This Little Light of Mine

Hoarding the Internet

Imagine Thomas Edison keeping the lightbulb just to himself. What if Jonas Salk decided to bogart the cure for polio and not share it with the public? I don’t even want to consider the idea of Al Gore personally hoarding the internet.

Seems pretty silly, doesn’t it? You’ve got something that could change lives of people everywhere but decide to save it all for yourself. That’s exactly the kind of selfishness and absurdity Jesus says we practice whenever His followers get greedy with the grace of God.

A Light in the Darkness

In his biography of Jesus, John Mark writes the time the Lord uses the image of light shining in the darkness to illustrate the idea to His closest followers (Mk 4:21-23). The best way to understand His point is to have our Savior sing us the lyrics of that old Sunday school ditty. It goes a little something like this…

This little light of Mine, you’ve gotta let it shine!

When and Where

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. In order to understand what the Lord is about to say, we need context. That’s a fancy way of saying we need to know what’s going on.

The time is around AD 30. The place is northern Israel. More specifically near the big lake known as the Sea of Galilee. Jesus has just wrapped up speaking to a crowd so big that He had to use a boat to keep from getting crushed (Mk 4:1).

Parables 101

In order to get His point across to the audience, the radical Rabbi/Carpenter uses a teaching tool called a parable (Mk 4:2). When He’s finished talking to the big crowd, Jesus’ personal posse pulls Him aside and asks to explain His word picture of seeds and soils (Mk 4:3-10).

Christ not only connects the dots on the original illustration but gives them a quick lesson in unlocking these metaphors (Mk 4:11-20). Call it Parables 101. They will become the favorite tool in His teaching toolbox in order to shed light on the Kingdom of God.

Expecting a “No”

After illuminating His first parable, Christ goes on to tell them a second story about a lamp. He begins by asking them a question. “Would anyone light a lamp and then put it under a basket or under a bed? Of course not!” (v21).

Before we get to the parable itself, there’s something we need to see. Mark’s construction of the original Greek here actually expects you to answer “no.” He uses the little word μητι/meti, which automatically assumes an obviously negative answer.

That’s Crazy Talk!

We see it each time someone presents a premise is so ridiculous and over the top that you could never dream of it actually happening. Like if someone pitches a movie idea where a defective hot tub at a ski resort accidentally sends people back in time. Oh wait. They actually made that one. Never mind.

But when the Son of God describes scene in His story, there’s nobody listening who thinks this can ever happen. Put a lamp under basket or bed? You can just hear people respond, “That’s crazy talk! Are you out of your ever-lovin’ mind?!?”

Everyday Stuff for an Eternal Point

Once again, Jesus uses everyday stuff in order to make an eternal point. He takes household items. A lamp. A basket. A bed. A stand. These are things you’d find in the average Galilean home. He goes on to describe something you would do every evening when the sun went down.

Since we’re talking about life in the First Century, let’s make sure we know what our Savior is talking about. A “lamp” (Gr. luchnos/λυχνοσ) is a portable light source made of a burning wick soaked in oil held by a small clay pot. It’s actually something other than a candle.

No Flip of the Switch

Remember, these people are living a few thousand years before electricity. Light isn’t just one little flip of the switch away. If the sun’s not up, it’s dark. You desperately need a light source. Think back to the last time your power went out and you scrambled for candles and a flashlight.

That’s everyday life during the life of Jesus. Back in the day, your day was completely oriented around…well…the day! Before sunrise and after sunset, you would light your lamp in order to see what you’re doing or where you’re going.

How Many Pecks in a Bushel?

The next ordinary variety item is the “basket” (Gr. μοδιος/modios). The word here describes a Roman measurement of grain that equals about two gallons or eight quarts (one peck…as if anybody really knows what that is!).

This is a woven bin, bucket, or box used for carrying dry goods like grain or flour. The only time this word is used in this same illustration in other Gospels (Mt 5:15; Lk 11:33). Bible expert Alexander MacLaren believes the basket symbolizes our work life, the desire for money, power, and status. I think he’s all over it.

A First Century Recliner

Jesus also mentions a “bed” (Gr. κλινη/kline). This is any piece of furniture that allows you to recline or lie down. It literally means a recliner. But don’t make the mistake that this is your dad’s favorite La-Z-Boy for watching SportsCenter.

It could be a mattress for sleeping, a couch for relaxing, or even the piece of furniture that folks would use to lean back and eat a meal. That same Bible ninja thinks the bed symbolizes our home and where we kick back and get comfortable. Once again, I’m pretty sure he nailed it.

Well, Duh

We find the fourth household item in the answer to Jesus’ original rhetorical question. “A lamp is placed on a stand, where its light will shine” (v21). The Greek word λυχνια/luchnia is any sort of device for holding one or more oil lamps up high. It could be anything from a fancy schmancy candelabra or simply a shelf on the wall.

Remember how Christ assumes a “no” to His original question? Well the grammar of this next sentence implies an obvious “yes” response. The idea is goes a little something like this. “You would put a lamp on stand, right? Right?!?” Well, duh. Where else would you put one?!?!

Get It High and Let It Shine

Once you ignite the light, you get up high. The higher the lamp, the brighter the room. A tall stand or well-placed ledge allows one little light to have the greatest impact in driving back the darkness. Get it high. Let it shine.

Jesus’ parable about lamps, baskets, beds, and stands has a couple of meanings. And whattaya know, they’re both related to His seed scattering story. First and foremost, it’s about letting this little light of the Lord shine brightly in our lives.

How do we know? Because our Savior says something very similar in the Sermon on the Mount. By the way, some folks wonder why Jesus seems to repeat Himself so much.

Jesus’ Most Famous Sermon

Well, there’s a pretty good chance that Christ used the same illustration at several different times and places. Most great teachers and speakers don’t just say something once and look for new material.

So back in His most famous sermon, Jesus tells His hillside audience, “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father” (Mt 5:15-16).

Did you catch that? He doesn’t command His followers shine but states it as a fact. You ARE the light of the world. If we’ve placed your trust in Christ, we shine His light. We crank up the beacon of God’s goodness in our lives whenever we do good things for others.

How Bright Is My Light?

The bigger question is how well are we radiating His love, His truth, and His grace to those around us? What’s the quality of our illumination? How bright is our light? How high have we lifted His lamp?

The more I share and sacrifice, the higher I lift the light of Jesus. The more I put others’ needs ahead of my own, the brighter His light shines. And remember, the One who gets the credit isn’t us but our heavenly Dad.

Cracked Pots

That’s because it’s NOT my light but His! The only reason we are the light of the world (Mt 5:16) is because He is the Light of the World (Jn 8:12)! And Jesus absolutely LOVES shining His light through broken vessels and cracked pots like you and me.

The Apostle Paul puts it like this. “We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves” (2Cor 4:7).

A Dimmer Switch on the Divine

But too many times my life is more like a dimmer switch on the divine light of Jesus. Remember what that Bible guru said about putting the lamp in the wrong places like the basket and bed?

We shove God’s light under a basket whenever we allow our work to consume us and take priority over our relationship with the Lord. Just to be clear, I’m not talking about working on Sunday. What I am talking about is giving your profession the poll position in your life.

Work Takes No Prisoners

I know, I know. You would NEVER make that mistake. Take it from somebody has. You tell yourself it won’t happen to you. Working late shouldn’t be a problem. Picking up a shift over the weekend isn’t a big deal. Hey, who couldn’t use the overtime?

If I’m not paying attention, work has a nasty habit of weaseling everything else out of the way. It takes no prisoners. That includes my faith. Especially my faith.

Instead, I need to pull His light out from under the basket and give Jesus the top priority that only He deserves. Let His lamp shine brightly for everyone to see puts my career back in then proper order.

What’s Your Sleep Number?

On the other end of the spectrum, our Savior also mentions a bed. He’s not talking about a Serta Perfect Sleeper or giving His divine endorsement to the Sleep Number Bed.

The bed symbolizes our desire for comfort and rest. Don’t get me wrong. God wants us to get our rest. Remember, He actually commanded His people get a weekly day off after 400-plus years without one (Ex 20:8).

Me, Myself, and I

The problem comes when we only focus on our R&R at the expense of everything and everybody else. Here’s the deal. Letting the Lord’s light shine is all about sacrifice. We have to get off our Blessed Assurance to make that happen.

What do the work “basket” and comfort “bed” have in common? Three things: me, myself, and I. That’s to say they’re both the result of selfishness. Some of us are prone to worship at the altar of the workplace. Some of us kick back on a comfy couch. Too many of us can pull off this selfish double without any problem at all!

Stimulating Our Curiosity

But, remember we said Jesus’ parable has second meaning as well. The other meaning has to do with how and why He loves using these simple stories. His purpose of speaking in parables isn’t to keep God’s truth hidden. It was to sharpen our attention and stimulate our curiosity.

Christ makes that glaringly apparent when He tells them, “For everything that is hidden will eventually be brought into the open, and every secret will be brought to light” (v22). It may be out of sight now, but just you wait. What you’ll soon see will be outta sight!

Don’t Be Greedy with the Gospel

That’s because Jesus certainly isn’t being greedy with the Gospel. It’s the whole reason He’s come. Christ came from heaven in order to give. To give us overflowing life (Jn 10:10). To give His very own life.

Then just like He did we wrapping up story about seeds and soils (Mk 4:9), Jesus says once again, “Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand” (v23). It’s a mic drop moment. Hello, McFly!?!

Are You Tracking?

The Lord wants to make sure His closest followers are paying close attention. Eugene Peterson and the folks at The Message paraphrase it this way. “Are you listening to this? Really listening?” (v23 The Message). Are you tracking? Do you follow?

With that, Jesus gives us the very important reason we need to have our ears open and brains engaged. “Pay close attention to what you hear. The closer you listen, the more understanding you will be given—and you will receive even more. To those who listen to My teaching, more understanding will be give.” (v24-25).

A Spiritual Windfall

Christ tells us we get an amazing return on our investment. Whenever we apply what He tells us, we will experience a spiritual windfall! If I am truly paying attention and then applying His wisdom and guidance in my life, there’s a whole lot more where that comes from.

That happens by giving ourselves away. The Son of God doesn’t give His grace to us with the idea that it stops with us. We give and keep on giving. He calls us to be rivers of His goodness, not reservoirs of greed.

Selfish or Selfless?

On the other hand, the Lord warns us against selfishness. “But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them” (v25).

If I wrap my arms around what my Savior tells me, then there’s more of His goodness to come! But if I put a death grip on His gifts, I’ll lose what I already have. Think of it this way. Share what He gives! Otherwise you’re wasting your time. God will give it to somebody who will pass it along.

Generous Giver or Greedy Getter?

Jesus’ big idea from this little lesson about lamps, baskets and beds is all about generosity. Shine His light. Get it high. Make it bright. Pass it along.

Follow the Lord’s example. Be a generous giver, not a greedy getter. Be selfless, not selfish. Whatever He lavishes on you and me is NOT meant to be hoarded.

How dark would our lives be if Edison kept the light bulb to himself? How much suffering would there be if Salk didn’t share his discovery? What if Al Gore…well, get where I’m going. Let’s get out there and lift the lamp of God high.

This little light of Mine, you’ve got to let it shine!

©2017

Jay Jennings

When God's Light Shines

“and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel” (2Tim 1:10).

There have always been heated rivalries. The Hatfields and McCoys. Duke and Carolina. Red Sox and Yankees. Team Edward and Team Bella. But there’s one pair of rivals that goes way back. I mean WAY back. Back to Creation. Who are they? Darkness and light. You may have heard about them. There’s only one problem with their feud. It’s really not much of a rivalry at all. Light is undefeated. It wins. Every. Single. Time. Like I said, not much of a rivalry when you get down to it. Kinda like the Cubs and Cardinals. On the other hand, I guess anybody can have a bad century. But I digress.

Light has been kicking darkness’ backside since God first flipped on the switch in the beginning (Gen 1:3). Here in his second letter to Timothy, Paul tells his young protege how our Heavenly Father kicked on the most powerful light in the universe when His Son took human form. From the darkness of a Roman dungeon, the apostle writes of how our salvation “has now been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel” (v10). 

When God’s light shines, God’s light wins. Every. Single. Time.

Think we’re overstating the dazzling brilliance of what Paul says? Believe it or not, a closer look at the original language reveals that the apostle mentions light not once, not twice, but THREE times! Think of it as God flipping on three supernatural light switches. The Greek words the ESV translates as “manifested,” “appearing,” and “brought to…light” all carry the idea of shining brightly. That makes sense when you remember that Jesus Himself announced, “I am the Light of the world. Whoever follows Me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (Jn 8:12). The apostle’s point to Tim is that when Christ stepped into the spotlight of history, He made everything clear. It’s almost like we stumbled around in the dark and were feeling our way around. Suddenly, Jesus appears and God’s plan shines like the lights of Time Square. In the bright light of the Lord, the darkness of death dies. 

When God’s light shines, God’s light wins. Every. Single. Time.

Exactly what is Paul describing when he writes that “which now has been manifested” (v10)? The key is in the previous verse. So before moving forward, take a quick look in the rearview mirror. He’s talking about the overflowing grace which “He gave us in Christ Jesus before time began” (2Tim 2:9). Did you realize that God’s grace is prehistoric? That wasn’t fully clear until the radical Rabbi/Carpenter made the scene in first century Palestine.

God’s amazing grace was “manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus” (v10). Here’s the first light switch in verse 10. “Manifested” is the Greek verb phanero’o, which means to make known, reveal, make evident, cause to be seen or appear, or become visible. It comes from the root word phos, which describes something that shines or glows. Look familiar? It should. That’s where we get our words like photo, photosynthesis, and phosphorus. 

Allow God’s Word to shine a little light on this word. Paul tells his Ephesian friends, “When anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible (Gr. phanero’o)” (Eph 5:13). Late one night, Jesus tells one of the religious hot shots of the time named Nicodemus, “Whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen (Gr. phanero’o) that his works have been carried out in God” (Jn 3:21). Before our Savior gave sight to a man blind from birth, He says to His crew that God hadn’t punished the dude for any sin, but so that “the works of God might be displayed (Gr. phanero’o) in him” (Jn 9:3). In other words, just wait and see what happens when the Lord flips the light switch in this guy’s life for the very first time.

When God’s Light shines, God’s light wins. Every. Single. Time.

Paul goes on to say that God fires up His floodlight “through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus” (v10). We come to the second divine light switch. “Appearing” (Gr. epiphaneia) is from the same root word as “manifested.” This particular term describes an outward show or something becoming conspicuous. Once again, it means to shine a bright light. When the human authors of the Bible use it when talking about a visible manifestation of the divine. More specifically, they only use in the NT to describe Jesus’ physical Incarnation as the God-Man (2Tim 4:8) or His spectacular encore we call the Second Coming (2Th 2:8; 1Tim 6:14; 2Tim 4:1, 8, Titus 2:13). If you think things shined on His first appearance, it’s really gonna dazzle when our Hero returns. Our future’s so bright, we’re gonna need shades.

When God’s light shines, God’s light wins. Every. Single. Time.

The apostle wants his readers to know God has revealed Jesus to be so much more than simply an awesome self-help teacher, new age philosopher, or miraculous healer. He’s “our Savior Christ Jesus” (v10). As Savior, the Son of God has come to our rescue. After saving a local mafia boss in Jericho, the Lord announces at a dinner party in His honor how He “came to seek and to save the lost” (Lk 19:10). 

Jesus saved us because we couldn’t save ourselves. He fulfills every one of His Father’s commands we could never dream of obeying (Mt 5:17). Jesus saves us by living the perfect life we failed to live, dying the death for our sin we should have died, and rising to the new life we don’t deserve. He trades His perfection for our rebellion (2Cor 5:21). God shines His light on Jesus as the Savior who makes the greatest search and rescue mission the universe has ever seen. Think of the Second Person of the Godhead like a lighthouse in the darkness of the raging storm.

When God’s light shines, God’s light wins. Every. Single. Time.

The radical Rabbi/Carpenter is also the “Christ” (v10). You do realize that Christ isn’t Jesus’ last name. He’s NOT the son of Joseph and Mary Christ. Christ is His title. It means the Anointed One. He’s anointed BY His Father. He’s anointed WITH the Holy Spirit (Lk 3:21-22). As the Anointed One, Jesus operates with all the power and authority of the Trinity. The title Christ is the NT equivalent of the OT Messiah. This is the long promised Hero to come out of the Jewish people and come to the world’s rescue. God first introduced the idea of Messiah just after the Fall (Gen 3:15). He builds on the covenant promise to people like Abraham (Gen 12:1-3; 17:1-8) and David (2Sam 7:9-17). 

As the Messiah/Christ, Jesus is the point of the entire Bible. In other words, Scripture tells just one grand story that some folks call the Metanarrative. Christ is THE Big Hero of the THE Big Story. Not Noah. Not Joseph. Not Moses. Not David. Not Solomon. They are each broken and flawed people in desperate need of a Savior just like you and me. 

Did you know that Jesus Himself said He was the Hero of God’s Story? He tells the religious elite how the Scriptures “bear witness about Me” (Jn 5:39). He goes on to say that when Moses wrote the first five books of the OT, “He wrote of Me” (Jn 5:46). If that’s not enough, the resurrected Jesus leads two dudes from Emmaus on what may be the greatest Bible study of all time. “Beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself” (Lk 24:67). God’s Word shines the spotlight on Christ and Christ alone. 

When God’s light shines, God’s light wins. Every. Single. Time.

Jesus doesn’t just bask in the limelight. He also “abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel” (v10). Paul drops a word (Gr. katargeo) the ESV translates as “abolished.” It describes not just destruction but also a replacement by something better. One expert in the original language says it’s a nonphysical destruction by means of a superior force coming in to replace the force previously in effect, such as light destroying darkness. Did you catch that? “Such as light destroying darkness.” I see what he did there.

Just as light destroys the dark, Jesus brings “life” (v10) to destroy death. We’re talking about an exchange that’s a serious upgrade! As the folks on the Ginsu Knife commercials like to say, “And that’s not all!” This is no garden variety, run-of-the-mill, let’s-get-this-over, boring life. Christ made it totally clear that He came not only give us life but life that is lavish overflowing (Jn 10:10).

This incredible new life that Jesus brings isn’t some short-term deal either. He delivers “immortality” (v10). Once again, it’s a flashback to Christ’s midnight convo with Nicodemus. Whoever trusts in God’s Son will “not perish but have eternal life” (Jn 3:16). And Jesus brings His followers immortality, there’s no waiting. This is an eternal life that starts right here, right now!

When God’s light shines, God’s light wins. Every. Single. Time.

We flip on the third switch of verse 10 here when Jesus “brought…to light” these blessings life and immortality. Paul uses another light word: photizo. It means to shine, enlighten, light up, or cause to fully understand by illumination. Jesus’ best buddy John says Christ is “the true light, which gives light (Gr. photizo) to everyone” (Jn 1:9). John also describes how when God eventually brings heaven to earth, “the glory of God gives it light (Gr. photizo)” (Rev 21:23). Once Jesus returns, we obviously won’t have to worry about which light bulbs to buy. 

When God’s light shines, God’s light wins. Every. Single. Time.

With all of the lights on, we can now see everything clearly and plainly. It all makes sense. Through Jesus, light wins and darkness loses. Through Jesus, life wins and death loses. In case you had any doubt, Paul lets us know it all went down “through the Gospel” (v10). “Gospel” is a word (Gr. euaggelion) that literally describes good news or a great message. It’s like finding out the best possible info via a push alert on your phone or a bulletin on TV. This just in! Jesus punches the lights out of sin and death for you and me and so we can spend eternity with Him. This is REALLY Good News! 

When God’s light shines, God’s light wins. Every. Single. Time.

Three supernatural light switches. As Paul flicks each one here in verse 10, the light of God defeats death and darkness each and every time. Click. Click. Click. That certainly makes sense. Sin loves the shadows. It hides in the darkness like the monster under your bed. It suddenly loses it’s power when the room fills with light. That’s VERY Good News! Check out the paraphrase in The Message. “But we know it now. Since the appearance of our Savior, nothing could be plainer: death defeated, life vindicated in a steady blaze of light, all through the work of Jesus” (v10 The Message). 

Let God's light shine in you. Let God's light shine through you. Let Jesus' work on your behalf be obvious to those around you. There's a great song you may have sung as a kid that goes like this. "This little Light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine." Great idea but there's just one little problem. It's not a little light. It's God's great big light. The Apostle Peter tells us that God made us His own so that we "may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light" (1Pet 2:19). Don't hide your light or turn down the dimmer (Mt 5:15). Let it shine. Let it shine. Let it shine.

When God’s light shines, God’s light wins. Every. Single. Time.

Turning Enemies into Friends

“though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief” (1Tim 1:13)

I need you to use your imagination for a moment. And I need you to crank it up to 11. Picture the number one enemy of the Christian faith suddenly switching sides and becoming a spokesperson for the Son of God. Try to wrap your brain around the idea of an enemy like Osama bin Laden unexpectedly spreading the love of Jesus across the planet instead of trying to wipe His followers from the face of the earth. Hard to imagine, right?

That’s EXACTLY the kind of guy that Jesus chose not only use to spread His Gospel throughout the Roman Empire but write most of the New Testament. In a letter to Timothy, Paul reflects on his wrap sheet. “Though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief” (v13). The apostle knows without a doubt he didn’t make a mistake. He realizes he wasn’t simply misguided. He didn’t just say “my bad.” He was a rebel with a cause against Christ. Despite all of that, Jesus overwhelmed His enemy in His amazing mercy. What a great reminder that our Savior loves to qualify the disqualified. That means me. That means you.

It’s easy to loose sight of Paul’s background when we see him at this point in his life. He’s Christ’s handpicked apostle to non-Jews everywhere. When he’s not in jail for upsetting local authorities with the Gospel, he’s always on the road telling everyone who will listen that the resurrected Jesus is the Hero sent straight from heaven to save the world. But before he was Paul, he was Saul. Before he was an apostle, he was an assassin. Before he was a missionary, he was a murderer. Before he was Jesus’ biggest proponent, he was Jesus’ biggest opponent. It’s a great reminder of the turnarounds our Savior loves to pull. He’s not looking to make good people better. The Son of God didn’t just water in to wine. You've heard of frenemies. Jesus loves turning His enemies into His friends.

Paul has nothing to hide from his spiritual son. He’s left Tim in Ephesus to pastor the growing megachurch there while he heads off the Macedonia (1Tim 1:3). The apostle gives his protege specific instructions to shut down a team of false teachers who are stirring up trouble (1Tim 1:3-7). The man from Tarsus knows all about what it means to be against the Gospel. He devoted himself to that cause for years. At the time, he sincerely believed he was doing the right thing. He was sincerely wrong. What did it get him? The realization that he was “blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent” (v13) of God. Just in case you were wondering, God beats His enemies. Every. Single. Time. The Generals have a better chance against the Globetrotters.

The apostle readily admits that he once was a “blasphemer (Gr. blasphemos)” (v13). This is a person who defames another in general and someone who speaks against God more specifically. But this is the idea of someone who openly insults another. A slanderer who trashes your reputation. In today’s culture, we call it hate speech. It’s literally someone who hurts another with their words. Now you can’t really injure Almighty God with what you say. The truth is the only person you’re really hurting is yourself. 

Paul also transparently tells Tim that he was a “persecutor” (v13) in the past. He uses a Greek term (Gr. dioktes) that paints portrait of a person preoccupied with causing others to pain (say THAT three times fast!). It comes from a verb that means to chase swiftly or hunt down. The book of Acts doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to Paul’s relentless pursuit of Jesus’ followers. He led house-to-house raids (Acts 8:3; 9:1). He mercilessly tortured many right in the synagogue (Acts 26:11). He had martyrs’ blood on his hands as well (Acts 22:4; 26:10). Paul comes clean to the Galatians about how he “persecuted the church God violently” (Gal 1:13). The apostle doesn’t shy away from his days as a Christian hunter.

If that doesn’t make your skin crawl, the apostle formerly known as Saul lays his cards on the table as a former “insolent opponent” (v13). This describes someone who is a violent aggressor. But it’s even worse than that. There’s arrogance and superiority involved. It’s someone with a superior attitude who mistreats others out of their own rebellion against God’s truth. Think hate groups like the KKK who intentionally look down on their enemies and do what they can to wipe them off the map. Before Jesus saved him, Paul saw little to no value in anyone below him in the religious pecking order. 

Oh, how times and hearts have changed. The jaw-dropping turnaround started a few years back when this Hebrew up-and-comer was on one of his patented search-and-destroy missions to Damascus. That’s when the resurrected Christ made it clear to Saul that when he persecutes His church, he persecutes Jesus personally (Acts 9:4-5; 22:7-8; 26:14-15). Once God shined his holy light of truth on Paul’s life, he saw his sin for what it really was. He saw himself for who he really was.

That was the very moment when Paul “obtained mercy” (v13) from His Savior. He uses a verb (Gr. ele’eo) that is less about a judicial ruling in his favor but receiving compassion or pity. Over and over, it’s what people tossed aside by society would plead Christ for. Two visually impaired men chased after Jesus and shouted, “Have mercy (Gr. ele’eo) on us, Son of David” (Mt 9:27). You and I would probably put this torturer and terrorist at the top of the most wanted list, NOT God’s mercy list. But in a letter to the Roman church, Paul reminds believers of what God said to Moses. “I will have mercy on (Gr. ele’eo) whom I have mercy (Gr. ele’eo)…So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy (Gr. ele’eo)” (Rom 9:15, 16). We need to remember that God showers His compassion on those He chooses. We don’t earn it. We can’t earn it. Our man Paul knows that better than most.

Saul/Paul quite simply did not understand who Jesus was and what He had done, or in his words, “because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief” (v13). As a member of the Pharisees, he believed it was up to him to save himself by building up a religious resume so impressive that God had to accept him (Phil 3:4-7). His admission of ignorance is not an excuse or an attempt to rationalize all he had done. Until Jesus blindsided him on the highway outside Damascus, this rising Jewish rock star was defending his religion against these whacky radicals. 

Like so many people around the world today, he mistakenly believed HE was on a mission from God. He was convinced this movement called the Way was clearly headed the wrong way. But the confrontation with Christ flipped on the light switch. Paul then realized that the only thing that matters is a personal relationship with Jesus and everything else was nothing more than a big steaming pile (Phil 3:7-9).

So what can we take from these words written from a mentor to his protege more than 2,000 years ago? What can we learn from this verse? Don’t miss the fact that Paul confessed. Throughout the New Testament, we see that he confessed early and often. Once Jesus shines His holy light on his life, the apostle understood exactly who he was and what he had done. Then he said it out loud. His sin was all out in the open.    

Confession brings our sin out from hiding. Funny thing. What seems so scary and mean in the dark becomes kinda wimpy when we drag it into the light. Horror movies are so horrible in the daytime. When we keep our sin secret, we carry it alone. Jesus’ little brother James knew the importance of confessing our sins to our closest spiritual brothers and sisters (James 5:16). Find a trusted crew of believers and open up. Reveal your mess. Disclose your dirt. Divulge your darkness. Stop carrying your secret crap all alone. Owning up to our sin also puts the focus on Jesus and His goodness…as it should be. In case you forgot, it’s not about you. Don’t impress. Confess. It’s what happens when Jesus turns us from one of His enemies into a friend.

Storm Surge and Shooting Stars

“Wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever” (v13).

So what in the wide world of sports do big surf, shooting stars and being afraid of the dark have in common. Well, Jude is so very glad you asked. The first two are descriptions of a crew of false teachers who have infiltrated local churches. The last is their eventual destination thanks to his big Brother. They destroy like the relentless and violent storm surge of a hurricane. They flame out like a shooting star with no lasting impact. But in the end, Jesus has a special place in hell reserved for them. And, unlike Tom Bodett, He will NOT leave the light on for them.

These spiritual snake oil salesmen are such bad news to the Good News that Jude has compared them to several infamous bad guys in the Old Testament. He goes old school because their sin is old school. He equates them to the rebellious Israelites (Num 14:22-23, 29-30, 35,37; Jude 5), the renegade angels (Gen 6:1-5; Ezek 28:14-17; Jude 6), and the Twin Sin Cities of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen 18:20-33; 19:1-14, 23-28; Jude 7). But wait, there’s more. Sexual sin, authority rejected, and dignitaries dissed (Jude 8). They don’t know when to shut up (Jude10). Jude flips back into the OT one more time for terrible triple play. In verse 11, he says they’re just like Cain, the first killer (Gen 4:1-15), Balaam, the profitable prophet (Num 22-25), and Korah, the rebel leader (Num 16). You see, their sin is of biblical proportions.

Jude doesn’t stop there. He uses a maritime image by calling these con artists “wild waves of the sea” (v13). They aren’t gently lapping ripples you hear when you’re snoozing in your beach chair. The original Geek text here describes a savage, violent storm surge. This is the fury of the sea unleashed. Have you ever witness the unrelenting fury of a hurricane? It’s absolutely terrifying. The brutal winds drive the surf over the dunes. Wicked waves hammer everything in their path. The false teachers hit town with huge promises of of how their message builds up. In the end, all they door is destroy. Jesus’ little brother isn’t the first one to draw this comparison. About 700 years before, the prophet Isaiah wrote, “But the wicked are like the tossing sea; for it cannot be quiet, and its waters toss up mire and dirt” (Is 57:20). The surf is definitely up. But the good news is that Christ can calm any storm.

Look up from the stormy sea to the night sky. These hucksters are just like “wandering stars” (v13). Sounds kind of romantic, doesn’t it? Well, take a closer look. The false teachers are shooting stars. They’re meteors that light up the sky and then disappear. They’re like fireworks exploding which only flame out. You know the kind of people he’s talking about. They ignite put on a dazzling show for a moment but fizzle out with no positive and lasting impact. There for a moment. Gone forever. Like a falling star. This is in huge contrast to Jesus who is the Light of the World (Jn 8:12; 9:5). He never goes out. As a matter of fact, our Savior will personally be the source of light in the New Jerusalem. “And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb” (Rev 21:23). Jesus never flames out.

Jude lets us know that after these false teachers burn up on reentry, they’re eventually headed for hell. “For whom the gloom of darkness has been reserved forever” (v13). Maybe eternal torment and damnation isn’t what he’s talking about. Maybe our buddy Jude is just turning out the lights on them. First of all, there’s the “gloom.” This is the Greek word zophos. It means thick darkness, blackness, and a condition of darkness with feelings of despair and foreboding. Then we read “darkness” (Gr. skotos). It also means the absence of light. Paul used it when writing of the utter blanket of absolute darkness before God created light (2Cor 4:6). The phrase “the gloom of darkness” literally means “the utter blackness of complete darkness.” Jude’s trying to describe the fearful darkness of eternal, conscious punishment. I’m not sure if these con artists are afraid of the dark. But they should be. They will be. Hell is hot. Forever is a long time. It’s also very, very dark.

Don’t worry. Jesus will handle these shysters. He’ll calm the storm. He’ll provide eternal light. And he’ll flip off the switch on the false teachers. Forever.

Exposing Blind Spots

Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.  For it is shameful to even speak of the things that they do in secret.  But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible (Eph 5:11).

There’s stuff in my life that I can’t see.  You can.  I can’t.  That’s why we call them blind spots.  If you’ve ever taken a golf lesson, the pro can quickly spot some flaw in your swing that you don’t see.  It might take a bit of effort and practice to fix the problem, but once you’ve been told about it, you’re aware of it.  They’ve exposed your blind spot.  Here in his letter to his friends in Ephesus, Paul says that revealing hidden sins and blind spots is an important part of life in the local church.  “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.  For it is shameful to even speak of the things that they do in secret.  But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible” (v11).  Don’t join those who are living in darkness and destruction.  Bring it to light.  Bring it into God’s light.  They don’t call Jesus the “Light of the World” for nothing! 

Expose the blind spot.

This is all part of what Paul means to “walk as children of light” (Eph 5:8).  We bring the light of truth to every part of our lives.  It’s living with transparency.  That means not only a personal willingness to reveal our junk to others but the willingness to have it revealed by others.  Living in New Testament community means helping each other become aware of the areas of our lives that fall short of God’s standard.  Walking as a child of light is not just shining His light but having the humility to allow God’s light to shine in the dark places of my own life.  I need to see what I can’t see.  I need to see what I refuse to see.

Expose the blind spot.

Paul begins by telling us what NOT to do.  “Take no part in the unfruitful works of the darkness” (v11).  He uses the Greek verb sugkoinoneo, which means to partner with another, have fellowship through a particular situation or even help someone.  If you look just a little closer, you’ll see the nugget of the word koinonia.  That’s how the friendship and fellowship of the life in the church is described.  Think of being a teammate.  You win together and you lose together.  That’s sugkoinoneo.  The apostle was extremely grateful that the Philippians were so willing “to share (Gr. sugkoinoneo) my trouble” as an inmate in a Roman prison (Phil 4:14).  During John’s glimpse of the exciting conclusion in the end times, he heard God announce that folks should stay as far away from the sinful city of Babylon when she falls.  “Come out of her, My people, lest you take part (Gr. sugkoinoneo) in her sins” (Rev 18:4).  In giving us this warning here in Ephesians, the man from Tarsus is saying that we don’t do a couple of lines of cocaine with a friend in order to get them to stop their addiction.  Don’t join in.  Don’t be a teammate with sin.  Don’t be a teammate with darkness.  That’s NOT why we’re there.

The stuff done in the dark is actually “unfruitful” (v11).  Paul uses the word akarpos.  It means barren or useless.  Literally it describes a plant without fruit or seed that refruses to germinate.  Dark stuff lacks positive results.  Dark stuff is unprofitable.  Dark stuff is a waste of time.  Jesus used the term in His illustration about the spread of the Gospel comparing it to different kinds of seeds and soils.  He talked about how the “thorns” of the obsession with wealth choke the Good News and makes it “unfruitful” (Gr. akarpos) and lacking any positive result (Mt 13:22; Mk 4:19).  Jesus’ brother Jude said false teachers and religious hucksters are like barren fruit trees at harvest (Jude 12).  Sin in the dark is useless.  Fruitless.  Pointless.  It doesn’t do anything to help anyone.  It only hurts.  And it needs to be brought to light.

Expose the blind spot.

Paul tells us that instead of being a teammate of sin and darkness, we should “instead expose them” (v11).  Here we see the verb elegcho, meaning to show someone their error.  We’re to bring something to light for the result of exposing sin or fault.  It’s shining God’s light to expose something for what it really is.  The purpose is to call a fellow believer to account in order to lovingly correct them.  It’s show each other our blind spots.  In Jesus encounter with Nick at night, he told him, “For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed (Gr. elegcho)” (Jn 3:20).  Paul told his buddy Tim that if leaders in the local church insist on sinning after being warned repeatedly, we’re “rebuke (Gr. elegcho) them in the presence of all” and expose their garbage (1Tim 5:20).   This expose’ becomes a powerful teaching lesson for everyone in the congregation.  The writer of Hebrews quotes Proverbs 3:11, encouraging us to hang in there when under God’s discipline.  He lovingly corrects us by showing us our blind spots and being “reproved (Gr. elegcho) by Him” (Heb 12:5).

Expose the blind spot.

The point of the disclosure is to ultimately help and restore someone.  It’s NOT to hurt them.  It’s NOT to shame them.  It’s to help them.  It’s to reveal their blind spot so they can turn from their sin and turn back to Jesus.  Think of an intervention.  That’s when friends and family confront a loved one trapped in an addictive lifestyle.  They are shining the light of truth on the darkness of their sin.  They are not just exposing the pain this addiction is causing but the great love they have for the addict.  They desperately want them to kick the habit and get clean.  

Here Paul is describing a spiritual intervention.  In his letter to the folks in Galatia, he makes the point that such a restoration has to be done “in a spirit of gentleness” (Gal 6:1).  When the apostle heard that there was a man in the Corinthian church sleeping with his mother-in-law, he demanded that these believers remove him with the ultimate goal being his restoration (1Cor 5:1-5).  Jesus taught that such interventions are a very important part of doing life with other believers (Mt 18:15-20).  The Lord makes the VERY important point that this expose’ starts behind closed doors long before it ever is brought in front of the entire church.

Expose the blind spot.

So, what do YOU think?  Do you agree or disagree?  Would love to hear your thoughts.  Just post a comment below.  Come on.  You know you want to.

See the Light. Be the Light.

For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.  Walk as children of light (Eph 5:8).

Throughout the history of mankind, we’ve seen light as good and darkness as bad.  Not surprisingly, God has used light as a description for His grace, His goodness and the truth of who He is.  So it’s no shock when our buddy Paul flips on the light in his letter to Ephesus.  “For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.  Walk as children of light” (v8).  Before we knew Jesus, we stumbled around in the dark.  After He “made us alive together  with Christ” (Eph 2:5), He brought us into His light.  As a result, we actually become His light.  So it’s time to get moving and get shining.

See the Light.  Be the Light.

The apostle loves to show us “before and after” pictures.  What we looked like before Jesus ambushed us.  What we look like after He saves us.  Here he reminds us that “at one time we were darkness” (v8).  We weren’t just IN darkness.  We WERE darkness!  We weren’t just in the dark.  We were the dark.  Before Christ revealed the truth of who He is to us, we were the problem.  Paul uses the Greek noun skotos, which means gloom or darkened sight due to the lack of light.  It often describes a lack of understanding or ignorance.  In a spiritual sense, that’s sin and evil.  Christ knew that His arrest under the cloak of night in Gethsemane was all heavily influenced by “the power of darkness” (Gr. skotos)” (Lk 22:53).  Later in this letter, the apostle writes about the spiritual battle that every one of Jesus’ followers needs to realize.  We’re in hand-to-hand combat “against the cosmic powers of this present darkness (Gr. skotos)” (Eph 6:12).  Satan works to keep folks in the dark.  Jesus and His followers are looking to shine the Light.

See the Light.  Be the Light.

Now Paul points to the “after” picture.  Look how bright things are!  “Now you are light in the Lord” (v8).  In the original language, we see the word phos or photos.  It’s where we get our words like photograph and phosphorus.  It’s brightness that shines.  Illumination.  Over and over again, we should shine the light on God and His goodness by using light.  His very first act of creation was to command light to bring order to chaos and darkness (Gen 1:3).  And that was good.  The opening lyrics of one of King David’s greatest hits declare that Yahweh is the very personification of brightness.  “The LORD is my light and my salvation” (Ps 27:1).  Isaiah predicted a day when folks who used to stumble around in the dark would see “a great light” (Is 9:2).  He went on to say that God would send His long-awaited Messiah to fulfill every promise and be “a light for the nations, to open eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness” (Is 42:6-7).  Jesus didn’t mess around when showed up.  One of the very first things He said was that God sent Him on a divine mission to accomplish that very promise to be that light (Lk 4:18).  He even said that He was the very brilliance of God.  “I am the Light of the World” (Jn 9:5).  

Light allows us to see clearly.  God’s light allows us to see Him clearly.  That’s why Paul prayed that God would allow us to see His Son and have “the eyes of your hearts enlightened” (Eph 1:18).  When we place our trust in who Jesus is and what He’s done, we don’t just see His light.  “Now we are light in the Lord” (v8)!  That allows a dark world to see Him clearly.  Get walking in the light!

See the Light.  Be the Light.

And we see here yet one more example of Paul’s emphasis of believers being “in Christ.”  Over and over and over he hammers this nail in his letter to Ephesus.  Just check the various ways he mentions this idea in Eph 1.  “In Christ” (Eph 1:3, 9, 12).  “In Him” (Eph 1:4, 7, 10, 11, 13).  “In the Beloved” (Eph 1:6).  “In the Lord Jesus (Eph 1:16).  Here’s the big idea.  We don’t save ourselves.  We place our faith IN what Jesus has done for us that we could never, ever do.  He lived the perfect life that we completely failed to live.  He died the bloody death for our sin that we certainly should have died.  He rose to a spectacular new life that we absolutely don’t deserve.  When we trust IN what He’s done, we are “in the Lord” (v8).  When His heavenly Dad looks at me, He doesn’t see sinful me but His sinless Son because I am “in Christ.”  This is a mega-theme in Paul’s letter to Ephesus.  He knows that if we realize this reality, we’ll live a life in the light of God’s gracious Gospel.

Paul tells the Ephesians that now that they are the Lord’s light, to “walk as children of light” (v8).  Don’t just sit there.  Get moving!  As the old campfire song says, “This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine!”  Jesus told His followers that we don’t fire up our lantern and then hide it under our box springs (Lk 8:16).  Once He shines His light on us, we’re “the light of the world,” shining brightly as the Vegas strip in the dark of desert night (Mt 5:14).  We do that by helping and loving others.  We let our light shine through our good works.  Not earning our salvation but showing it and shining it.  This gives our Father in heaven all the credit (Mt 5:16).

See the Light.  Be the Light.

This idea of “light walking” has an impact on us and those believers around us.  Jesus’ best buddy John said that walking the light of Christ is the best way to experience living in relationship with other believers.  “If we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1Jn 5:7).  So get out from underneath your bed and get walking.  Start walking in the light.  Shine!

See the Light!  Be the Light!

So, what do you think?  I would love to hear from you.  Drop a comment below and let's talk it over.

Cardiac Callouses

They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to the hardness of heart (Eph 4:18).

Heart disease is a killer.  The health of that blood-pumping organ in our chest is critical to life.  It's the very same when it comes to our spiritual lives.  When we suffer heart failure, we're in BIG trouble.  Paul tells his buddies in Ephesus that cardiac callouses are fatal.  The apostle diagnoses outsiders ("Gentiles") who have failed to follow Jesus as suffering from this condition.  "They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to the hardness of heart" (v18).  Hard hearts keep us in the dark.  Hard hards keep us from spiritual knowledge.  Hard hearts keep us from God.

Cardiac callouses are a killer.

Paul desperately wants his Ephesian friends to keep their hearts tender and soft.  Tender to the needs of other believers.  Tender to those who haven't come to understand Jesus.  Tender to their own sin against God.  Let’s be honest, it's VERY easy to develop cardiac callouses if you've had your heart stomped on like a grape.  It's our natural reaction to stop putting our feelings and emotions out there to get punched repeatedly.  But Jesus asks us to do the same thing He did.  There's been no one who walked the earth that has known the rejection and betrayal like the radical Rabbi/Carpenter from Nazareth.  Flip back and read what the prophet Isaiah perfectly and painfully predicted what our Savior would experience (Is 53). Despised.  Rejected.  Wounded.  Crushed.  Beaten.  Stricken.  He never fought back.  He kept His heart tender and soft.  No cardiac callouses for Christ.

One symptom of a cardiac callous is the darkening of our perception of truth.  Paul uses the Greek word skotizo, which means to cover with darkness and deprive of light.  At it's most basic meaning, this term describes how a heavy shadow blocks light from someone or something.  This dark shadow results in a lack of spiritual awareness.  Without any light to guide the way, ungodliness and immorality will follow.  How bad can this darkness get?  Check out what the apostle said to the Romans about it (Rom 1:21-23).  Dark hearts lead to idiotic behavior.  Instead of worshiping God and His glory, unbelievers elevate His creation to divine status.  Without the light of God's Spirit to reveal His truth, we stumble around in the dark (1Cor 2:14).

The development of cardiac callouses also cut us off from THE Source of life.  We're "alienated from the life of God" (v18).  The word here is apollotrio'o.  It means to estrange, separate and make a stranger.  Just a couple of chapters ago, the apostle reminded his recipients that they used to be on the outside.  Before Jesus used Paul to tell others about who He was and what He's done, they were also separated from God.  "Remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, call 'the uncircumcision' by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands--remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated (Gr. apollotrio'o) from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of the promise, having no hope and without God in the world" (Eph 2:11-12).  But Christ specializes in taking folks like you and me who were far out and pulling us into His kingdom.  Without Him, we're on the outside looking in.  Our cardiac callouses keep us out. 

While our spiritual blindness and separation from God are a big problem, Paul says they are just a symptom of something more severe.  "Hardness of heart" (v18).  He uses the Greek word porosis, which means a lack of feeling or insensibility.  The great Greek doctor Hippocrates used this medical term when diagnosing the covering by a callous or thick growth of skin. It's from a root word that means a kind of stone.  Rock-hard hearts.  The Pharisees also suffered from these cardiac callouses (Mk 3:5).  In the previous verse, Paul first diagnoses unbelievers as having empty minds (Eph 4:17).  He continues by recognizing their hard hearts.  As a matter of fact, the cause of the rock in their head is due to the rock in their chest.  

There's only one cure.  There's only one treatment.  There's only one hope.  Jesus.  He's the ONLY one with the ability to heal their rock-hard hearts.  That's something God's been promising for a long, long time.  "I will give you a new heart, and a new Spirit I will put in you.  And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh." (Ezek 36:26-27).  The cure is NOT making our failing organs better.  The only answer is a heart transplant.  A HUGE part of His saving work in our lives is what seminary braniacs call regeneration.  That simply means a divine heart transplant.  He makes us new by giving us a new heart.  It's the ONLY cure for the cardiac callous.

Has your heart grown hard?  Have you gotten callous?  To the needs of others?  To your own sin?  Do you see your sarcasm as a spiritual gift?  If so, you probably need to see the Doctor.  He's the only one who can cure cardiac callouses!