ASSIGNMENTS

1. Daily read over this material and read or sing the song.

2. Place the scripture where you will see it each day.

3. Think of areas of your life where you are not letting your light shine to bring glory to God.

4. Write down the ways you have let your light shine.

6. Plan to tell the class how you have let your light shine in some way in the past, or tell how you have failed to let your light shine and glorify God in your life.

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We are told to let our light shine, and if it does, we won't need to tell anybody it does. Lighthouses don't fire cannons to call attention to their shining- they just shine. - Dwight Moody

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It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.

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The darker the world, the brighter even a small light appears.

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DAILY BIBLE VERSES AND PRAYER THOUGHTS

MONDAY - VERSES: 1 Peter 2:9; 1 John 1:7; 2:8-10 PRAYER THOUGHT: Ask God to help you abide in His light.

TUESDAY - VERSES: Psalm 119:105,130; 2 Peter 1:19-21 PRAYER THOUGHT: Ask God to help you use the light of His Word to light your life for those around to see.

WEDNESDAY - VERSES: Romans 13:12; Ephesians 5:8-11; 1 Thessalonians 5:4-8 PRAYER THOUGHT: Ask God to help you to live as a child of light and put off the works of darkness.

THURSDAY - VERSES: Isaiah 2:5; 2 Corinthians 4:3-6 PRAYER THOUGHT: Pray that God never allow you to be the reason that others do not see the light of the gospel.

FRIDAY - VERSES: Psalm 139:11-12; 1 Corinthians 4:5 PRAYER THOUGHT: Confess your sins to God and ask for strength to live in the light since nothing can be hidden from Him.

SATURDAY - VERSES: Isaiah 9:2; John 12:36; Acts 26:18 PRAYER THOUGHT: Ask God to help you show His light to others and truly be the light of the world as He intended His followers to be.

SPIRITUAL HEALTH REGIMEN - WEEK 56

SHINE LIGHT - 8-18-13 TO 8-24-13

SCRIPTURE - (Mat 5:16) "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

COMMENT - A light that does not shine is of no value. As Christians we must let others know that we are Christians by our deeds so that God gets the glory not us.

SONG – THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE

1. This little Christian light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine, This little Christian light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine, This little Christian light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine, Let it shine, all the time, let it shine.

2. When I go to work, you know, I'm gonna let it shine, When I go to work, you know, I'm gonna let it shine, When I go to work, you know, I'm gonna let it shine, let it shine, all the time, let it shine.

3. When I'm on the street, you know, I'm gonna let it shine, When I'm on the street, you know, I'm gonna let it shine, When I'm on the street, you know, I'm gonna let it shine, Let it shine, all the time, let it shine.

4. When I'm with the church, you know, I'm gonna let it shine, When I'm with the church, you know, I'm gonna let it shine, When I'm with the church, you know, I'm gonna let it shine, Let it shine, all the time, let it shine.

5. All around the neighborhood, I'm gonna let it shine, All around the neighborhood, I'm gonna let it shine, All around the neighborhood, I'm gonna let it shine, Let it shine, all the time, let it shine.

6. Don't let Satan blow it out! I'm gonna let it shine, Don't let Satan blow it out! I'm gonna let it shine, Don't let Satan blow it out! I'm gonna let it shine, Let it shine, all the time, let it shine.

7. Hide it under a bushel, NO! I'm gonna let it shine, Hide it under a bushel, NO! I'm gonna let it shine, Hide it under a bushel, NO! I'm gonna let it shine, Let it shine, all the time, let it shine.

THOUGHTS

The story is told of a lighthouse keeper who worked on a rocky stretch of coastline and who received his new supply of oil once a month to keep the light burning. Not being far from shore, he had frequent guests. One night a woman from the village begged some oil to keep her family warm. Another time a father asked for some to use in his lamp. Another needed some to lubricate a wheel. Since all the requests seemed legitimate, the lighthouse keeper tried to please everyone and granted them all.

Toward the end of the month he noticed that the supply of oil was very low. Soon, it was gone, and the beacon light went out. That night several ships were wrecked and lives were lost.

When the authorities investigated, the man was very repentant. To his excuses and pleading their reply was: "You were given the oil for one purpose -- to keep that light burning!"

Are people lost because you have not let your light shine?

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People are attracted to light to find answers to life's problems.

The truth of this situation was graphically illustrated in a humorous skit performed by Karl Vallentin, a Munich comedian. Walking on a stage where everything was dark except for a small area under a street lamp, he began to look for something on the ground under the light. He told the policeman who came on the scene that he was trying to find a key, whereupon the two continued the search. Finally the officer asked, "Are you sure you lost it here?" "Oh, no," said Vallentin as he pointed to a corner, "It was over there, but here is where the light is!"

Are you attracting people to yourself for direction to God?

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The well-known Bible teacher Keith Brooks had just finished speaking to a large class of businessmen on the Christian's responsibility to be a "light" in the world. He emphasized that believers are to reflect the Light of the world, the Lord Jesus. After the class, one of the members related to him an experience he had in his home which had impressed upon this same truth. He said that when he went into his basement he made an interesting discovery. Some potatoes had sprouted in the darkest corner of the room. At first he couldn't figure out how they had gotten enough light to grow. Then he noticed that the cook had hung a copper kettle from the ceiling near a cellar window. She kept it so brightly polished that it reflected the rays of the sun onto the potatoes. The businessman said to Brooks, "When I saw that, I thought, I may not be a preacher or a teacher with ability to expound Scripture, but at least I can be a copper kettle catching the rays of the Son and reflecting His light to someone in a dark corner."

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A young boy about nine years old went with his parents to Europe one summer. Part of their tour was visiting the great old cathedrals of the past. As he would visit cathedral after cathedral he saw the massive stained glass portraits of the disciples and of other saints. He was so impressed as he stood in these great empty halls looking through the beautiful stained glass windows.

Upon return, when asked by his Sunday School teacher, what about the great churches of Europe did he like the most, and what was his definition of a saint, he thought for a moment and he said, "I loved the sense of awesomeness and the hugeness of who God must be. And what is a saint?" And as his mind went back to those massive beautiful stained glass windows, he said, "A saint is a man the light shines through." Jesus said, "Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven."

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LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE

INTRODUCTION - MATTHEW 5:14-16; JOHN 8:12; 12:35, 46

I. THE PRIVILEGE OF BEING THE LIGHT - MATTHEW 5:14a;

2 CORINTHIANS 5:18-21; EPHESIANS 5:8; 1 THESSALONIANS 5:5

II. THE POWER OF THE LIGHT - MATTHEW 5:14b; ROMANS 13:12; LUKE 11:33-36; JOHN 11:9-10

III. THE PROJECTION OF THE LIGHT - MATTHEW 5:15; ACTS 13:47; 1 JOHN 2:7-11; ACTS 26:18

IV. THE PURITY OF THE LIGHT - 2 CORINTHIANS 6:14; ROMANS 13:12-14; JOHN 3:19-21

V. THE PRAISE FOR THE LIGHT - MATTHEW 5:16b; 1 PETER 2:9-10; 2 CORINTHIANS 4:6

CONCLUSION

LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE

INTRODUCTION

SCRIPTURE - (Mat 5:14-16) "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. {15} "Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. {16} "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

A. TALK ABOUT AND/OR SHOW DIFFERENT TYPE OF LIGHTS: CANDLE, FLASHLIGHT, INCANDESCENT, FLORESCENT, FLOOD, SPOT. ALL HAVE THE SAME PURPOSE

B. LIGHT DISPELS DARKNESS - (John 12:46) "I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.

C. LIGHT GIVES DIRECTION - (John 12:35) Then Jesus said to them, "A little while longer the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going.

D. LIGHT GIVES LIFE - (John 8:12) Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life."

I. THE PRIVILEGE OF BEING THE LIGHT - (Mat 5:14a) "You are the light of the world.

A. WE ARE AMBASSADORS - (2 Cor 5:18-21) Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, {19} that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. {20} Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. {21} For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

B. WE ARE LIGHT - (Eph 5:8) For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light

C. WE ARE SONS OF LIGHT - (1 Th 5:5) You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness.

II. THE POWER OF THE LIGHT - (Mat 5:14b) A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.

A. IF THE LIGHT IS SHINING, DARKNESS CANNOT OVERCOME IT - (Mat 5:14) "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.

B. LIGHT IS ARMOR - (Rom 13:12) The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.

C. GOD'S LIGHT CAN DRIVE AWAY ALL DARKNESS - (Luke 11:33-36) "No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light. {34} "The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness. {35} "Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness. {36} "If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light."

D. LIGHT KEEPS US FROM STUMBLING - (John 11:9-10) Jesus answered, "Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. {10} "But if one walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him."

III. THE PROJECTION OF THE LIGHT - (Mat 5:15) "Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house

A. WE MUST NOT HIDE THE LIGHT BUT SHARE IT WITH OTHERS.

B. WE MUST SHARE THE LIGHT - (Acts 13:47) "For so the Lord has commanded us: 'I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, That you should be for salvation to the ends of the earth.'"

C. WE CAN DISPEL DARKNESS BY OUR LOVE FOR ONE ANOTHER - (1 John 2:7-11) Brethren, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning. {8} Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining. {9} He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. {10} He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. {11} But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

D. WE CAN CALL OTHERS OUT OF DARKNESS JUST AS WE HAVE BEEN CALLED - (Acts 26:18) 'to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.'

IV. THE PURITY OF THE LIGHT

A. LIGHT AND DARKNESS DO NOT MIX - (2 Cor 6:14) Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?

B. LIGHT AND WORKS OF DARKNESS DO NOT MIX

1. (Rom 13:12-14) The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. {13} Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. {14} But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.

2. (John 3:19-21) "And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. {20} "For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. {21} "But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God."

V. THE PRAISE FOR THE LIGHT - (Mat 5:16b) "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

A. WE ARE TO PROCLAIM PRAISE OF GOD - (1 Pet 2:9-10) But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; {10} who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.

B. WE ARE TO SHARE THE GLORY OF GOD - (2 Cor 4:6) For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

CONCLUSION -

A. ALL THESE LIGHTS ARE DIFFERENT STYLES AND USES BUT THEY ALL HAVE THE SAME PURPOSE - TO DISPEL DARKNESS

B. ALL OF US ARE DIFFERENT FROM EACH OTHER: LOOKS, PERSONALITIES, TALENTS, BUT OUR PURPOSE IS THE SAME - TO BE A LIGHT IN THIS DARK WORLD OF SIN.

C. WE SHOULD UNDERSTAND THAT BEING A LIGHT

1. IS A GREAT PRIVILEGE

2. MEANS HAVING POWER

3. CARRIES THE RESPONSIBILITY TO PROJECT YOUR LIGHT

4. DEMANDS WE BE PURE

5. BRINGS PRAISE TO GOD

D. IF YOU ARE NOT A CHILD OF GOD YOU CAN'T BE A LIGHT - (John 12:36) "While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light."

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.