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Questions: Sermon 11 Being Light (Matthew 5:14-16)
- You are the light of the world. How can this be true of us and of Jesus at the same time?
- Again, Jesus words, “You are…” are emphatic and definitive. It is not the same as “You should or could be, or you are going to be.” Give this a real think and ask yourself what the difference is. What does it mean?
- In the Dietrich Bonhoeffer quote, he says, “it is not for disciples to decide whether they will be the salt, or the light. They have been made salt and light by the call of Christ we have already received.” It seems to indicate that a Christian follows Christ in obedience almost instinctively. What are your thoughts?
- Being light is to walk in holiness and truth in a world of darkness. What does this mean in practice?
- How is the Word of God central to being light in the world?
- How is the power of the Holy Spirit essential to being light in the world?
- How does believing the gospel daily apply to being salt and light in the world?
- I say that without a radical acceptance that the world is in darkness, we will not truly understand ourselves as children of light. Why is that?
- I claim that there really is no such thing as mere head-knowledge for we live out what we truly know and believe. Experience and knowing are close bed-fellows. How does that affect the actual life we live out in the world?
- John says in his letter that “the darkness has blinded his eyes.” (1 John 2:11) How can darkness blind? What is he getting at in talking about the nature of sin
- In my most provocative section “The Absurdity of Hiding what Cannot be Hidden,” I am reflecting on the verse “A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.” Is it absurd? And if so, why? What does that mean in our coming to Christ in the first place? In other words, it looks like the call of Christ and discipleship are hand in glove. What has made us so passive as Christians?
- I love the title of Francis Schaeffer’s book, “No Little People, No Small Places.” Think about that for a moment. What would that mean for us right now? What can we pray in light of it?
- As a way of applying this passage, I suggest the following.
- Fill your heart with Christ every day right up to the brim.
- Reflect on people’s lives with eyes of compassion
- Don’t wait for someone else to do what you can do
- Don’t serve God with what costs you nothing
- Pray to be used each day with an expecting attitude
- Shine where you are. Ask yourself the question, “what does it mean to shine (1) in your home? (2) in your church? (3) in your workplace?
Especially focusing on #6, what is the Spirit saying to me personally? Write it out, and submit it to our Lord.
“A community of servants serve every day, not just when the light is switched on.”
