Readings
Isaiah 58:1-9a, [9b-12]
Psalm 112:1-9, (10)
1 Corinthians 2:1-12, [13-16]
Matthew 5:13-20
Sing the first verse of “This little light of mine.”
In today’s Gospel Jesus reminds us that we are the light of the world. He says “A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house.” He tells us to let our light shine before others that “they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.”
What does it mean to let your light shine? Does letting your light shine mean overtly sharing your faith with others? Does it mean doing good works? Does it mean being true to your faith and living with integrity?
Well in some ways it means all of those things and in others it doesn’t. Even so, I believe there’s more going on than simply doing good works, living with integrity, or sharing your faith.
We, as Episcopalians, are most comfortable with the idea of doing good works. As a parish and as a denomination we work tirelessly for the wellbeing of others and for issues of peace and justice. This has been the case for decades, if not centuries. And to do so is not a bad thing. The letter of James in the New Testament says that faith without works is dead. To do good deeds is an essential part of living a life of faith with integrity.
But, I would call you to listen once again to this sentence from today’s Gospel: “let your light shine before others that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” Letting our light shine reveals our good works. Letting our light shine allows for others to give glory to God.
So letting our light shine isn’t simply about doing good works, is it? No, good works by themselves is not the full expression of us being the light of the world.
So we are once again left with the quandary of what it means to let our light shine. It clearly is connected to our good deeds, but is more than that. It is that which illuminates our work and the meaning behind it.
We are being called to shed light on why we do what we do. We are being called to make explicit the connection between our faith and our works. We are being called to create the opportunity for others to see us as more than “do gooders,” but instead to see the deep implication of our relationship to Christ.
In short Jesus is calling us to practice evangelism. But this is a radically different understanding of evangelism than most of us grew up with. We’re not simply being called to share our faith as some personal expression of belief. We’re not being asked to go out and convert others to the faith we find meaningful. No, those forms have nothing to do with letting our light shine as Jesus defines it this morning.
No, we are being asked to not simply live out our faith, but to let people know why we do what we do.
We don’t have to be obnoxious about it. We don’t have to beat people over the head. We don’t have to get preachy or teachy. All we have to do is let people know why we do what we do.
Now that is going to take some courage. Because when we put our light on a lamp stand we risk others rejecting what we say and rejecting who we are. Also, because communication is so difficult, we risk being misunderstood. But that doesn’t let us off the hook.
Why? Because our lives have been blessed by God and to simply keep that blessing to ourselves is inauthentic to the faith of Jesus. Just as we work to lift people out of their poverty, and seek to right the social wrongs of our day, we also are called to lift people up spiritually. We are called to expose others to the deep connection between our material life and our spiritual one. We do not have to convince them of the rightness of our thought or the reasons why we do what we do, but we do need to be brave enough to share it.
There’s an old saying: “you are the only gospel someone will ever read.” We live in a world where faith and spirituality are increasingly diminishing among people. The connection to how we live and what we experience spiritually is being lost. This has not only resulted in the decline of church attendance, but contributed to many of the ills of our society and the fraying of our social fabric.
We are being called to be nothing less than a light in the midst of the darkness. We are being called to do our good works not simply for their own sake but for the sake of others and for the sake of our faith. It is through us that God is repairing the breach and healing the wounds and, if we are but brave enough to be the light, that God is raising up our spirits and those around us.
So, let us be brave. Let us be willing to tell others why we do the good works we do. Let us not hide our light, but let it shine, shine, shine.