“This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine…”
Light. Another small but powerful word.
There’s an idea out there about “being light” and its one I’ve had myself. Humans are like insects and Jesus and his church are lights. If we are being true to Jesus, the true light, then all the insects will just naturally be drawn to the light. Light attracts. In other words, when functioning according to God’s will, Jesus will be attractive to the world if we can get ourselves out of the way. He is an attractive light, if we can just get them to see him as he is.
But as with the other small, powerful words in this series, “light” needs definition. Definition from my Creator because the #1 person who will lie to me … is me. I need to get my definition of being light from the objective source of truth – God’s word. Like ‘love’, the concept of ‘light’ I find requires some adjustment on my part.
I begin with John chapter 1 where John speaks of Jesus being light.
9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.
John 1:9-11
Wait…what? Why did they not receive this attractive ‘light’ of Christ? John tells us.
19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.
John 3:19-20
The reason? Because light exposes.
What Jesus teaches me, by his words and own example, is that to truly be light is to be disliked and unreceived. It does NOT attract the world at all, it in fact exposes its deeds as evil, and we all HATE that. I need to let that sink in. If anything, light repels us all as sinners, who are clearly described as loving darkness. But…there is mercy and grace available to any who want it. To tell others of their true standing as in darkness and already condemned sinners but there is free mercy and grace available is the very definition of showing the love of Christ. It is not love to affirm people in their current state of condemnation and attempting to make Christ or the church ‘attractive’. My man-pleaser side wants the latter, but I cannot find in Scripture the idea that Christ or his church is to be attractive to the world. A more correct idea of being “light to the world” is in 1 Tim 3:15 which states the church is to be the pillar and buttress of the truth. It’s the light of truth. We are to be the ‘city on a hill’ shining forth truth. Truth is the light that exposes error and darkness. It’s not popular and never will be attractive. But it is the truth that will set us free from darkness; show us we’re on the path to destruction and move us to the path to eternal joy. Then, and only then, is it attractive.
Jesus’ words in Matthew 10 and John chapter 15 are a promise to us that if we truly love and truly shine as lights as he did, we will not be liked or attractive – we will instead be hated. I need to let that oxymoron sink deeply in. Jesus promises you will be hated for showing the real, true love of God. If we take him seriously, it seems we would be measuring our being ‘light’ and loving by how much pushback we’re getting for doing so.
I look at the prayer of the early church in Acts 4:23-31. What do these believers, filled with the Holy Spirit, pray for in verses 29 and 31? They prayed they may speak the word of God with boldness. If they are speaking in the sense of today’s definition of “attractive light”, why does that take such extreme boldness? I ask myself, in today’s context, why are they praying for boldness in order to be attractive lights by showing their Christian love and meeting everyone’s needs with social ministries? That is a rather tough and revealing question. I look in Acts 2 or 3 at Peter’s sermons when he was filled with the Holy Spirit. I read what he tells the crowds and honestly ask myself this question – did the audience ‘feel loved’ when they heard this? However, was Peter shining as a light?
I must take into account that this loving, accepting Jesus as the light of the world had a huge crowd shouting for him not only to be killed, but to be slowly and cruelly tortured to death, mocking him while he endured it. “Crucify him” to the crowd actually meant “torture him to a slow and excruciating death.” Make him suffer before he dies. That was the crowd’s desire for this loving Jesus of light – who healed and fed them. I cannot and should not soften that. I must take into account that his disciples, those appointed by him to carry on his message, were also martyred. They weren’t deemed “the shining light good guys” by society at large; they were slaughtered (except John who was exiled). Let that sink in.
I must accept that the Scripture teaches that due to the universal and noetic effects of the fall, no one is or will ever be attracted to Christ or his true church. That’s a shocking sentence. There is an error today that if “we just get out of the way and just let them see Jesus, they’ll turn to him.” The idea is they will see Jesus and be drawn to Him because He is attractive; he’s a winsome “light” they will want to come see. Sounds great, but its fiction. None are or will be attracted to Jesus from our showing the love of Christ as we think of it today. We think way too highly of ourselves and don’t take seriously what the Bible says about man’s heart and sinful nature and total depravity and inherent hatred of God. We are born haters of God; we are enemies and are in no way attracted to Jesus. The more clearly we see him and his light, the more repulsed we are. We love our darkness and hate light that exposes us. Our anthropology is always too high; our theology proper too low.
This is why the salvation of anyone at all is a gracious miracle. The question is not why doesn’t God save everyone, the question is why does he save ANYONE? The only answer is to display the glory of his grace.
Light. Truth that exposes. Gives new meaning to “this little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine…” If we do, then the Bible is clearly showing us that if the world does run to the light, it is to snuff it out.
But Jesus promises that all of the affliction we endure in being light and exposing darkness is ‘light and momentary’ when compared to the eternal weight of glory that awaits those who place their faith in him.