In His first big sermon, Jesus made a bold pronouncement. It defines how His ministry, His Kingdom, is going to spread like a crazy virus and cover the earth.
Jesus, in a wildly risky move, told a rag-tag bunch of desperate people who had Hope because they had been with Jesus, these prophetic words:
You Are The Light Of The World.
I would not have done that. Turn my world-changing ministry over to a bunch of messed-up people. But, I'm not God. I don't have the capacity to put the Life-Changing, Sin-Forgiving, Grace-Giving, World-Redeeming power of a Risen-From-The-Dead Son of God, Jesus Christ, into messed up people like me. Like you.
But God does have that kind of power.
Jesus is the light of the world. And He puts His light in those who follow Him. That makes His followers like Him...Light of the World.
14 “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. 15 No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father. Matthew 5:14-16
Being the Light of The World, that is an Identity, and a Job Description.
When someone puts their trust in Christ, God puts Jesus inside of us. That makes you Son, Daughter, of God. That's a game changer, and then some! Identity.
And in response to what God has done, is doing, and in anticipation of what He is going to do, we love God back. God is bringing His Grace to the world, through Jesus-Follower, who make up His Church. He's using the church to bring His Truth and Grace in Jesus to people. People matter to God, so He sends out everyone who has encountered Jesus to love people, to re-present Jesus to them. God lights up a person, in Jesus, and tells him to let that light shine so that the whole city sees it and gets into Jesus. Job Description.
Christmas is a great time to see God's gift to the world, Jesus, and respond back by loving people.
God isn't finished. So, neither are we.
theCityShouldBeDifferent
P.S. City changing stuff in the works, a path to love children and connect the city. I'm so pumped! Keep checking back and I'll fill you in very, very soon! (Just so I'm clear, this movement will be part of the Job Description category for people who follow Jesus!)