Jesus Bids Us Shin

BY ELDER TEE SWEE PING

Matthew 5:14-16 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

Light is often used in the Bible to represent salvation, goodness, truth revealed or path of life – as in Psalm 119:105 “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” I like to imagine my coming to know Christ in this manner. When I first confessed and opened my heart some years ago to Lord Jesus Christ, I received "the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:4). The light of indwelling Christ shines through my life - His love, compassion and forgiveness – being expressed externally through my attitude, speech and deeds. The Christian in me knows the way and does not stumble in the path of life which has been lighted. As Christ has said, I will walk uprightly and produce the fruits of good deeds that will glorify our God the Father in heaven.

When talking about shining for Jesus, I am immediately reminded of the Sunday School song “Jesus bids us shine”.  The lyrics and the tune are simple and fairly easy to follow.  Below are 2 stanzas of the song: 

“Jesus bids us shine with a clear, pure light,

Like a little candle burning in the night;

In this world of darkness, we must shine,

You in your small corner, and I in mine.”

“Jesus bids us shine, then, for all around

Many kinds of darkness in this world abound -

Sin and want and sorrow; we must shine,

You in your small corner, and I in mine.”

The imperative for each of us as disciples of Jesus Christ is to be convicted, decided and courageous to bear the gospel light and the testimony of Jesus in all places He so leads us to ‘live, move and have our being’.

However, in reality we might be seeing a different picture. We often do not shine for Jesus beyond the premises of the church we go to. The reasons are multi varied. Our lives may have once sparkled, especially during the initial years of knowing Christ. The joy of the Lord may gradually become clouded by “the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life” (1 John 2:16).  Sin seeps in and dull the evidence of Christ in us – all these cause us to stray away from our 'First Love'. Or as someone has said in a more picturesque manner, the mirror in us is not being watchfully polished and therefore unable to reflect a clear picture of Jesus for others to see.

It will be good to spend some time daily, as believers in our Sovereign Lord Jesus Christ during this period of slow-down caused by Covid-19 pandemic situation, to reflect and prayerfully examine on how we have lived in the light of His Word. Our ever patient and caring Lord will shine His inner light so that we can see and recognise our carnality. Let us repent and ask God for His forgiveness and His help in renewing our heart. Although we can never be perfect, we must address the underlying cause - our sin – because it impacts our inner self and our testimony to people around us.  As fellow brethren, let us encourage and urge one another to “approach with confidence and draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help’ us to truly live and shine for our Lord Jesus, “you in your corner and I in mine”.