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Q3. You Are the Light of the World


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Q3. (Matthew 5:14-15) In the parable of "the light of the world," Jesus notes the stupidity of lights being hidden under bowls. Concerning what danger in the life of a Christian disciple does Jesus warn us in this parable?

The danger is of hiding our faith and Christian witness from those around us (except maybe on a Sunday!) It would be absurd to light a lamp and then hide it under a bowl, so it is just as absurd for Christians to hide their faith in Jesus who is the light of the world. One other point to note. If you were to place a lamp of the type which Jesus was describing under a bowl, the likihood is that it would go out as a result of a lack of oxygen fueling the flame.

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Q3. (Matthew 5:14-15) In the parable of "the light of the world," Jesus notes the stupidity of lights being hidden under bowls. Concerning what danger in the life of a Christian disciple does Jesus warn us in this parable?

Whenever we do not witness to others about Jesus or give Him praise when directed by the Holy Spirit or do for others according to the Holy Spirit, we are hiding our light under a bowl. Not only does this grieve the Holy Spirit, but it hurts us, too because we are denying our love for God.

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Q3. (Matthew 5:14-15) In the parable of "the light of the world," Jesus notes the stupidity of lights being hidden under bowls. Concerning what danger in the life of a Christian disciple does Jesus warn us in this parable?

A lamp under a bowl would shortly go out. A Christian who does not share his 'salt' and 'light' can and usually does begin to shrivel and spiritually die.

A secular example of this would be the IQ test and those who score very high on it. An IQ test registers 'potential' not accomplishment. Years ago I passed one of those tests with a high enough score to be invited to take the MENSA test. I learned two things:

1. I could and did score high enough

2. After interacting with other members on and off for a year, I got a clear definition of 'unused potential'. I didn't renew my membership the second year.

A Christian spiritually charged individual who does nothing with it is the same. The potential is there but if it's not used and spread around, soon it will wither and go out.

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Q3. (Matthew 5:14-15) In the parable of "the light of the world," Jesus notes the stupidity of lights being hidden under bowls. Concerning what danger in the life of a Christian disciple does Jesus warn us in this parable?

As Christians we must always let our FAITH be SEEN and HEARD (witnessing to others) .Never hide our faith and love for Jesus, He is our Savior,our Sovereign Creator. Shout out for joy and let the world know this! Teach others about the love of God, spread the word. Jesus' great commission ( his legacy to the world- his last wish here on earth) was to go forth and preach His mission of love. Carry on His good works SO DO NOT HIDE THEM, nor BE ASHAMED to show your love for our Creator! Sing your praises with joy! If we hide our faith and don't proclaim it we are defeating Jesus' mission here on earth. And we will be smothering the Light out of our own life as well. Jesus is the LIGHT of the world, don't let that light be extinguished!

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Q3. (Matthew 5:14-15)

In the parable of "the light of the world," Jesus notes the stupidity of lights being hidden under bowls. Concerning what danger in the life of a Christian disciple does Jesus warn us in this parable?

In this parable, Jesus is warning us concerning the danger of a Christian hiding that he is a believer by not showing his Christian deeds vividly for others to see.

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Jesus uses the parable of "the light of the world" to describe Christians.  Why would one become a Christian if they were going to hide it?  When you become a Christian you glow, you are happy.  This joy is meant to be shared with everybody.  Why hide your light?  Putting a lamp or candle under a bushel and hiding it dims the light.  Your light as a Christian should brighten the darkness and lead the way to another trying to find their way "home".

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Jesus is telling us that we shouldn’t just associate with the people in the church, we should be associating with non-believers. In that way we can let our light shine. If we just associate with people in the church we are just blinding each other with our light. But if we go into this dark world and let our light shine we might be able to bring somebody the saving grace of Jesus Christ.

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On 12/19/2007 at 9:48 PM, Pastor Ralph said:

Q3. (Matthew 5:14-15) In the parable of "the light of the world," Jesus notes the stupidity of lights being hidden under bowls. Concerning what danger in the life of a Christian disciple does Jesus warn us in this parable?

That we should not hide our light of Christ love to let it shine for all to see, that we should not be closet Christians, for us to hide our light we fall into darkness.

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On 12/19/2007 at 9:48 PM, Pastor Ralph said:

Q3. (Matthew 5:14-15) In the parable of "the light of the world," Jesus notes the stupidity of lights being hidden under bowls. Concerning what danger in the life of a Christian disciple does Jesus warn us in this parable?  This is actually a great parable. Basically, if you're working to enlighten people with the righteous Word of God, your message should be clear, bright and resonant in the way a lit lamp might be. Everyone should be able to see you, even from a distance. But if you hide the light, then the words of a disciple will also be muffled and hidden, therefore it could easily be misinterpreted, causing misinformation to get directed at the disciple. So if you're doing good, make sure you do it in the light and let God see you.

 

 

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Q3. (Matthew 5:14-15) In the parable of "the light of the world," Jesus notes the stupidity of lights being hidden under bowls. Concerning what danger in the life of a Christian disciple does Jesus warn us in this parable?l

ANSWER: In Matthew 5:14-16, Jesus tells His disciples that they are the light of the world and should not hide their light but let it shine before others so that they may see their good works and glorify God. The lesson learned from Matthew 5:14-16 is: … Our good works are to be the shining of the light to the world so that they see the way to God. We shine so that people can see God, not us. We must point to Jesus when we do good. This is what the rest of the Sermon on the Mount is going to describe: God glorifying good works.

Just as light dispels darkness, Christians are called to illuminate the world with the truth and love of Christ. This means shining brightly through their actions, words, and character, reflecting the qualities and teachings of Jesus. God is the light of the world. Just like the world needs light to grow, so do we. When we come to God, He reveals our sin to us. We are able to ask Him for forgiveness and then we grow in our relationship with Him. We see him and receive him as the light of the world now. Or we die in our sins and see it only when it is too late.

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Q3. (Matthew 5:14-15) In the parable of "the light of the world," Jesus notes the stupidity of lights being hidden under bowls. Concerning what danger in the life of a Christian disciple does Jesus warn us in this parable?

Hiding a light under a bowl is crazy.  No one would have any benefit at all of the light.  And speaking of the oil lamp pictured in the study information, that light would eventually go out for lack of fuel. A danger in the Christian life is salvation, understanding the gospel, (light) with no move toward discipleship and joining "a city on a hill" means that light is hidden from anyone else. Mark 16:15- Jesus commands His followers to GO and to PREACH the GOSPEL; He never asks us to hide that light. Further, in Matthew 25, Jesus tells a parable of separating the sheep from the goats.  Wow. Some who thought they had the light had nothing.

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