dangerous situation because it takes a strong, mature faith in
God and a very good grasp of God’s Word just to survive in
this dangerous culture, much less do the work of salt.
As we educate our children and youth, we must be dili-
gent to protect them from the dangerous philosophies of
this world while we prepare them to develop the character
to one day be salt in this world. Children are not equipped
to do the work of salt. Therefore, they should never be put
into situations that require them to do the work of a mature
disciple of Christ.
This Little Light Of Mine
I remember well one of the childhood songs that I loved to
sing at church. It wasn’t just fun singing the words; it
was also fun doing the motions. Did you sing
it as a child?
“This little light of mine, I’m going to let
it shine. This little light of mine, I’m
going to let it shine. Let it shine. Let
it shine.
Hide it under a bushel—NO! I’m
going to let it shine. Hide it under
a bushel —NO! I’m going to let it
shine. Let it shine. Let it shine.
Won’t let Satan blow it out. I’m
going to let it shine. Won’t let Satan
blow it out. I’m going to let it shine. Let
it shine. Let it shine.”
person to be the light of the world, he/she must first know
Jesus Christ as his/her Lord and Savior. So a child who has
not yet become a Christian cannot be a light to the world.
Second, we find that the Psalmist wrote that God’s Word
is a lamp to one’s feet and a light to one’s path. For one to
be a bright light in this world, he/she must possess a strong
knowledge and understanding of God’s Word. This goes
beyond mere memorizing verses. It requires one to not only
know what the Scriptures say but also have the boldness to
believe it to be true. When this happens, it will result in that
person living out God’s Word in every aspect of his life.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus explained to His
followers that when you are a light to the world, it will be
seen in your good works. For their good works to
be light to the world, their works had to be
of greater significance than the human
efforts of the Pharisees. Think about
a beautiful full moon shining in the
dark of night. The moon has no
light of its own. However, when
the moon is rightly in line with
the sun, the sun’s light reflects off
the moon and can be so bright
that one can see to walk around
in a field at night. Knowing the
moon cannot produce this beauti-
ful light on its own causes the person
to give the credit to the sun for what
the moon is reflecting.
So it is with the Christian who is rightly in
line with God (who is light). When we are in fellowship
with the Father—abiding in the Son and continuing in the
Word—we are in a position where we can reflect the glory of
God in our lives. When the lost person sees our good works,
he knows we are mere men, and the only way we can shine a
bright light is by the way we live our lives through the power
and grace of God.
It is also true that light has total control over darkness.
People often tell me they’re concerned about how dark the
world is becoming. No matter how hi-tech we become, we
can never produce a dark switch. The only way darkness can
exist is by turning the light off—which means Christians are
not giving off the light they should be in our dark culture.
We live in a time when Christian parents, church leaders,
and educators must be fully committed to God so we can be
what God expects us to be—the light of the world.
It takes a strong, mature
faith in God and a very good
grasp of God’s Word just
to survive in this dangerous
culture, much less do the
work of salt.
As little children, we were so proud to raise
our little index finger pretending it was our candle
that we were going to let shine. We would put a cupped hand
over our finger as if it were a bushel basket and then quickly
pull it off so that it wouldn’t hide the light. Then we would
protect our candle with our hand as if Satan were there
trying to blow our candle out. When I think back to that
little song, I now realize that I really didn’t understand what
Jesus meant when He told His disciples they were to be the
light of the world. He went on to tell them you don’t put a
light under a bushel but on a lampstand so that it will give
light to the entire area around it.
What Jesus was telling His disciples was going to be a
very challenging task for them to accomplish. Being light
in a dark world is a tough assignment. Of course, as human
beings, we don’t have any light to shine in and of our own
selves. In 1 John 5, John declared that God is light. For a
27