Originally written as an assignment for the New Life School of Ministry in 2012. Before Trump, before COVID, before everything that happened. A devotion.
“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” – Matthew 5:14-16
In 1998, there was a movie called, "The Truman Show". The plot of the movie was that the main character, Truman, played by Jim Carrey, was the star of his own reality TV show. Cameras observed him 24 hours a day: at home, at work, in his car, in the community. The show had its own channel and was on continuously. The twist is that Truman doesn’t know he’s on TV. He doesn’t know he’s being constantly watched or that the people around him are all actors. Once he figures out that something’s not right, well, I won’t ruin the end of the movie for you but basically his behavior begins to change.
"The Truman Show" came out before reality TV was such a big deal. Nowadays we have hundreds of reality TV shows where people proudly display the most embarrassing and intimate details of their life for the entire world to see. And for some reason, we really enjoy it. Obviously, or there wouldn’t be so many shows!
I was thinking about those shows and wondering if they had ever done a reality show based on the life of a Christian in America today. (There have definitely been Christians on reality TV since I wrote this in 2012... though there's also been a fair show of exposés, which is a different story.) Let’s imagine this show and that Joe or Jill Christian is picked to star in it. Perhaps while aware the cameras are rolling, Joe or Jill would try to put on their best face to make Christianity look good through our lifestyle. Maybe they’d read their Bibles more often than usual and pray and go to church. Hopefully, they'd avoid vices they might otherwise dabble in, like swearing or drinking, and make an effort to put on a happy face.
But what if a Christian was chosen who didn’t know it? What if, like Truman, there were hidden cameras in their homes, in their cars, in their workplaces, out on the street, and they didn’t know the world was watching their every move? Then what would the world see about how a Christian lives? Would they be a good example of Christianity and of Christ?
As I was thinking about it, I realized that we are being watched. Not in a paranoid way where I think there are hidden cameras everywhere, but people are watching us: people in our families, our co-workers, our friends, our neighbors. People who know we are Christians. They’re watching to see if there’s anything different about us. If we have something they want or need. If there’s any truth to this Christianity business.
Think about that for a moment. When nonbelievers look at you, look at me, what do they see? Do they see Christ? It used to be that the majority of the country was Christian and everyone knew someone personally who believed. That’s not true anymore. You may be the only Christian in your family, at your employment, in your neighborhood. You may be the only example of Christ* that people around you ever meet. How are you representing Him?
That’s what Jesus is talking about in this passage. He states that we are the “light of the world”. We are to be the example of Christ to unbelievers. He says a lamp is not hidden under a bowl, but placed on a lamp stand for all to see. The Jewish listeners at the time would have understood this analogy perfectly. If you remember when God gave Moses instructions about how to build the tabernacle, He included instructions about lamps placed on lamp stands and constantly refilled with oil so that they would never go out (Ex 27). The lamps represented God’s continued presence in that place.
1 Co 6:19 says: “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?” We are His temple. We have the Holy Spirit dwelling in us! And just like the lamps which were always lit in order to symbolize His presence in the temple, our lights must always be lit to symbolize His presence in us. So that others might see His light.
So, how do we do that? How can we be lights in a dark unbelieving world? The key, I believe, is in drawing near to God. Just like when two people spend a lot of time together they begin rubbing off on one another and adopting each other’s characteristics, the more time we spend with God the more we will become like Him. Ephesians tells us to be “imitators of God” and to “live a life of love” (5:1-2). When we spend time with God in prayer, Bible study, worship, and fellowship with other believers, we are built up in Him. It’s like pouring oil into our lamps to keep that light burning for others to see. Because we do have something the world needs – hope and salvation.
I’ll finish with this: Brennan Manning, author of the Ragamuffin Gospel, has been quoted as saying, “The single greatest cause of atheism in the world today is Christians, who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, then walk out the door, and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.”
We live in a dying world. A world of people living in darkness. I know that I don’t want to be a Christian who turns people off from God. Who makes them skeptical He exists. I want my life to be an example of Christ that makes people want to get to know Him. Don’t you?
There’s an old song called “We are One in the Spirit” which says “They will know we are Christians by our love, by our love, they will know we are Christians by our love.” Let us show love to others, be a light to unbelievers, that all may come to know Him.
*Unfortunately, one discouraging outcome of the Trump years was Christians were pushed into the spotlight - but not in a good way. The reputation of Christians in this country is a very negative one, so as an individual, it puts on increasing pressure to change people's views of who Jesus is.
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