Matthew 5:14 You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
Ever look at the world and feel weary? You don’t have to be a news junkie to sense the growing darkness of division and chaos. But God hasn’t put us here to throw up our hands in despair. He wants us to light candles, brilliant as a city on a hill. Here are three of those candles:
- The candle of truth. “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” (1 John 1:4). Reject small compromises of truth, no matter how insignificant they seem. Stand firm on moral Biblical principles, not narratives of victimhood that stem from feelings rather than factual reality. We may not see it at the moment, but when we compromise the truth, we invite the gusts of deception to extinguish our flame. Russian dissident Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, who knew a few things about living in a culture sustained by deception, warned how we must resist lies in even the smallest way.
- The candle of peace. “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone” (Romans 12:18). Speak the truth in love and be charitable toward people who have different views. Engage the culture, but do it in the Lord’s way, viewing every person as someone God wants to redeem. Yep. Everyone! Ask the Holy Spirit to help you see them as he sees them for who they could be, not how they act right now.
- The candle of hope. “Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more” (Romans 5:20). Never give up hope and view the cultural winds as insurmountable. This is no time to pack it in and hide our light under a bushel. But time to shine all the brighter as the darkness increases. John Stonestreet, president of the Colson Center, writes this is not our first rodeo as believers. He references other dark moments in Christian history. For example, depravity, hopelessness and deplorable conditions marked eighteenth century life in London. But that’s exactly when God made his move and used the Wesleys to spawn one of the greatest spiritual revivals ever known.
So, my friend, don’t give up. Light those candles. You are a citizen of that city on the hill.