261: James Diliberto - Exhortation: You Are the Light of the World (Matt. 5)

Automatically transcribed. Accuracy is good but not perfect, and words are sometimes wrong. Trust the audio over the text.

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   Welcome to good Chris Selfian talks. I’m Levi. And I’m Chris, and I’m Brian. Thank you for joining us this week on this podcast. We select one talk a week to help us get the Bible in our Daily News feed. We post a new episode at the start of each week. With the short intro beforehand to kind of set the stage for the talk you’re about to listen to.

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   And now let’s talk more about this week’s talk. Hello everyone, and welcome back. Before we get into the intro specifically for the class this week, I want to take a quick moment to. Highlight kind of a special date that’s coming up here for the podcast. This episode marks the beginning of the sixth season of the good Chris Adelphian Talks podcast Episode 261. And also in about a week we’re going to start the 6th year that this podcast has been running.

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   Which is a little crazy to think about that it’s been. Now half a decade that we’ve been doing this podcast and everybody has been listening to one talk a week to try to get a little bit more of the Bible into your Daily News feed. So I want to take a quick moment, not to go on too long, but to thank everybody who has listened or is still listening.

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   And also to thank you for anyone who has shared the podcast with anybody else as you’ve found it to steal kind of what Brother Brian always likes to say. We hope that you have been sharing it to strengthen their faith and brighten their day as much as it does for you. And we appreciate all the suggestions and the interactions that we get with everybody.

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   And we hope that you find this to be just as encouraging to listen to as we do to help put it out there for people to be able to enjoy and listen to the talks from people all over the world. Thank you for listening. And now we’ll get into the intro for the talk for this week.

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   So this week we’re listening to an exhortation that was given by Brother James Diliberto at the Mount Barker Ecclesia in South Australia at the beginning of 2022. The title of his exhortation is You Are the Light of the World and Brother James has been a guest host before and we were able to get the sort of behind the scenes best audio for this one. So we appreciate that he was able to share that with us. What I really enjoyed about this exhortation was that it was a good reminder of.

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   Not just waiting for the light of the world that is Christ to return to the earth, but instead to let our light shine, and is a good encouragement to us about that if you wanted to look through it. And I’m going to put this in the title of the talk as well. But Matthew 5 was the reading that was read before this exhortation, and Brother James pulls a lot of Nuggets from it and a couple other ones that I will not mention until you get to him, because I found them to be particularly powerful when it came to the visual of.

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   What our role is for shining our light, even though Christ is also the light of the world but we also have the job to be able to reflect and share that light to the people around us. He gives a very strong called action which I enjoy in excitations that it takes some good Nuggets and good digging into the scriptures but then also take some practical application to say now go out and do something different then you may have. Previously been doing.

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   I really found this expectation to be a good reminder and a good encouragement. This was sent in as a suggestion by someone not that was not James and he was able to share the audio when he saw that the suggestion had been put in. So thank you as I said earlier to the person who sent in the suggestion for this one and for any suggestions anybody sends in. I hope you find this expectation to be encouraging and uplifting as you begin your week.

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    And with that, I will turn it over to Brother James for his exhortation entitled You Are the Light of the World. Well, as indicated by the lack. Of my two of my. Children and my wife in the back, as you know, it’s very difficult having young children. And sometimes you have to change plans midway through. And some of the hardest times that you change plans are when you’re in the middle of the night and baby number three, one years old, is crying and you don’t have your glasses. And there’s no lights on.

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    And like my wife did yesterday, we have plastered all of our windows with the blackout to make sure that when the summer sun comes up, children don’t wake. And unfortunately, in that moment is when you usually discover the toys that haven’t been cleaned up from the day before, piercing through the sole of your foot and trying not to scream to wake the rest of the children and the rest of the house. And and it’s a very uncomfortable place to be walking around, roping around in the dark. No one likes that.

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    This is a very uncomfortable position to be in, especially when you’re going through the hallways of child’s rooms and things like that. And and perhaps if if that’s not you and I know for many of you in the room, I can see that is you and I know you know exactly what I’m talking about for the rest of you who maybe. Don’t.

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    Try to imagine, just for a moment, that there was blackout on all of these windows here. All the lights were down and no one could see. But you knew that there was light just beyond that door just there. And so everyone you can hear each other’s voices. You can feel, but you can’t see. And while that’s uncomfortable, you’re a little bit more comforted by the fact that there’s other people also in the same predicament that you’re in, but all you want to do is get to the door.

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    And as you’re walking around, you maybe poke somebody in the eye and you just, I’m sorry about that, didn’t mean that you don’t need somebody in there and you’re trying to get to the to the edge and then you get always to the edge of the door and brother Nathan, he pulls out of his pocket.

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    A flashlight. And you say, you know, Nathan, you’re very wonderful and lovely brother, but you’re telling me that you had a flashlight in your pocket this entire time and you didn’t turn it on? You saw all of the confusion in the room, the pain that we were going through and the toys we were stepping on probably, and you didn’t shine a light on my path. I have to think, what kind of person really are you? It might have been entertaining for you if you had a video of the room and somehow you had an infrared view and seeing everyone kind of doing this, but I can tell you it wouldn’t be very entertaining for the person. Just to find that light so they could see the path to the exit. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto our path. You know, blessed to hear Aletheia sing that for I think it was about 5 Aletheia’s actually. And of course, that’s taken from Psalm 119, verse 105. And we use this in a metaphorical sense. We know that this word.

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    Now whether we use it as often as we should, that’s another story. But we know that this word is. A way in which we shine light on the path of our life, in the way of life that Nathan mentioned in his prayer. And when I think about this in in my own life, I also think one step further. Not just the Word, but the Word that was made flesh, our Lord Jesus Christ.

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    We sing it in our hymn, don’t we? Him. 212 OH Son of Man. Who walked? Each day. A humble Rd. serene and strong thinking about his life. Groping through the darkness of the Gentile night that he came into. And it goes on, and it says, oh, Son of God, who came and shed a light for all the ages long Thy company shall make me glad, Thy fellowship shall keep me strong. And whilst that was so true for those disciples in that 1st century who literally had the Lord, we have him in a figure on our table this morning.

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    We don’t have our Lord here. We have His Spirit, the one within us and renewing our hearts day by day as we go from 1 degree of glory to the other. But he’s not here.

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    I wonder then, as we seek this theme this morning, I wonder that if we think about that him once again about our own selves, could that be said of? You would. Brother, sister for me, come. And shed a light for all of the ages long. Will your company make me glad? Will your fellowship keep me strong?

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    And as I look at some of the faces in this room, I can tell you. That that is true. That is true. But there is a. Whole world. Out there that needs Christ in you. And this morning, as we seek after this theme, I’m hoping that the exertation that we take is that you will feel. You will feel the weight of responsibility of it is for you to be that light.

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    You are brothers and sisters, the light of the world. Now this is a bit of a challenge for us. Let’s turn to John chapter one, because the scripture appears on 1st. Glance to be perhaps a bit contradictory of this, I thought the Lord Jesus Christ was the light. Well, let’s try to explore that theme for a moment. As you all know, John begins his gospel with this beautiful poetic passage.

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    Here. Let’s take verses 4 to 9. Speaking of our Lord Jesus Christ In him was light and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to bear witness about the light that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light and the true light which enlightens everyone was coming into the world.

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    So John makes absolutely no question about it. The Lord Jesus Christ is the light. Now I find it interesting that within this same gospel. He says about John the Baptist affectionately. JTB. For those of you who remember John, it says he was not the light, but this is the same cousin, friend, burning and shining lamp together with him that confesses that exact phrase about John.

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    Only a few chapters later. In John chapter five, he says of John the Baptist that he was a burning and a shining lamp. And about those teachers of the law, he says. And you were willing. For a while to rejoice in his light. So even within just just simply within these two pages of John, we understand.

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    Whilst. We might not be the light, make no mistake, we absolutely can be light to the darkness around us. And John, as the best friend of the Lord, was a burning and a shining lamp, and those who were there that were dwelling in darkness. Of as it’s described in a in a passage we’ll read in a moment. They were dwelling in deep darkness, and John had a role to play in shedding that light for all the ages long. And the Lord Jesus.

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    He almost illustrates that opening story that I gave in John chapter 12. Flip over to John chapter 12. Just two short verses, verses 35 to 36. He says. The Lord says rather. The light is among you a little longer while you have the light. Lest the darkness overtake you Walk. The one who walks in darkness does not know where he is going.

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    While you have the light, believe in the light. Now here’s the interesting piece that you may become children of light. So everyone can understand. That’s basically the opening story. Everyone can understand this. If you have no light, you’re groping around in the dark, you can’t see and you need to walk while you have the light. Let’s say it was a candle.

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    While before the candle was going out. You try to get to that exit as fast as you could. And this of course is how the Lord was describing his own self. But what he’s saying is, while they had the light, if they took that light and walked in his light, they themselves became the children of light.

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    They became children of light. And John the Baptist was probably one of the first, the first of that new Covenant light bearing beacon for the world that he lived in, plowing that ground and turning it over, preparing the way for the Lord. And when we think about this, under that horrible period of time, the Lord knew that his time was going to be.

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    Short. He was not going to be there for very long and he knew what was coming. We understand from some of our other hymns and some of the other songs that we sing. We sing phrases like in abide with me. You think when the darkness evens Lord With me abides we sing in Blessed be your name.

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    When the darkness closes in still I will say blessed be your name. And where is our role in? Is it just metaphorical? Is it just theoretical? Is it just read the Bible a little bit more, pray a little bit more? Or do you have a participatory role in that fact? Well, I think that we do, and I think that that’s what we’ve been called to do.

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    Now, Brother Nathan actually quoted Second Corinthians 4 versus 5 to 7. Now you know this this happened to you. Right. He’s he’s making a reference to the creation period of time and and we think about that moment when the Lord opens up the the Bible really in the first few verses and says that the earth probably like some of the moments that we have with our family at times. I’m sure you can understand that the earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the facing the deep. Ah but the spirit of the Lord is brooding over that moment. So when we have these dark moments, Genesis, one puts it in a metaphor.

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    When we have these dark moments and maybe young, young person or older person, if you’ve not accepted the light into your heart, maybe this is how you feel. Maybe you feel like the the world your world is void and without form and and darkness is isn’t closing in especially these days. But God is there being over that moment, and he said. Let there be and there was light. So Paul picks this up in that passage that Nathan quoted, And he says the God who commanded light to shine in the darkness has shown in our hearts.

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    To do what? To give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ Jesus. And we have that treasure in vessels of clay. So that the surpassing power might be to him and not to us. So God intended it to be this way. So that when light shines in darkness and your life comes, comes to life. When your life comes to life, it’s because of the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of this man. And that probably happened through another person. God didn’t say abracadabra ex niello all of a sudden. Michael Edge come Faith.

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    It came through someone, someone delivered that light. Somebody carried that limb. To you. Even though it originated with Christ, it is his life. So God’s speaking this into being in practice in our life. It has a very tangible application for us in the Ecclesia. Did you notice that it says there to give. I’ve never read it that way until preparing this talk. It’s the light of the knowledge of the glory of God. And it’s to give or to proclaim.

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    What happened to us? We have been asked to share. God is like. And in him is no darkness at all as we had in that beautiful him. I almost was like which which verse of that him? 151 should we talk about? I just picked 2 lines because we could have done the whole thing and but that that phrase where it says whose light is truth and whose warmth is love. Boy, is there a world out there right now that needs warmth. And love.

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    And we are the ones that are called the brand. The reason why I entitled this talk You are the Light of the World this morning is because I found that to be a bit of a conundrum. As everyone knows Jesus and John chapter eight said I am the light of the world and whoever follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life. From Psalm 56.

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    Was a bit of a conundrum though, because. In Matthew chapter 5 that Jason just read for us, it says you are the light of the world. So sorry, which one is it? Is it him or is it us? Of course the answer is yes. Is it him or us? Yes, And and I think the Lord himself answers this in in John Chapter 9.

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    But let’s work our way to John chapter nine with two very short passages in Matthew, and then we’ll land at the Lord’s answer in John Chapter 9. So let’s turn to Matthew, chapter 4, verses 13 to 16. So really in the beginning of all, just as an interesting point for those who are follow this kind of a thing, you know, John’s Gospel opens with this poetry. Well, the Synoptic Gospels, they mentioned the same opening theme of light, but they do it more through a fulfillment of the prophetic word, especially the book of Matthew, as many of you would know.

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    Which itself is is styled a lamp shining in a dark place until the day dawns. Well, Matthew takes one of those lamp prophecies and he describes the Lord Jesus opening ministry just like this Matthew chapter 4 verses 13 to 16. It says of the Lord opening his ministry and leaving Nazareth. He went to live in Cupernium by the sea in the territory of Zebulon and Naftali. So that which was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled.

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    The land of Zebulon. In the land of Naftali, way of the sea beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles, the people dwelling in darkness, have seen a great light for those who dwell in the region of the shadow of death, On them a light has dawned. Now when I think about that in the great light, I think about that creation story where we’re told the Lord made two young people.

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    What do you know? He made two great lights. That’s right. Exactly. You can’t ask your mom the second. Let me give you one more question. Ready. So he made the two great lights. And then what does he make after that? He makes the yes. And he also makes what? There’s two great lights and. The lesser lights, the start.

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    We got to work on this family over here. We got that’s and the stars also, which obviously as many of you know is in passing. You’re thinking what do you mean in the stars Also these billions of galaxies. He speaks into being from what Hebrews 3. Hebrews 11 tells us. You know by faith.

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    We believe this universe was created by the word of God. He speaks and universe is in is is there and all of these stars. And when I think about that in my life, I think I bother with the stars. You know, I mean. They really have much function like what’s the purpose of the stars? Well, in reality, if you actually flip back to Genesis chapter one, we think about the great lights. Of course the Lord Jesus is that great light that Matthew is bringing out, but let’s not forget the lesser lights. Genesis chapter one Note in verse 16 about the two great lights.

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    It says the greater light he made to rule the day and the lesser night to rule the to rule by night. And the stars and God set them in the expanse then plural. I’m taking the sun, the moon and the stars to give light on the Earth. So even in the creation story you have the role of the sun, the role of the moon, which is reflection of the sun, the father and the sun.

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    And all the other lights collectively have a responsibility to be light on the earth and to rule over the day and to rule over the night. And when God saw that He said it was good. And Matt Barker, when the Lord looks down as we gaze up at the sky at night. And we’re so amazed by the stars.

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    I wonder if that’s how God feels when He looks down on Mount Barker. I wonder if when the Lord looks down into the darkness of man, or Little Hampton, or wherever we are, Little Hampton, he looks down and then he sees all these lights. And I wonder if he expresses gratitude for the beauty that He sees in this place.

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    Or do you not see yourself as a beautiful star for? Him Maybe you should. Because, brothers and sisters, no one who refuses to shine now will shine. Then let’s go to Matthew chapter 5, which was in our reading. Let’s just take a couple very small phrases out of that section that Jason read for us. Matthew chapter 5, verses 13 to 16 And as as you probably noticed, the Lord opens his sermon on the mount, He goes through the Beatitudes, and his very first exertation is salt and light.

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    He begins with the metaphor of salt, and we’ll come back to that in a second. But he says in verse 14 this is his opening. Challenge to these brand new disciples. You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot. Be hidden. And if you come right down to the verse 16 in the same way he he gives this metaphor about the light in the basket. And he says in the same way, let your light so shine before others that what might happen out of out of duty, out of necessity, out of commandment.

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    No way, he says. So that they may see your good works and glorify your Father, who is in heaven. So the ultimate end of this shining is God’s glory, which is the ultimate end of everything. But this is a major way that God gets glory in this Dark World. It’s by people seeing the light that you shine. Well, that’s that’s exactly why that verse that’s sandwiched in between and verse 15, he says.

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    This is why people don’t light a lamp and put it under her basket. If we go back to that, it’s like me I’m sure at night time for the parents. When you’re trying to get through, you flip, you know you grab through your phone and you flip your flip your light on and it’s like taking that light and putting in your pocket.

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    That’s the purpose of having the light is there, is to, is to shine the way. And sometimes I feel in my life I can come into a room like this and I’m so overcome with love for this man and love for his church and love for the gospel. And then I walk out there and people are like, it’s just a normal guy, that that’s the same as there’s no doubt that there’s fire and that there’s light in here.

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    But when we walk out there, if we hide it, if we keep it to ourself, it’s that’s what that’s like. And there’s a whole world that is so unbelievably desperate for your light, for that word to be made flesh in you and for you to come alive and bring salt. Now this is this is a a lovely thing. This idea of salt and light.

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    Know if you’ve ever thought of yourself as a flavorful person. There’s many flavorful flavor some people in here. But you know are you, are you bringing savory? Are you plain? Or when the world interacts with you today huh that’s that’s fresh. That’s nice. That’s beautiful. They’re participating in your life. That’s the salt. You’re you’re the salt.

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    Of the Earth and the light of the world. This world needs you. This savory, you know world that’s just blase and this whole pandemic. They need lit people like. You they need lit people like me. We owe it to Christ to bring him out there. That’s why he said you are the light of the world. And when the city is set on a hill, it cannot be hidden. It literally cannot.

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    And sometimes I feel like we live in the valleys. We’ve gone off the hill and we’re just living, living in the valleys. So how do we bring these two things together? Well, I think the Lord doesn’t. In John Chapter 9. Because you think, well, that’s a pretty big call. The Lord is the light of the world. And all these disciples remember in the Sermon on the Mount, this is brand new for them.

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    They’re saying, what is this teaching? They’re astonished at this teaching. He opens up by saying you’re the solution. Nice to see you, Jeff and the Lord, when he’s talking about when he’s going through the healing of the blind man, he puts it this way. And I don’t know if you’ve ever read it like this, but let’s read it closely in verse 5, without going through the parable or with the living parable, that I hope that you all would know.

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    The Lord says, and picking up in verse four, we must work the works of Him you sent me. While it is day, the night is coming when no one can work. And as long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world that solved it for me. He’s saying as long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world. Well, the Lord is no longer in the world. So who’s got the mantle?

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    Mount Barker, Canterbury, Adelaide, The the the world that testifies to Christ. We take up that mantle and the Lord whilst he is still the source of that light. They’re not going to see him unless they see us. And I love how a memorial service is actually illustrated this way. Come over to Acts, Chapter 20.

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    I’m sure some of you have probably seen this before, but I just thought it was just nice. You look at Acts Chapter 20 this evening, memorial service. You think about the 1st century Ecclesia. They’re joining together in this upper room. This new discovery, this new gospel, is just absolutely on fire in the 1st century.

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    And when you get to Acts chapter 20, you get this this picture. And it’s a literal picture, but it’s just so pregnant with meaning. I can’t help but think that Luke recorded this passage this way so that we could see something extra. And maybe you will now have a look at Acts 20 and verse 7 on the first day of the week, just like we are here today. When we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight.

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    And there were many lamps in the upper room that were gathered. Well, that was obviously literally true. They’re there at night, and they don’t have light switches on the wall, so there’s lots of lamps. But what an amazing metaphor. There they were, breaking bread. And from the Lord’s perspective, they’re all these lamps surrounded by the central menorah, the central Candlestick of the six on the side and the one in the center. They’re all these little lamps.

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    They’re all these little lights that are surrounded by the great light. And that’s what they’re there in that 1st century gathered to do. So brothers and sisters, here this morning you see yourself as a little lamp. Maybe you feel like you’re maybe you feel like you’re a smoking flax from Isaiah 42. Well, Christ is here to stand you into flame, A smoking flax. He will not snuff out a bruised greed he will not break. He’s just glad that you’re here and we’re here to get more oil in our lamp so we can get out there and shine for him. And I just love that.

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    And maybe when you read X20 next time you can remember this, this talk. Now this is literally commanded to us in Philippians chapter 2. So let’s have a look at Philippians chapter 2, verses 15 to 16. This this metaphor is intentionally used by. Paul and I. And while he probably wasn’t thinking of all the things that I’m thinking of, he certainly knew that this was a a major portion of God’s creative intent with creating those stars. Libyan’s Chapter 2, verse 15 and 16. Very familiar words, but I hope they’re so powerful for you now. In this moment he commands that we would be blameless and innocent children of God, like the children of the light in in the Gospels, without blemish, in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world.

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    And verse 16 says, holding fast the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not turn in, that I did not run in vain, or labor in vain. The exhortation really for me is the the statement that I mentioned before. Those who do not shine now will not shine Then the commandment is to shine his lights in the world, holding for us this word of life, so that in the day of Christ the teachers, the fathers in the ecclesia would be proud.

66. 29:29

    That’s how, Paul. Feels. Now, where does he get this idea from? I think he gets it from Daniel chapter 12. So flip over to Daniel chapter 12, where it effectively says exactly that. So Daniel, chapter 12, verses two and three, Speaking of that great day of the of Christ’s return, says and many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting. But those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the sky above, and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.

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    Brothers and sisters, that’s a huge responsibility. We’ve been called to earn many to righteousness, to shine a light where there’s darkness. And how many times do we walk past Someone that you can you can see clearly is in darkness, whether it’s in here or out there. Someone who is struggling, someone who was wrestling.

68. 30:48

    And we walk by. The commitment that we need to have is to be carry his name, carry his lamp, and to turn many to righteousness by just shining a light. It’s not ours, it’s His shining a light on a dark place. That is the commitment that we give to Christ when we let His Word shine a light on our own path.

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    Even when it’s on our path. Other people can join our path. We can lead others as He is commanded to be, a light for the nation’s, a beacon of hope to a lost world and as we’ll see in the closing video, a lighthouse for those who are lost adrift on the sea of life. And I hope that as we do that God looks down and he sees that beautiful starry sky down here, perceiving us as the lights that shine in this Dark World.

70. 31:42

    There’s one challenge with this though, and the challenge is the Lord’s commanding us to let our light shine before others. How do we avoid being proud? How do we avoid this becoming a a chest pumping exercise where we’re showing all the things that we do? Well, right within the Sermon on the mouth, the Lord counters this with some balancing teaching, and we don’t have to read it.

71. 32:05

    But in Matthew chapter 6, you know that the Lord says beware of practicing your righteousness before others. Beware of practicing your righteousness before others in order that they may see you or to be seen by them. He’s saying let these things be done in secret. Here’s how I make sense of this You can’t help your neighbor in darkness or in secret by definition.

72. 32:30

    Helping your neighbor, assisting your neighbor, giving, supporting. It’s by definition going to be seen by others. What are the things that the Lord is asking to be done in secret? It’s private devotions, isn’t it? He’s not. He’s not contradicting himself by saying let your lights are shine before others, that people may see your good works and glorify God, and then the next breath say, well actually don’t do any, you know, don’t do these things to be seen by others. What he’s referring to in the context of that is actually things like prayers and praise.

73. 33:00

    We’re not. We’re not looking to be have our private devotions shown out. But private devotions and good works are two quite distinct different things. One is about carrying our burning lamp to a place of darkness, while the other one is indication of how great the darkness is within our own hearts. Of one God will be the judge exclusively, while of the others others will be. Others will be judged by those with whom we have to do and doing good for other people, by definition is to be seen by others.

74. 33:31

    So when you see someone who’s overcome with the black dog, and I know many of you know what I’m talking about. When you see someone struggling with depression and anxiety, wrestling under the ailments of old age, someone with a broken body or suffering as some of our members here and we mentioned in our prayer, or suffering with physical illness.

75. 33:51

    Or maybe it’s someone who’s single and lonely, or someone who’s has constant conflict in their family, or just maybe lack self esteem. That’s your moment. That’s your time to bring the light there. That’s your time to share your lamp and bring the warmth and love that we sung about to that person’s life.

76. 34:10

    And this is exactly how Peter so I hope everybody enjoyed end of years. Jonna’s talks were awesome. And when Jonna was reflecting on Peter, when he’s thinking about the end of his life, Peter’s reflecting back on his responsibility and he writes in First Peter chapter 2. In verse nine you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light, that you might proclaim it, that you might speak it. It’s a responsibility.

77. 34:48

    It’s we’re commissioned to do this. And when we think about this later in Peter, in in first Peter 2 verse 12, only a few verses later, he says and keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evil doers, again like the Lord, and he was there, he was there in the sermon on the mouth he heard the Lord say it. And he says in his own way that they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. And that’s not.

78. 35:17

    What you want? I don’t want someone to, on the day of visitation, glorify me. I want them to say Christ made an impact in that person’s life, and I want to know about it. Christ got them through that depressive state. Christ got them through that family tragedy. Christ got them through that physical sickness.

79. 35:35

    And Christ carried that lonely person through Christ his glory. Now I’m going to finish this book reminding you of a story. Cast your mind back to 2010 when we spent some time together up in Hebron. You couldn’t forget it, right? Who can forget the Palmer’s cooking? The pig? Who could? Who could forget David Hackett’s pillar that he built to the ceiling? And of course, who could forget Luke trying to get us to eat meerkat on a stick and buy Uncle Ben’s tofu anyway, for those who you know, you know.

80. 36:13

    But in that study, when we looked at the Tabernacle, one of the final things that we looked at was going into the Most Holy Place and seeing the light that just was. There was no lamp, no oil, nothing burning. The chicana glory that dwelled there, but we’re not there now, Hebrews says. That’s heaven itself.

81. 36:31

    That’s when heaven and earth combined. We’re waiting for that day. But that’s not now. Now is in the previous Tabernacle. Hebrews talks about two enter into the first Tabernacle before the 2nd, and the first had that menorah. And every day they had to trim those lamps, fill them with oil so that they could see, you see, that menorah in that holy place.

82. 36:53

    There was no windows. It was like the blackouts in my opening story. There was absolutely nothing in there. They’d be stepping on, you know, snuffers and whatever else they had from the from the incense altar. But that light was there always. At morning and night, they trimmed those lamps and they filled them. That’s our life today.

83. 37:09

    We gotta shine, brothers and sisters. This world, the Ecclesia world, needs us to do that as well. Not just the outside world, but here in the Ecclesia. And boy can it be easy to get discouraged in our community. Can it? We got to hang in there. We need you all to shine that light while we are communing in that first holy place, so that we can get through that veil and get into the most holy in the future.

84. 37:35

    And the Lord says exactly that. He tells us that we are those lamp stands. Think about in Revelation. Of course God’s word is a lamp into our path, but in Revelation that becomes personified in the ecclesia. Then in Revelation chapter 2, the Revelation chapter one rather, and verse 20, it says As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand.

85. 38:00

    And the seven golden lamp stands. The seven stars are the angels of the seven ecclesias, and the seven lamp stands over the seven ecclesias. It’s us. We are that. We are the lamp to the world’s dark path. It’s us, and it’s also individually as much as it is collectively. As we think about the Lord’s sacrifice. There’s one moment in this life that I hope that as we partake of these emblems now let’s try to apply this. But think about how the Lord received this. Do you remember when the Lord was about to be taken in Luke chapter 22?

86. 38:38

    I think we actually had this at end of your studies. We might have gone through that. And Luke, chapter 22, when he’s about to be taken, the Lord says, while I was with you day by day in the temple, you did not lay your hands on me. But this is your hour and the power of darkness.

87. 38:58

    You know the Lord felt that darkness just like you and I do. And the Lord needed in that moment. He needed friendship and support from in the ecclesia. And he asked for the three Peter James. John And in his moment of greatest need, he came back utterly disappointed. They were sleeping and he said to them, couldn’t you watch One hour?

88. 39:27

    And some of us are suffering, some of us are carrying these great and and heavy burdens in life, and some of us are looking into each other and are we sleeping? Couldn’t you? Couldn’t we watch with each other for one hour? The Lord had only one place to turn in that time. And there will be times when there is no light other than our God.

89. 39:48

    And we have to say to ourselves, the Lord is my light and my salvation. So, brother, sister, you don’t have to be the light of the entire world like He was. You are not the light, but you can be a light to someone in need. You can be a burning and shining lamp. To another person’s world, and in the multitude of all of us carrying that little bit of a lamp, we shine such a great collective light.

90. 40:21

    It’s like the stars in the sky. We can turn even the darkness of a period like this pandemic into a period of beauty as we see all of us doing our little piece in our little corner. And there’s lots of little children songs that you could sing not for today, but you know, you could sing Give me oil in my Lamp. You could sing this little light of mine. But I want to bring to it to you attention to the words of a very, very old song that I’m just going to read as a poem to. Conclude how many people remember that little red book, that little Sunday school book, The little red one with all the Sunday School songs.

91. 40:55

    Raise your hand if you remember that one. You remember the song? Jesus, Pizza shine. Come on, Carol, you got to play it. After this, I’m going to read. I’m going to read you the words because they’re so beautiful. For children, for adults and for everyone. And I’d like to conclude with these thoughts because I think they’re so powerful.

92. 41:12

    Jesus bids us shine with a pure clear light, like a little candle burning in the night. In the world is darkness, and so we must shine. You and your small corner and I in mine. Jesus bids us shine first of all for him well, He sees and knows it. When our light grows dim, he looks down from heaven to see us shine. You and your small corner and I.

93. 41:41

    In mine Jesus bids us shine. For all around many kinds of darkness in this world are found sin and want and sorrow. And so we must shine. You and your small corner and I and mine. Beautiful words, isn’t it? The light that we have that we remember this morning was not meant to be undisclosed. There’s a whole world out there waiting for you to come. And some attending here that are groping around in the darkness of life, trying to find the edges, looking for the switch, looking for a light.

94. 42:23

    The question for us this morning is, are we waiting for Christ to come back for the light to? Appear, or will you keep this light to yourself? Because if we are not shining His light in this world, then who will so carry your lamp, run to the darkness and go light your world?

95. 42:50

    Thank you. Thank you for listening to the Good Cause Adelphian Talks Podcast. We hope this talk helped you in your walk and brightened your day. If you would like to hear more, please subscribe for new episodes. We are on all major podcast platforms and also on YouTube. If you enjoyed this particular talk, please share it with someone else who you think might enjoy it too.

96. 43:25

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97. 43:54

    Or message us on any of our social media accounts. Thank you for listening. God bless and talk to you next week.