November 18: Luke 11 33-36

Key Verse: Luke 11 33
No one lights a lamp and puts it in a place where it will be hidden, or under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, so that those who come in may see the light.

Devotion:
One of the things Christ teaches us is to go out into the world and boldly tell people the gospel story; not just hide it in your heart and trust someone else will do the going part! Each of us has a duty to tell someone else about Christ and show them how much we love and rely on God in our lives – don’t leave it up to chance for others to see the difference and come to ask questions!

Here, as in other places, Jesus is telling people they should not hide the truth behind or under things because others will not find that truth by themselves; what we should be doing is placing that truth on a stand for everyone to see.

When we first allow that light to shine and place it in a prominent position, some may run and hide from that light. This is not because they fear the light, but they fear their own positions when the light begins to shine in their own lives. Why should they admit to all the wrong doings in their lives when they can continue to try and hide them – it always seems easier to hide the bad stuff and continue on in blissful ignorance! God wants us all to admit to those things in our lives so He can help us to put them behind us and move forward with real hope in His grace.

The more people see how light helps them in their lives, the more likely they are to continue wanting that light with them. The more they see the goodness in the light and want the light with them, the more God can work in their lives and fill them with the hope and peace He has promised for us all. How can any of us find things in the darkness? We would much rather have light so we can find things – the initial problem being that when the light shines, it shows up problems and issues in our living which we may not want others to know about. Trust God to take care of those issues!

Points to Ponder:
Do you allow others to know you are an active Christian?

Do you actually go out and show people the difference?