In a previous blog (see HERE- it is the blog blog.yates.feb4), I discussed the Lord’s illustration of lighting a lamp and placing it on a lampstand rather than hiding it under a bed. I argued that we miss a little of the illustration’s meaning because we didn’t live in the first century. We probably think that it would, of course, be illogical to hide a lamp under a bed. But the Lord means something more: Placing a lamp on a lampstand would direct the people in the house toward the light. When people are surrounded by darkness, the lamp allows them to see. 

The Lord employs this imagery frequently in His ministry. He uses it in different contexts. But the point He makes about the light is the same: People in darkness can see the light, and it can reveal what they would not otherwise see. In this and a few following blogs, I will discuss three instances in which the Lord uses this illustration. 

Matthew 5:14-16 is part of the Sermon on the Mount. The Lord is talking to the disciples, and He tells them that they are the light of the world. We usually think of the Lord as the light of the world (John 8:12). But here, the disciples are.  

He uses the phrase about lighting a lamp and placing it on a lampstand (v 15). In this context, the Lord states that the disciples’ lives are the lamp. If they do what the Lord teaches in the Sermon on the Mount, they will be like a lamp that is lit and placed on a lampstand. 

The Lord gets specific. Others will be able to see the good works of obedient believers. But there is something else implied here. Others are in darkness. A lamp in a dark room is easy to see. It attracts the attention of those in the room. In a dark room, a lamp is the only thing that can be seen. 

We live in a dark world. People in the world need to see a lit lamp. They need light. As believers, we provide that light when we proclaim the message of life by faith alone (John 3:16). We can also do it through how we live, and that is the point in Matthew. John says something similar in 1 John 4:12. Nobody has seen God, but when believers obey the Lord by loving one another, others can see Him. It is as if they are sitting in a dark room when someone lights a lamp and places it on a lampstand. All eyes will look at the lamp. 

How motivating is this? Eternal life is given to us at the moment of faith. We can never lose it. That is the greatest gift ever given. But believers have a fantastic privilege. We can live our lives in such a way that we are like a light in a dark room. We serve a loving and holy God. The world needs to see Him. When we love one another and thus obey the Lord, those living in darkness can see the light coming from us. We can be the lamp.