye are [THE LIGHT] of the world. Then by showing [CHARITY] (the love) of God which freely offers salvation to all, "Ye are the light [OF THE WORLD]." (caps and brackets mine)Friends, as we go about our tasks and our travels today, keep in mind what our Saviour revealed to His disciples back then and to us right now from His "Message on the Mount, "Ye are the light of the world." As followers of the Lord Jesus, let's keep shining more and more every day for Him.