Light to a broken world

Key Verse: Matthew 5:14: “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden,” (NKJV). The church is not just a gathering of people; it is a force of light with a mission to eradicate darkness with the good news of Jesus.

The church is to display the light of God before the world. The church is the city set on a hill that shines with the light of the glory of God in a darkened world. The church is the great hope of a broken world.

The church is the carrier of the most precious message; the gospel of Jesus Christ that brought emancipation to humanity. The church is the salt of the earth (Matthew 5:13). Like salt, Christians are to flavour the earth with the distinct taste of the kingdom by our attitudes, actions and speech.

Like salt, we are to be a preservative and purifying agent in a corrupt world. The church as the light is to radiate purity, holiness, righteousness, goodness and moral uprightness as opposed to evil and wickedness going on in our world. Christ has shone on us as believers that we might shine in the dark world.

We can fail to let our light shine by failing to walk in the obedience of faith, and refusing to bear witness to the risen Christ. For others to see our light shine is for them to see our good works. The church is not designed to be a religious ritual, but a carrier of Light.

Some churches have become passive by abandoning the great commission mandate, which is to reach out to the people with the gospel. They have become passive and have settled for isolating the role of the church to a religious feel-good gathering. By these passive behaviours of some churches, their cities are without the light of Christ and held down in darkness.

Ephesians 5:14 says awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. The church of Jesus Christ must awake from their slumber and spread the light of the gospel confronting darkness in every corner. The Church is not designed to hold the light, only to be admired, but to carry the light to darkness, to be experienced by broken humanity.

The church is not designed to stay inside a church building. The great commission by Jesus to His Church is designed to be fulfilled both inside and outside of the Church building. We must go out in search of the lost souls to wreck them into the kingdom of God.

The church is an active body and is empowered by the Holy spirit to act as a catalyst and change agent in a broken world. People should be transformed by their encounter with the church. The church is a community of believers whether you are the preacher or the plumber, the lawyer or the businessman.

The church is the great hope of humanity. We have the authority as the church to make disciples of all nations for Christ (Matthew 28:18-20). The church should reach out to the unsaved to tell them about the love of Jesus Christ.

Showing Christ’s love to others, even the unlovely, is one of the most powerful ways to let Christ’s light shine in us. A genuine love for another human being, not just their soul, but their whole person is a powerful beacon of God’s love to them. As Christians, our calling remains: love the lost, reach out to them with the gospel, and share the hope we have through Jesus Christ.

We must let the light of Christ shine so brightly inside of us that people no longer see us, but see Christ living in us. • Today’s nugget: The church is a carrier of light. Prayer: Lord make me an agent of light.

Prayer lines: 08033299824. E-mail: [email protected] . Rev.

Abel UkachiAmadi, General Superintendent, Assemblies of God Nigeria..