lamp on a stand

No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar or under a basket, but on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light.

Luke 11:33

A lamp on a stand is probably the most common of household items, perhaps overlooked even as it is in constant use. I just did a mental run through of my own home: there are four lamps on stands to give light in four different rooms. Jesus took such a common circumstance and infused it with spiritual significance to teach us about our own utilitarian importance.

The purpose of a lamp is to give light, and the source of that light isn’t nearly as significant as the substance (the light) it produces. It could be a simple candle, an oil lamp, or an electric light. The purpose of the lamp is to be visible so that in turn it makes things visible. What burns from this source is what gives the helpful light.

And so, believers in Jesus are sources of the light of the life of the gospel as we let God’s work and truth shine through us. Each day of our lives we are strategically placed on the stand of God’s own choosing to brighten a dark world, point out the dangers of the darkness, and lead away from it to a much better way and place. Be the light and shine, wherever God has you placed!