Bright Lights / 世上的光

[Dexu Xia]

Bright Lights

You are the light of the world. Matthew 5:14

In the summer of 2015, a group from our church was sobered by what we saw in Mathare, one of the slums in Nairobi, Kenya. We visited a school with dirt floors, rusting metal walls, and wooden benches. But against the backdrop of extremely humble surroundings, one person stood out.

Her name was Brilliant, and the name couldn’t have fit her better. She was an elementary school teacher who possessed joy and determination that matched her mission. Colorfully dressed, her appearance and the joy with which she instructed and encouraged the children were stunning.

The bright light Brilliant brought to her surroundings resembles the way Christians in Philippi were to be positioned in their world when Paul wrote to them in the first century. Against the background of a spiritually needy world, believers in the Lord Jesus were to shine “like stars in the sky” (Philippians 2:15). Our assignment hasn’t changed. Bright lights are needed everywhere! How encouraging it is to know that through the One “who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose” (v. 13) believers in Jesus can sparkle in ways that fit Jesus’s description of those who follow Him. To us He still says, “You are the light of the world. . . . Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:14–16).

世上的光

你们是世上的光。-马太福音5章14节

在2015年的夏天，我和教会里的一些弟兄姐妹前往肯尼亚首都奈洛比近郊的马萨瑞贫民窟，当地的见闻足以发人深省。我们参观了一所学校，校舍的地板污秽不堪，四周的铁皮墙板均已锈蚀，课室里只有木头板凳。在如此简陋的环境下，却有一个非常突出的人。

她是那所小学的老师，她的英文名字意思是“光辉闪耀”（Brilliant），她也确实人如其名。她是个很称职的老师，充满了喜乐和毅力。她穿着色彩鲜艳的衣服，以亮丽的形象喜乐地教导和鼓励孩子们，令人惊叹。

这位老师发出的光辉照亮了身边的人，正如在第一世纪，保罗写信给腓立比的基督徒时指出，他们在世上的使命便是如此。在当时充满属灵需要的世界上，主耶稣的门徒要“好像明光照耀”（腓立比书2章15节）。如今，我们的使命并没有改变，因为各处都需要亮光！令人鼓舞的是，知道上帝正在我们心里运行，为要成就祂的美意（13节），使我们可以按照耶稣的教导在世上绽放光芒。主耶稣说：“你们是世上的光。……你们的光也当这样照在人前，叫他们看见你们的好行为，便将荣耀归给你们在天上的父。”（马太福音5章14-16节）

你要如何展现出基督的光芒？
如何将上帝所赐的喜乐带给需要的人呢？

反映耶稣真光，照亮身边的人。