Light of the World

Personal Introduction:

Joshua Erdtsieck

This is my 4th year as High School Pastor at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa

Invitation to Church/Connect with me

In High School I played Water Polo and Swimming

And I have also been coaching for the past 5 years

I went to Cal Berkeley for College and studied Cognitive Science

Today I am going to be sharing from one Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5:14-16 in a passage that a lot of us might be familiar with:

Scripture:

Here Jesus says:

Matthew 5:14–16 (CSB)

“You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

I love these verses; I want to quickly point out 3 truths in this and then leave you with some take aways

You are the light of the world

Not you can be/you have the potential to be

As followers of Jesus—we are the light to a dark world

Christ is in you—but the question is: are we covering it up?

Like putting a lamp under a basket

2. This light isn’t meant for ourselves—but for others

A life following Jesus cannot be hidden

It’s not just about me and Jesus—its about serving and loving others

My experience of Christianity in College w/o Community

3. The Goal of being a light is to bring glory to God

Not to impress others

Not to feel better about ourselves—But to point to God’s goodness

Imagine living this out “They may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven”

That’s what being a light is about—it’s not about attracting attention to ourselves

Its about illuminating Jesus

I want to wrap up with two practical ways we can be a light

How many of you play team sports? Where both offense and defense are important?

Living in such a way that we are a shining light is not easy—it is a fight

And if we are going to succeed we are going to need to have a good defense and offense

Defensive Tactic

Stand Firm in your Beliefs—The enemy wants to try and snuff out our light—or hide it

I know that the temptation to compromise is strong

Laughing at jokes that we shouldn’t be

Making fun of other people

Inappropriate behavior

But we are called to be people of integrity—the same inside and out

So we have to be on guard against the temptation to cover our light in fear

But even the best defense won’t score you any points

As Christians we not only successfully defend ourselves from Satan

We take the offensive

On this rock I will build my Church and the gates of Hell will not overcome it

Offensive Tactic

What does this look like?

“Doing Good”

Serving others

Encouraging others

Spending your own time and resources to help those in need

Sharing the Gospel with others

Praying for others

And again, we don’t do good to bring glory to ourselves

We do this so that God might receive the glory

We do good because our God does good

We care about people because our God cares about people

We love others because our God loves others

Conclusion

So I want to encourage you all to walk in this calling—to be the light of the world

In this school, in your families, at your church, on your sports teams

Each of you here has a sphere of influence

People that look up to you, value you, and listen to you

I can’t reach the same people you can

And you can’t reach the same people the person next to you can

So how can we be faithful to the people that are around us?

Who in your life might be struggling for hope?

Who can you show kindness to?

Who can you serve in love?

Who can you be a listening ear to?

Guys, I challenge each of you to find someone this week who might need encouragement or support

Be intentional about being God’s light

And I promise you—God will show up

And let me tell you—it is such a joy to do good and for other people to see God at work in you

Prayer