I Heard an Old Old Story Sermons on the hymns and songs we love

“This Little Light of Mine”

Good morning church! It is so good to be back with you on this beautiful Spring morning! This morning as I was preparing for this sermon, I had the opportunity to sit on my front porch and listen to the sounds of nature and take just a few minutes to soak in the beautiful songs of God's creation.

If I could put to words how much music impacts my life, I would say that its like water to a fish… or wind for an eagle… both are requirements for their respective lives. But just like water and air, it can become deadly if you’re exposed to toxins contained within them. Music is much the same… It can speak life into your heart or it can be poison to your soul…

          This sermon series is designed to take a look into the old gospel hymns and some of the newer worship songs and show us how they were made to speak life and truth into our lives. Now for a word of caution, not all quote unquote Christian songs are Biblical! Some of these songs speak the toxins of worldly perspectives and try to label it as a praise and worship song. It is up to you as a believer to listen to the lyrics and compare them to scripture before allowing them into your life.

          When I was coming up with a list of hymns and songs I wanted to base messages off of, I thought of some of the first songs I learned as a child. One that immediately popped us was “This little light of mine”. As I researched its origin, I found that, though it is often credited to Harry Dixon Lowes, he never took credit for creating it. It is believed to have its roots in early African American slavery and was often sung as a freedom song during the civil rights movement. I think the most interesting thing about this song is that it almost never got published...

Harry was on a train going from Kansas City to Chicago where he studied at the Moody Bible Institute. He stepped off of the train a scheduled stop to stretch his legs and get some fresh air when he heard the porter singing a song. He didn’t think much of it at the time and he reboarded the train. As the train left the station and traveled down the tracks, Harry couldn’t get the melody of the song out of his head and it started to resonate in his heart. At the next stop, he got off the train and waited for the next train headed back to the last stop. When he finally got back to that station, he found the porter and asked him to sing the song for him again. As the porter sung the hymn, Harry Loes wrote the lyrics down. Once back on the train, Harry added some of his own lyrics to the hymn and later published the song… The lyrics are simple and repetitive and with each verse the focus of the light changes. Verse 1 This little light of mine, Im gonna let it shine, Verse 2 everywhere I go, I’m gonna let it shine, Verse 3 In my brother’s heart, I’m gonna let it shine, Verse 4 In my sister’s soul, I’m gonna let it shine, Verse 5 All around the world, I’m gonna let it shine. Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine. The song’s message of letting your light shine is rooted in the words of Matthew 5:13-16

 If you are able will you please stand with me as we honor the Lord in reading Matthew 5:13-16 and Acts 10:34-35.

       Matthew 10: 13-16

Matthew 10:13–16 CSB

and if the household is worthy, let your peace be on it; but if it is unworthy, let your peace return to you. If anyone does not welcome you or listen to your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that house or town. Truly I tell you, it will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town. “Look, I’m sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as serpents and as innocent as doves.

          Acts 10:34-35

Acts 10:34–35 CSB

Peter began to speak: “Now I truly understand that God doesn’t show favoritism, but in every nation the person who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.

          Let us pray.

          Father God, we are so thankful that you have gathered us here together tonight to enjoy the fellowship between believers and to learn more about you. Father, what an honor it is to be in your presence here this morning. Father, we thank you for your Word… we thank you for your mercy and grace! Father we thank you for your calling in each of our lives to show the light of Christ to the world! Lord, soften our hearts so that we can receive your message here tonight. Open our eyes, ears, and minds so that we can put your words into action! And Father, remind us that every day we are called to be evangelists of Your Word to all that need to hear it! Lord, we ask all of this in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.

          You may be seated

Today we’re going to break this song down into two parts.

PART 1: This little light of mine…

Matthew 5:1-15 says “You are the light of the world”. This statement aligns our identity with that of Christ… This distinctive title is one that Jesus has claimed for himself… John 8:12 says “Again Jesus spoke to them saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in the darkness but will have the light of life””. This title would have previously been inappropriate to claim even to the highest prophets. John 1:7-8 said this when talking about John the Baptist “He came as a witness to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light but came to bear witness about the light”. But here in Matthew, Jesus applies the title to the believer as he or she shines with his light upon the world. Its only by virtue of the Holy Spirit dwelling in us that we are able to be called the light of the world.

As we continue in the text, it says a city on a hill cannot be hidden nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket. This time of year, it’s pretty easy to picture a dark and stormy night. As the wind blows, your power flickers and then goes out. You go into the kitchen, grab your emergency stash of candles from the cabinet and light one… are you going to put it in a place of prominence where light shines into the entire room? Or are you going to pick up your big salad bowl and place it underneath it? Nobody lights a lamp and then hides it… it completely defeats the purpose! You take the candle or lantern and place it in the most conspicuous place so that it shines as much light as possible for all who need it. Christian, are you hiding your light from others??? Or… are you being the light of the world so that all who are in the dark can see Jesus through you? We are called to boldly display the light of Christ before all of mankind…  Why??? so that the world can see the life a Christian Disciple lives AND in seeing it, we are able to bring glory to the Father, giving witness to the redeeming and transforming power of the Holy Spirit to a world so desperately in need of forgiveness, redemption, and transformation.

I do want to take a slight step back in scripture to verse 13. Here we read “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet.” Here Jesus says that you are the salt of the earth. Salt is a preservative, and in this sense, protects the believer from sin by stopping it from being absorbed into our lives… we are being preserved from corruption. One theologian stated that being the salt of the world is the remedy for the unrestrained workings of mankind in their own evil nature, which in itself is entirely corrupt. The character and principles of the Christian are meant to act as salt when brought into contact with mankind, seasoning the lifelessness that it brings and bringing a  stop the faltering corruption of sin.

I wanted to go back to this verse because these two figures… salt and light… are both related to the function and purpose of Christians… to be a joyfully redeemed influence to all people. But they do so through different actions… Salt works internally. It is made to draw impurities out of an object and preserve it. Light works externally, the burning and shining lamp irradiates everything it comes in contact with. Salt requires that you take it in… we do this by reading the Bible and listening to sermons… Light is passive… it is being exposed to the actions of fellow Christians who let their light be seen by others… Salt, like Leaven, works from the inside… it is hidden in the flour which changes the internal structure of it into dough. Light, like the sun, shines on a seed…which then chooses to react to the light and in its response to the light, grows into a large overshadowing tree.

Understanding what the light is and how it works lays a foundation for what’s next…

Part 2: I’m gonna let it shine

Imagine that you have just left church on a bright spring day and you head out to lunch with your family. As you sit down to eat, your waiter says to you “I’m just guessing, but by the way you are dressed, did you just leave church?” Without hesitation you say “yes we did, do you go to church?” He begins to tell you that he does not, in fact he’s an atheist, but he is curious to know more about Jesus and asks if you would be willing to come to his home and tell him more about why you believe what you believe after he gets off work. He then states that if you would be willing to come, he would gather all of his family and friends together to hear what you have to say about Christianity… What would your answer be? I think some of you would say “That sound great… let me go get my pastor and we’ll be there”?

But this message isn’t about your pastor now… is it???

          What would you do???

          What would you say???

What would you be willing to share with them about yourself and your beliefs that would let the light of Christ penetrate the darkness of their heart???

          That’s what Acts chapter 10 is about… Putting the verse into context, Cornelieus was an officer in the Roman army. He was a Centurion meaning that he was in charge of 100 soldiers which was known as a century, and he lived in Caesarea. The scripture says in verse 2 that he was a “a devout man who feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God.” During the day “at about the ninth hour” (about 3 O’clock), Cornelius was visited by an angel of God who told him that his prayers had been heard and that he was to send some men to Joppa to bring Simon Peter back to him. The next day Simon peter, while praying before a meal at about the 6th hour, that is noon, he had a vision. In verse Acts 10:11-16 Simon Peter

Acts 10:11–16 CSB

saw heaven opened and an object that resembled a large sheet coming down, being lowered by its four corners to the earth. In it were all the four-footed animals and reptiles of the earth, and the birds of the sky. A voice said to him, “Get up, Peter; kill and eat.” “No, Lord!” Peter said. “For I have never eaten anything impure and ritually unclean.” Again, a second time, the voice said to him, “What God has made clean, do not call impure.” This happened three times, and suddenly the object was taken up into heaven.

This vision wasn’t about food that was clean or unclean… It was the Holy spirit working in Simon Peters heart, telling him that God has respect only for the personal character and the state of their heart of a man and not in his nationality or religious distinction. Up to this point it was culturally unacceptable for a Jew to talk to a Gentile, much less go into the home of one. But now what was unacceptable has become acceptable… God was opening the door of faith to the Gentiles!

          Did you catch how the Lord spoke to each man? The Lord sent an angel to Cornelius, but he sent a vision to Simon Peter… Why would God communicate differently with each of the men? Cornelius needed to hear the message of the Gospel, but that’s something angels can’t do! He needed to hear the gospel message from a person.

          After Simon Peter’s vision, He went to Cornelius’ house and when he arrived he began to tell Cornelius why he should believe in Christ and gives him 3 evidences for why he should believe. These 3 evidences are just as reliable and usable today as they were in Simon Peter’s day.

          If you are someone who writes in your bible, I’m going to ask you to highlight or underline three phrases in this Acts Chapter 10…  As we look now starting in verse 34 Peter begins to share with this Roman military official the Gospel of Jesus Christ… “So Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, 35 but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. 36 As for the word that he sent to Israel, preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all), I love how Peter places emphasis on who Jesus is here… He doesn’t mesh words… He doesn’t water it down so it tasted better to the masses… He states the truth that Jesus is Lord of all…37 you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed: 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. 39 And we are witnesses of all that he did… underline this phrase… And we were witnesses of all that he did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, 40 but God raised him on the third day and made him to appear, 41 not to all the people but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42 And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. 43 To him all the prophets bear witness… Underline this phrase. To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word… Underline this phrase too… the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word.

          Those 3 phrases that I asked you to underline are the 3 evidences that Simon Peter used to preach the message of salvation to the first Gentile believers. The evidence of Jesus Christ has not changed over time… It is the very same testimony that Peter gave to Cornelius then that is our testimony now. These 3 evidences reveal how we can share the light of Christ with the world today.

Three evidences to preach the message of salvation

1) Personal Evidence (Testimony)

The first half of verse 39 identifies that the first evidence that we can give to support claims for Christ as Lord is our personal witness. “And we were witnesses of all that he did”.

 If there was ever a trial of Jesus life and the witnesses called to the stand were the 11 apostles (remember that Judas is no longer living at this point)… You couldn’t pick a wider variety of personalities if you tried… but these differing personalities all had a unified testimony. Take for example the 4 Gospels… Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John… 4 different perspectives of the same events written to 4 different groups of people, but even with minor variations, the stories are all the same. If all of the stories were completely identical, any detective or lawyer would say that the testimonies were rehearsed and therefore couldn’t be true… It’s the little variances that make the testimony true… I want to make myself perfectly clear here… variances are not contradictions! I believe that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God…

11 witnesses… 11 viewpoints and perspectives… unanimously agree that Jesus is Lord!!!

The Apostles were there! Simon Peter and the apostles were firsthand witnesses of 3 things…the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

1) Verse 38 “how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.”

Peter was there when Jesus turned water into wine and even drank some of it… Peter witnessed Jesus walk on water and then stepped out of the boat and walked on the water under the power of Christ… Peter, James, and John were there when Jesus stood on the mount of transfiguration between Moses and Elijah and was transfigured… when his face shone like the sun and his clothes became as white as light and they heard the voice of God saying “this is my son in whom I am well pleased…The apostles were there when he healed the sick, made the lame walk, made the blind see, made the deaf hear… made the dead come back to life…

2) Verse 39 And we are witnesses of all that he did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree.

They were there in the crowd when Jesus was tried in the courts of the Sanhedrin and Pilate, they watched as he was beaten over and over again with a whip that was designed to inflict maximum damage… removing chunks of flesh and bone from his back and ribs, and they stood in the crowd as jesus carried his cross to Calvary and was nailed to it with spikes…they stood there and watched him say it is finished and give up his spirit…. They…. Watched…. Every…..Second… of it…

3) Verses 40-42 but God raised him on the third day and made him to appear, 41 not to all the people but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42 And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead.

They were there when the women found the tomb empty… They were there when Jesus appeared in the locked upper room… They watched as Thomas put his hands in Jesus side and touched the holes in His wrists…They were there when he appeared to the crowd of 500… and they were there when he ascended into Heaven in all of His natural Glory and splendor… They were there for it all

Peter’s beliefs…The apostles beliefs… weren’t objects of superstitious reverence… they actually witnessed great historical moments!

Some cynics have made the claim that this was all made up by the apostles… History tells us that people lie to get out of trouble, not to get into trouble… The apostles told these eye witness accounts knowing that they were going to get into trouble for telling them… They were so sure of what they saw that they in fact chose to die standing by their testimony.

As a believer, you may ask “how does this work for me.. I’ve never seen Jesus… I didn’t witness these things?” … But Christian what you haven’t seen with the physical eye, you have witnessed through the eyes of faith… You have each experienced Jesus in individual and unique ways

Adrian Rogers says, “A Christian with a glowing witness is worth a library full of arguments.”

2) Scriptural Evidence

The first part of verse 43 identifies the second evidence that we use to support our claim of Christ as Lord is Scriptural Witness. “To him all the prophets bear witness”.

Prophesies in the Bible lend witness to Jesus as the only one who can lay claim to the title of Lord and Savior. Peter identifies that the entire theme of the Old Testament is about the coming Messiah… Jesus.

Fulfilled prophesy is the single greatest proof that Jesus is the Son of God!!! All of the prophets speak in unanimity and without contradiction and point to Jesus as Lord.

Does anyone know approximately how many prophesies were written about the coming Christ??? It is estimated that there are more than 300 prophesies written about Jesus. Of all of  the written prophesies, the probability of only 8 of the prophesies being fulfilled by a single person is nearly 1 in 100 quadrillion… just to put that number into perspective, a 2,000 pound haybale is 6 feet around and 8 feet wide… at the upper end, each bale can contain upward of 1 billion pieces of hay (although the actual number can be much lower… if you laid out 100 million haybales side by side (which equals approximately 100 quadrillion pieces of hay)… the row of haybales would go on for 113,636.4 miles… now imagine trying to find a needle in that haystack!!!  and that’s only fulfilling 8 of the 300 plus prophesies that were fulfilled in the birth, life, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is mathematically impossible that someone could fulfill all of the biblical prophesies without divine inspiration and the deity of Jesus Christ.

Here a just a few of the prophecies:

1) The Messiah would come from the line of Abraham (Gen 22:18), Isaac (Gen 25:1-5), Jacob (Gen 28:10-14), Judah (Gen 49:10), Jesse (Isaiah 11:1-10), and King David (2 Sam 7:12-16

2) The Messiah would appear after the regathering of exiles (Jeremiah 23:3-6)

3) The Messiah would appear after the rebuilding of Jerusalem (Dan 9:24-26)

4) The Messiah would be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:1-2)

5) Isaiah foretold the virgin birth of the Messiah (Isaiah 7:13-14)

6) The messiah would be preceded by a forerunner who would prepare the way for the Lord (Isaiah 40:1-9, Malachi 3:1) who would be John the Baptist

7) The Messiah would perform miracles (Isaiah 35:4-6

8) The messiah would suffer and die for the sins of others (Isaiah 53:5)

3) Evidence given by the Holy Spirit

Verse 43 reveals the 3rd and final evidence we need to support our claim that Jesus is Lord and Savior… The witness of the Holy Spirit. “While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word”… While Peter was still speaking, the Holy spirit began to stir in the heart of Cornelius!

The Holy spirit has already anointed us to speak truth and life into others and empowers our words so that they might convince and convict the unbeliever.

In Acts 1:8, as Jesus was preparing to ascend to heaven he said

Acts 1:8 CSB

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

In Acts 5:28-32 Peter and the apostles were confronted while testifying to the crowd by the Sanhedrin after The Holy Spirit enabled them to walk out of prison. The High Priest brought them before the council and questioned them “saying,

Acts 5:28–32 CSB

“Didn’t we strictly order you not to teach in this name? Look, you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood.” Peter and the apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than people. The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had murdered by hanging him on a tree. God exalted this man to his right hand as ruler and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.”

We must always lean on the guidance of the Holy Spirit and on His influence on others… We have to remove ourselves from the equation in order for the Holy Spirit to do His work. Yes, he will use our personal testimony to soften someone’s heart… Yes he will use the knowledge that he has given us to light the path for others to follow… but it is not me who changes their heart… one pastor said “anything I can talk you into, someone else can talk you out of”, but when the Holy Spirit speaks into your life… that’s when miracles can happen… The crowning persuasion out of all 3 evidences is the persuasion of the Holy Spirit on the unbeliever…

While Peter was still speaking, the Holy Spirit was at work… John said “saying, “ If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. 10 Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself.” 1 John 5:9 and 10.

Peter stepped out in obedience and went to Cornelieus’s house. In obedience he let the light of Christ shine through his personal testimony. Then the evidences of scripture were presented… and as Peter spoke, the persuasion of the Holy Spirit descended on the Gentiles and Acts 10:45-48 was the result

Acts 10:45–48 CSB

The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were amazed because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. For they heard them speaking in tongues and declaring the greatness of God. Then Peter responded, “Can anyone withhold water and prevent these people from being baptized, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” He commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay for a few days.

The Gentiles believed and were baptized in the name of Christ.

Christian, what will you do when the opportunity presents itself and you are asked why you believe what you believe? Will you hide your light under a bushel??? Or will you let your light shine??

This little light of mine… The light that is placed in us by the work of the Holy Spirit… The light that aligns our identity with that of Christ… The light that was meant to be broadcast into the darkness to draw the lost toward Jesus… This little light of mine… I’m gonna let it shine!!! When someone inquires to know more about Jesus… shine the light of Christ through the evidence of your personal testimony, then let it shine on the prophetic witness of the Bible by highlighting prophecy fulfilled… let it shine on the witness of the Holy Spirit to the one who is searching for Jesus… Let it shine… let it shine… let it shine!!!

As we prepare to come to the Lord in prayer, I just want to remind you that the altar is here for anyone who needs to leave something at the foot of Jesus. It’s Let not a one time use item, it is always open to those who need it. If you know of Jesus, but don’t pray know him personally as your Lord and savior…  is love to talk with you about Him and His love, mercy, and grace…  I don’t claim to know all the answers, but I know that if you ask, we can find them together

Let us pray. .

Father God, We can’t begin to thank you enough for the examples that you give through your scriptures. We thank you for the lives of the apostles who show us that our imperfect lives are made perfect through the blood of your son and the work of the Holy Spirit. Father allow us to use the words of this message to make an impact for your kingdom. Remind us daily that you gave us the light of Christ for a reason and it is our job to let it shine to the lost and wounded of this world! Father, we love you and we are so thankful for this family of believers that you have brought together… let us shine our lights to each other and to the rest of the world today and everyday until you return.

I ask all of this in the mighty name of Jesus… Amen

As we listen to our closing Hymn, the alter is yours… use it as you see fit