Mark 4:22-23
If
light doesn’t have a purpose, it is just a nuisance. Take the high beam of an
oncoming car. For the driver it might be providing them with extra visibility,
but for you it blinds and lowers safety. I hate those new headlights that seem
like they are on high beam all the time. I know they provide better visibility
for that driver, but I wonder if they did tests on the receivers side of the
equation, to see if it caused decreased safety for the blinded driver? They
certainly decrease my safety!
I
am sure you have read about people pointing laser pointers at pilots as they
are trying to land. Very dangerous. Pilots need to be able to see in order to
land a plane safely. The laser pointer’s job is not to blind but to focus
attention on a particular object.
During
my college days the administration replaced the lights in our main auditorium
without telling anyone. We went into the hall with normal lights on. Then in a
moment they turned on the new lights. Yikes! We all felt like rotisserie
chickens. The light was so bright we all had to squint. They certainly weren’t
fulfilling their design.
The
lamp referred to in our text is a small clay oil lamp, more like a saucer with
oil and a simple wick. They were used to light small spaces of a home. If you
wanted to see things, you put the lit lamp up in the air, usually on a stand
made for this purpose. It could be freestanding, or something attached to the
wall.
When
it is used as a nightlight, it was hidden. Only some of its light was seen.
Just like a lighthouse along a rocky coastline, the lamp’s light is meant to
guide and protect. If the lighthouse turned off its lamp in the middle of a
storm, it would not be fulfilling its purpose. To fulfill its full purpose the lighthouse
light must be brought out into the open. It must shine in the middle of the
storms. If it isn’t brought out into the open, ships smash against the
dangerous rocks.
A
signal flare is only useful if it can be seen by those who need to see the
signal being sent. You send them up into the air so that people at a distance
and those behind obstacles can see the light and know it is time for action. It
does no good to set one off in the basement of a house. It would signal no one,
except perhaps the fire department.
Spiritual
Growth is the same. If others can’t see any difference in our lives, if they
can’t tell we are changing and “cleaning up our act,” our spiritual growth is
not fulfilling its purpose. Spiritual
Growth is meant to be visible. It signals to others that God is at work, that
His power to change is real, that His Word is true. It signals hope to those
who might be caught in their sin and despair, that they too can be rescued.
Is your spiritual growth visible?