When you turn on the news, it’s clear that the world is hurting. Christ makes us the light of the world so that everyone can find the healing message of the gospel.
In the Old Testament, Israel was called to shine, to bring God to all those around them. This is why there were a chosen people.
But, they ended using their calling as a point of pride and exclusion.
Jesus now calls us, as his followers, to fulfill the mission that was originally given to Israel.
He calls us to bring mercy, healing, and peace into the world.
This isn’t a new mission, nor do we have a different message. It’s the same message that’s found throughout all of scripture, including the Old Testament.
As Jesus said, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law and the prophets; I came not to destroy but to fulfill.”
Through Jesus’s sacrifice on the cross, and our witness of that great love, the world can find the peace it’s searching for.
But, we must be a witness, a light, to that Good News.
The Reading
You are the light of the world. A city set upon a hill cannot be hidden; Neither do they light a lamp and place it under the dry-goods basket, but rather they place it upon a lampstand, and it illumines all who are in the house. So let your light shine out before humanity, so that they may see your good works and may glorify your Father in the heavens.
“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law and the prophets; I came not to destroy but to fulfill. For, amen, I tell you, until heaven and earth shall pass away, not a single iota or single serif must vanish from the Law, until all things come to pass. Whoever breaks one of the least of the commandments and teaches people to do likewise shall be called least in the Kingdom of the heavens; but whoever performs and teaches it, this one shall be called great in the Kingdom of the heavens. (Matthew 5:14-19