ABUNDANT LIFE VISION.
THE SHINING LIGHT. Matthew 5:14-16
14. Here’s another way to put it. You’re here to be light, bringing out the God--colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as, a city on a hill. 15. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. 16. Now that I have put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand-shine! Keep open house, be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven. MSB.

Dear friends, good morning and happy Sunday to you all. I know that the purpose of God for our lives will come to pass in Jesus name. We will look at the topic; “The Shining Light” today. When we say shining light, does it imply that we have some light that are not “shining”? verse 15 of our text says that God who has made us light bearers and he will not put us under a bucket, instead he will put us on a light stand where the whole world can see our light. The challenge that comes with this is that God has created us to set standard in this generation. We Christians are to be the benchmark of how things should be done in every aspect of human existence. It is such a pity that the people who are called to be pace setters are busy copying who they are supposed to lead. We see Christians ashamed and desperately in need of romantic partners because they do not want to be the odd one out among their friends when they are not ready to be in a relationship. We see virgins both male and female ashamed that they are sexually pure because of what people around them say. That is an ABOMINATION. The message God is sending out today is that we rise up to our work, which is being the STANDARD to a sinful generation.

Also, we are not just called to set standard for walking in holiness, we called to set the standard for good deeds. In the very first teaching of Abundant Life Vision on this platform, we talked about how good God is and how he expects us his children to be as good as he is on earth. God expect us to be good to everyone irrespective of who they are and we are use this goodness to preach to the world about our father in heaven.

Furthermore, God wants us to shine brightly at all times. One of the things God does not like is average or mediocrity. In John 1;5 “The light shine in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it “NLT. The light brought by our savior Jesus is so bright that there is no amount of darkness found in it. It is not a dull light. In addition, Acts 9:3-4 “As he was approaching Damascus on this mission, a light from heaven suddenly show down around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul! Saul! Why are you presenting me?’’ NLT from the scriptures above, it is evident that God’s light that dispels all forms of darkness”. The light fell on was so bright that Paul had to fall down. The implication is that God wants us to blow the world away with our good deeds {The second implication of light}. The question is how can we shine as Christians in this world?

1. Hospitality/ Generosity: Hebrews 13:2
“Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers for some who have done this have entertained angles without realizing it” NLT.
Abraham, the father of faith entertained strangers in his house and as a result he entertained angles. Furthermore, Hospitability goes hand in hand with generosity. Matthew 25:35-36 “For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me water to drink. I was a stranger, and you invited into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me. I was in prison and you visited me.” NLT. By being generous, Tabitha {Dorcas} was able to have an impact on the lives of the women in Joppa that they had to send for Peter who was in nearby Lydda to pray for her and she was brought back to life. Acts 9:32-40. God wants us to be hospitable to the people that we know and to people that we do not know. Being hospitable, taking care of people and being generous will help us shine our light to the world.

2. Be open and friendly to people: Matthew 5:16b
“By openly and friendly to people to open up with God, this generous father in heaven.” NLT.
The major challenge for Christians as we shine our light is to relate to people. We are not to be lone wolves and we to reach out to others who are yet to be in the fold and bring them in. We do this by being friendly to people and being accessible. When we do this, we will be able to listen to people and gain their trust and we will later get the opportunity to preach to them.

Therefore, if you are reading this and you do not shine your light as God wants us to because you have not met Christ or you have looked back and you want to come back to God, say this prayer with me Dear Lord, I come to you humbly and I confess that I am a sinner, save me and be my Lord. Wash away my sins and let me do your will at all times. Amen. If you have recited this prayer wholeheartedly, I welcome you to the family of God and do well to join a bible believing church as you start your journey in Christ.
If you have been blessed by this write up and you have questions, comments and contribution, you can contact Abundant Life Vision on the following platforms:
Twitter: @VisionAbundant
Instagram: visionabundantlife
Email: visionabundantlife@gmail.com
God bless you.