Devo for 11/03/2024 service- Message by Pastor Clint Sprague
Rolling into Week 12 of the series, The Way That Leads to Life, Pastor Clint spoke on Matthew 5:14-16
“You are the light of the world. 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. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”
The illustration Pastor Clint used in demonstrating how we are not able to “Let our lights shine” unless we have been infused with light was powerful, and dare I say, enlightening. Much like the glow-in-the-dark stickers he spoke about, they cannot emit light unless they have absorbed light by being under the light. We cannot let our lights shine unless we have absorbed light from our creator.
1 John 1:7 tells us, “if we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another.” I believe this could be read as a companion verse to Proverbs 27:17, the “Iron Sharpens Iron” verse. I think we can all agree that we won’t be very effective in sharpening others if we are living in the darkness. We need to be intentional about spending time being “enlightened” by getting into the presence of God and spending time in the Word so we have “light” to give to others.
Another point that got me thinking was when Pastor Clint mentioned that the glow-in-the-dark stickers cannot glow if they are stored in a closet without a source of light. My thoughts went to this question: How many gifts (glow-in-the-dark stickers) do we have hidden away in a dark closet that God wants us to bring to the light so we can walk in those gifts? We need to get those gifts out of the closet and into the light so they can GLOW!
The last part of this week's verse reads, “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” Our good works come from gifts God has blessed us with. I believe these gifts connected to our desires and passions God has given us. This is pointed out in Phillipians 2:13:
“for it is God who is at work in you, both to desire and to work for His good pleasure.”
So I present two questions for us to ask our Father this week:
Am I taking every opportunity I can to be in the Light so I can absorb the Light?
What gifts have You given me that I have locked away in the dark?
When you get your answers, let Him show you how to make the changes needed so you can spend your life in the light, and then let that light shine in your actions so God is glorified!
Don’t forget to invite God into your day!
John 9:5
Psalm 18:28
Luke 11:34-35