Pastor Barry's  "Chapter & Verse"  Day 21

January 21;   John 8:12;  76/260(VI);   ‘The Light of the World’

John 8:12 Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life." 

One of the things the Lord Jesus called Himself was ‘the light of the world.’ That means that His conduct, teachings and character enlightened all of us as to how a godly person should be.  If we choose to follow Him, we will not ‘walk in darkness.’  That means our lives will not be darkened with improper and shameful conduct and speech.  Once we become Born Again and desire serious fellowship with the Lord, our previous lifestyle that may have been offensive to the Lord, becomes something we no longer desire to be part of our new life.  We live in a manner pleasing to the Lord because we want to, not because we have to (that is religion).  The Lord Jesus was beloved, respected and admired (except for the religious leaders who were jealous).  We follow Jesus, because our greatest desire is live, as He did, in a manner that brings dignity to our Lord and ourselves.  In Matthew 5:14 the Lord Jesus tells us we are the light of the world as well.  The Lord Jesus did not come to earth only to redeem us from our sins and sicknesses.  Thank the Lord that He did do that.  Jesus came to be our Example of how to live.  What a privilege to be like Him, to live in such a manner that people notice and respect you.  Their initial response may not be great, but keep living it, allowing your light to shine, and sooner or later they will see that you have something they need. As His Church, our goal is to ‘let our light shine,’ so that others will see Jesus in us and desire what we have.  How great is this.