Let it Shine

Hello everyone.

Luke 8:16-21 tells two stories quicky.  In verses 16-18, Jesus talks about light.  Then in 8:19-21, Luke relates a story regarding Jesus and his family. So in the first of the stories in this passage, Jesus tells a proverb regarding light. (Verse 16) He says the same proverb again in Luke 11:33.  Verse 16 says "No one lights a lamp, then hides it in a jar or under a bed. Rather, they place it on a lampstand, so that those who come in can see the light." The point he is making here is obvious.  You don’t light a lamp and then hide it.  A hidden light serves no purpose.  Instead, lights are placed in such a way to illuminate as much of the room as possible. 

There are different ways to look at Jesus' proverb here.  In Matt. 5:16, Jesus tells his followers to ‘let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in Heaven. It is possible Jesus is saying this so that his disciples as a plea for them to show their light. Within the context of Luke 8, coming right after the parable of the sower, the light could be the word of God.  This also makes sense.  Either way, it is we, the followers of Jesus, who are the ones to let it shine. 

Jesus also uses the light in this passage to talk about how light exposes things.  In verse 17-18a, Jesus says, "All that is hidden and invisible will be made known, and all of the secrets will be brought into the light. Therefore, pay careful attention to how you listen." Things that can be hidden in darkness, are exposed by the light. Jesus tells his hearers that everything hidden and seemingly invisible will be brought out into the light.  Because of this, Jesus warns us to be careful how we listen to the word.  We want to make sure that we are obedient, since everything will be brought out into the light eventually. 

We want to make sure that we respond to Jesus’ words.  The rest of verse 18 tells us that to those who are obedient, more will be given.  Meanwhile, those who do not obey, will lose what they have.  God will bless those who are obedient to His word.  

Jesus continues to stress this point. In verses 19-21, his family has come to see him, but are forced to wait outside because of the size of the crowds.  When the message comes that his family was there, Jesus looks around at those who are with him and who are obedient to his word, and says that the members of his family are those that are obedient to his word.  

In two short stories, Luke relates a great about the benefit of obedience to Jesus.  As we let our light shine through obedience to Jesus, we add to our blessings (verse 18) and we become members of his family. (Verse 21)

Tom