On several recorded occasions Jesus described Himself as - and He was - "the light of the world". John, very early in his gospel (1.4) said "In him was life and the life was the light of men." And in verse 9; "That was the true Light which lights every man that comes into the world". Towards the end of His ministry (John 8.12) Jesus said publicly that: "I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness but shall have the light of life". Then, in chapter12 verse 46 John tells us that our Lord said: "I have come as light into the world, that whosoever believes in me may not remain in darkness"

Such words angered the Pharisees and religious leaders of the Jews because they looked upon themselves as the only source of enlightenment concerning the Word of God. Yet their teachings offered no solutions to the problems that worried ordinary people. The teachers and lawyers were more interested in disputes about words; abstract ideas that were only remotely connected with a true understanding of God and His purpose. Consequently the authoritative statements of Jesus and the stories that He used to illustrate His point, came as a great flood of light on the experiences and difficulties which men and women encountered in their daily routine.            Through the ages God had sent prophets who were each permitted to reveal a little more of the purpose of God. They lit lamps that burned through the centuries, lighting the path of men and women. They were beacons guiding men to the glory of God that could be seen in the face of Jesus Christ. His light uncovered the hidden mysteries of men's own sinful hearts. His light revealed the love in the heart of the Creator. It has shone down the ages pointing men to a day when the glory of God would cover the earth as waters cover the sea.

Just as Jesus was the reflection of His Father so His disciples have reflected Him. They too become "the light of the world" being shed to all men.

Writing in his first letter to the Corinthian Church, (1.26-28) Paul tells us that it is the divine purpose that no-one may glory in God's sight. He has chosen to call: "Not many wise men according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; and God has chosen the base things of the world, and things which are despised, and things which are not, in order to bring to nothing things that are; so that no flesh should glory in His presence."

When we consider this statement about God's calling we should keep in mind that no-one stands in more need of remembering these words than those who regard themselves as being called out ones.

It doesn't matter if, to the world, we appear to be unwise, to be weak, base or even if we're despised. But it does matter, very much, if, amongst the ranks of those claiming to be called into His glorious light, someone dares to count as base and despised someone who is dear to the heart of God. In fact in Luke 17 verse 2 we're told that Jesus said that: "It would be better for him that a millstone were hanged around his neck and he were cast into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones. "

The one who is truly humble is dead to pomp and foolish show: safe from the damage of pride because of honours the world bestows and which are but fading laurels. The humble Christian isn't concerned about rivals or competitors and he bears no malice. His Christian attitude to these things results in his saying "None of these things move me." It's the Spiritual life of the next world that he's looking for, not the fading glories that might come in this one.

As Paul told the Corinthians in his second letter (5.17& 18): "If anyone is in Christ, that one is a new creature; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. And all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given to us the ministry of reconciliation." In these verses the apostle mentions two things that are necessary if we're to be in Christ.

First, we must be reconciled to God, which is both an unquestionable privilege granted to us by our heavenly Father and an undoubted duty on our part. Reconciliation supposes that a quarrel or breach of friendship has occurred; and it's sin that has caused the breach to be made. It has broken the friendship between God and man, turning the heart of man away from God. So, if we're to be new creatures in Christ we must turn back to our Heavenly Father, and be reconciled to Him.

Then we're to be regenerated which means that old thoughts, old principles, and old practices, are passed away; and all these things must become new, so that these new creatures have new aims, new objects in life, new hopes. To them earthly things have no importance, the only usefulness they may have is if they can be used to glorify the Lord and serve Him. While earthly learning, reputations, honours and titles are valuable only as far as they can be employed in some way to further glorify God.

When we truly come to have knowledge of the Lord and His teachings, we will gradually become more humble and the change will knock the self-conceit out of us. The feverish ambition to be "somebody", to outdo other people and to strut across our little stage, posing in all sorts of pretentious ways so that we might incite admiration for ourselves, or receive the applause of others, will be gone. Instead we will devote our lives to the one in whose honourable service we've been enrolled and accepted, not for what we can get out of it but for love of Him who died for us. All our undertakings, whether they're sacred or secular: in our work or our private lives: in our public and private speech, in fact everything in which we have the choice or over which we may have some control or direction, must be such that our Lord will approve. They must be conditioned by the Spirit of God. Even in such things as eating, drinking, clothing and home comforts this rule still holds good: we should only do those things of which we genuinely believe Christ would approve and which we would not be ashamed of His seeing. This rule may seem to be strict, and in following it we may well make a poor showing, but if we wish to be a part of His Kingdom of Priests it's the rule we must follow. However, we will find that the more we come to love Him the easier it will be to follow His leading.

The development of these things in us is all a part of our Christian Growth from the condition where we were "babes in Christ," to that of full Christian maturity, and in Ephesians 4. 1 -3 Paul exhorts us to: "Walk worthy of the calling with which you are called, with all lowliness and meekness, with long-suffering, forbearing one another in love, endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." And he makes it clear that "walking worthily" means endeavouring by every means to keep the unity of the Spirit and to help us in our efforts to keep this unity he reminds us, in verses 4—6 that: "There is one body and one Spirit, even as you are called in one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in you all ". In all these we share as brethren in Christ, and we all have the same foundation on which we stand. Our individual capabilities may well differ, in fact they almost certainly are different, and so is our ability to understand the deep things of God's Word. This will, in turn, affect our understanding of doctrine and modify our viewpoint. However in verse 7 Paul tells us that: "Every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ." Our Lord has proportioned the gifts he has given us according to our capacity for receiving and making use of them. Then, as we are increasingly able to make use of these gifts because of our growth and development, He gives us more.

In verses 11 to 13 He goes on to say that although we were "babes" He has, to help us in our growth, given: "Some to be apostles, and some to be prophets, and some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ." So that we will, as we become more mature Christians: "All come into the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a full-grown man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.."   This unity of the faith is NOT everyone assenting to various set points of doctrine—or a sheep-like following of one person's opinions. Although, it must be said that a proper understanding of the great Bible doctrines about sin and death, redemption and life, the High Calling and mankind's destiny, is a necessary step towards attaining that unity. It's our fellowship with one another and our belief in Jesus and His word that brings unity, while the unity of the faith, talked about in verse 13, is our fellowship with our heavenly Father, our knowledge of Him and His laws.

Then the Apostle emphasises why we must develop this unity: "So that we no longer may be infants, tossed to and fro and carried about by every wind of doctrine, in the dishonesty of men, in cunning craftiness, to the wiles of deceit. But that you, speaking the truth in love, may in all things grow up to Him who is the Head, even Christ; from whom the whole body, fitted together and compacted by that which every joint supplies, according to the effectual working in the measure of each part, producing the growth of the body to the edifying of itself in love. "

Which is saying that as long as we continue to be tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine we'll remain "babes" and be unable to mature. If we have no fixed views and hold to no doctrines that are settled in our minds by careful and patient examination, the consequence will be that we will yield to every new opinion, and submit to the guidance of every new teacher. What Paul is stressing here is that we should come to settled opinions about what we find from our Bible studies: that we should carefully examine what is truth, and having found it, should adhere to it, and not change because of the opinion of a new teacher. Of course we shouldn't close our minds against other opinions and we should be willing to discuss different points of view, and be ready to follow "the truth" wherever it will lead us.

This state of mind is not incompatible with having settled opinions, and with being firm in holding them until we are convinced that we are wrong. It merely means that we aren't being stubbornly dogmatic about the views that we've formed, but are ready, should someone come up with a new thought, to thoroughly, and impartially, examine what they say and then modify our views IF we find it to be necessary.

In his first letter to the church at Corinth, chapter 6 verses 9 -11 Paul warns them that: Surely you know that the wicked will not possess God's Kingdom. Do not fool yourselves; people who are immoral or who worship idols or are adulterers or homosexual perverts or who steal or are greedy or are drunkards or who slander others or are thieves-none of these will possess God's Kingdom. Then he reminds them of the many great faults, to which they had been formerly addicted by saying: Some of you were like that. But you have been purified from sin; you have been dedicated to God,. you have been put right with God by the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

We have all had many large faults to overcome as we started our spiritual walk and in the main these were comparatively easy to eliminate. It's the little faults, the seemingly harmless faults that are hardest to eradicate. Faults that corrode the life of the new creature in Christ, slowing their spiritual growth and eventually slowing our production of the Fruit of the Spirit, so affecting the lives of those around us.

One of the very early writers said, "Be very careful about those sins, which you call little, they may seem to be small and insignificant in themselves, but add them all up and you'll be astounded by their total." Its these little sins - little faults and failings - that Jesus hates so much because they can so ravage our lives that they stop us from having proper fellowship with Him.

At the beginning of the third chapter of his letter to the Colossians Paul tells us that: If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. Be mindful of things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life has been hidden with Christ in God. So if we're truly risen with Christ - if we're really New creatures in Him - a transforming work should be going on in our hearts and minds: we should be eradicating these small failings, just as, hopefully, we've disposed of the large ones, because if we don't they'll hold us back and prevent us from going on to Higher Things.

Then to make sure that we're not showing pride because we've disposed of the large faults that we once had, and are looking down on those who haven't yet got rid of theirs, he reminds us in verse seven that we used to be like them. We should perhaps remember that it's only by the grace of God that we've no longer got them.

Genuine humility in ourselves is not something we can talk about because when we claim to be humble we immediately forfeit that characteristic. Humility is something that belongs to our private walk with God: as soon as we make it public it turns into boasting or pride. It has been said that the heart is like a well and that the mouth and the eyes are like buckets that draw the water from the well. If humility is not in the heart the eyes and the mouth will show it. Speaking of this Luke, in the sixth chapter of his gospel, verse 45, reports that our Lord said: A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth the good. And an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth the evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks. For of God we are fellow-workers, a field of God, and you are a building of God. (1 Cor.3:9)

If we're part of a building of God then let Him fashion us according to His divine ideal of beauty, at whatever cost to our selfishness, or pride. Christ is working in us and on us, and we should be working with Him and for Him: this is the process that produces the structures that He will present before His Father.

In some of the great houses of Europe may be seen pictures not painted with the brush, but mosaics, which are made up of small pieces of stone, glass, or other material. The artist takes these little pieces, and, polishing and arranging them, he forms them into beautiful pictures. Each individual part of a picture may be a little worthless piece of glass or marble or shell: but, with each in its place, the whole constitutes a masterpiece of art. This is a picture of man in the hands of the great Artist. God is picking up the little worthless pieces of stone and brass that might be trodden under foot unnoticed, and is arranging them into His great masterpiece.

RJH