Matthew 5.14

THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD

(Matthew 5.14)

"You are the light of the world". (Matthew 5.14)

Alan was a waste of space!

For three years he served on my support committee when I worked as Industrial Chaplain to the Royal Naval Dockyard in Devonport. Throughout that time, he never once made a contribution to any discussion, and never attended any of the midweek services, discussion and Bible Study groups.

He came into work and locked himself in his office at the Apprenticeship Training Centre until it was time to go home. At lunchtime he could be found eating his packed sandwiches and drinking coffee from his flask.

Yes, Alan was a waste of space as far as the Kingdom of God was concerned.

But why should I have expected more?

Quite simply, he claimed to be a Christian. More than that, he was a Non Stipendiary Priest and as such was expected to exercise a ministry, not just in the sanctuary of his parish Church, but also in his place of work. Yet no one knew he was a priest. No one even knew he was a Christian.

True Alan had signed the Official Secrets Act, but he appeared also to have signed the Unofficial Christian Secrets Act!!

Have you never heard of that Act? No? Well, I'm not surprised. It doesn't exist. In fact there is no such thing as a secret Christian as Jesus made clear in the above Gospel passage, when he said "You are the light of the world".

And he went on to say, "No one lights a lamp and puts it under a tub. They put it on a lamp stand where it shines for everyone in the home. In the same way, your light must shine in the sight of men, so that seeing your good works, they may give praise to your Father in Heaven".

There is no doubt, that the original hearers of Jesus would have been able to identify with this homely illustration.

The average Palestinian home consisted of a single dark room with a small circular window at the top - about 18” in diameter. This kept the heat out in summer and the warmth in during winter. The room was lit by the means of an oil lamp. This was shaped like a gravy-boat and filled with oil in which the wick floated. Lighting the wick was difficult before the days of matches and so, whenever the occupants went out of the house, they would put the light under an earthen bushel measure to prevent the risk of fire.

Not only would the original hearers have identified with this homely illustration, they would also have seen the religious significance of this illustration.

The Jews were set aside by God in history to be the means whereby others would come to know about Him. They were, to use the prophet Isaiah's words "to be a light to lighten the Gentiles". In this they had singularly failed. They had kept God only to themselves. They had hidden him under a tub.

So Jesus comes along and invites a new group of people to become the "light of the world". He invites a new group of people to be the means whereby others may come to know God. They were to be a "witnessing community".

And we, as members of that new group of people which we call the Church, are called to be "the light of the world". We are called to stand up and be counted. We are called upon to be seen and not hide ourselves away behind stained glass windows. To do that, is no better than putting a light under a tub. True, it does not go out, and we do not cease to be Christians, but our faith serves no useful purpose because it cannot be seen.

And that is exactly what Alan was doing. He hid behind the worship of his parish church on a Sunday and he hid behind the door of his office Monday to Friday and nobody knew he was a Christian, let alone a Non Stipendiary priest. He kept God only to himself and enjoyed his Sunday spiritual ego trip.

"You are the light of the world" says Jesus.

It is through the observable quality of lives that others are attracted to God.

I have told this story before, and I make no apologies for telling it again, since it illustrates what I am trying to say.

A young boy was taken by his father up to London one day to see the sights. After visiting the Tower of London, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey and Madam Tussauds, they found themselves in Piccadilly Circus. Whilst the father’s attention was focused upon the statue of Eros, the boy’s attention was focused upon the brightly coloured lights of the many advertisements.

On the way home, they passed by All Saints Church, Blackheath. The lights were on inside and lit up the East Window. The pictures of the various saints shone brightly in the darkened night. The boy turned to the father, recalling his memory of Piccadilly Circus, and asked: "Are they God's advertisements?"

How very perceptive of that young boy. After all, the saints of God are ordinary men and women like you and me, through whom the light of God has shone and as a consequence they have attracted the attention of others to God. We are called upon to be "God's advertisements".

This we cannot do if we insist in hiding our Christian commitments beneath a tub, and signing the Unofficial Christian Secrets Act!

In baptism, the President hands to to the newly baptised person or his/her sponsors a candle with these words, "This is to show that you have passed from darkness to light". And the congregation responds: "Shine as a light in the world to the glory of God the Father".

This Medieval custom of the 11th century, which has been restored to the Initiation Rite, reminds all of us that we are to shine as lights in the world so that others may come to know the one True Light whom we seek to reveal in our day to day life.