There have been times in the history of Christianity when faith and holiness have been considered as mainly private or personal affairs. Our relationship with God is something that lives inside us.
That’s true. But what Jesus makes clear in today’s gospel is that it can’t stay inside us (Matthew 5:13-16). Being a secret Christian is a contradiction. The light has to shine out, otherwise it’s valueless – just as tasteless salt would be useless.
And once again we can look back to Isaiah who provides a clear declaration of where that light comes from (Isaiah 58:7-10). It’s not some metaphysical or mystical light. It’s very real and practical:
If you remove from your midst oppression, false accusation and malicious speech;
then light shall rise for you in the darkness
That provides a pretty clear agenda for what we should be doing.
If we need further explanation, Isaiah also tells us:
Share your bread with the hungry,
shelter the oppressed and the homeless;
clothe the naked when you see them.
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn.
Is this easy? For sure not – if we think we are doing this by our own efforts. But we’re not. As we continue listening to Paul’s teaching of his first church in Corinth we hear him tell them (and us): I came with a demonstration of Spirit and power, so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom but on the power of God. (1 Corinthians 2:1-5)
The light we have in us is the light of Christ, the power of God. We have to be willing to let it shine out of us – to illuminate the darkness around us.