EPIPHANY 3
Jan.
24-26, 2026
Pastor
Timothy J. Spaude
Text:
Matthew 4:12-23
“ON LETTING YOUR
LIGHT SHINE…”
1.
By
upholding the Scripture.
2.
By
really obvious repentance.
3.
By
being purposeful with people.
“Rise and Shine!” Some of you may remember
we kicked off the Epiphany season of the Church Year with that theme. God’s
Word encouraged us that because Jesus is with us we can rise above our
circumstances and shine for the glory of Jesus. We did not get a lot of time to
spend on how we can shine for Jesus so we will today and what better to help us
do that than by looking at the words and works of our Lord Jesus who is the
Light of the world.
As we do that we see one great way to let
our light shine is to uphold the Scriptures. “When
Jesus heard that John was put in prison, he withdrew into Galilee. 13He
left Nazareth and went to live in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region
of Zebulun and Naphtali. 14He did this to fulfill what was spoken
through the prophet Isaiah: 15Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali,
along the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles, 16the
people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and on those dwelling in
the region and the shadow of death a light has dawned.” Why did Jesus go to live in Capernaum? Was it
because he had heard John was put in prison and he was afraid he would be next?
No. Was it because Mary said, “I don’t want any boomerang children! You can’t
live with me!” No. So why did He do
it?” He did this to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet
Isaiah.” There we see it. One reason only. He was fulfilling the
Scriptures. Every word of God was so important that even when it came down to
itinerary Jesus carefully upheld every word of Scripture.
As we reflect the Light of the world by
letting our lights shine we can do no better and must do the same. Your family
needs you to. Your congregation needs you to. Your community needs you to. Your
nation needs you to. Your God tells you to. I speak to all of you but
especially you younger Christians here who will be the next generation of
soldiers of the cross who will stand up, stand up for Jesus. If our nation
continues on the trajectory it is in, you will face pressures to compromise
God’s word. The pressure to accept the unscientific lie of evolution and give
up the truth of creation has been around for a long time. The pressure to
forsake the truth of one man and one woman marriage and God’s gift of sexuality
reserved for marriage has also been around a long time. So has the lie that
there is really only one god whatever you call him--or her and all religions
lead to heaven. Newer is all the gender gibberish. Also newer is you. I know
you don’t always believe it but your parents love you and your grandparents
love you and in our desire to make life better for you or easier for you we may
unintentionally have made you soft. Courageous and committed Christian faith is
not for wimps. Letting our light shine for Jesus takes work, sometimes hard
work and difficult decisions. I want to encourage you. First for your sinful
nature if you think it is OK for you personally or to let your church
compromise on Bible teaching. Who are you to tell God what part of His word is
unimportant? Who chose you to write the Bible? No one did. God got written down
what He wanted written down and the only right response of all the created is
“Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.” Now for your Christian nature that
loves the Lord and loves people. Who are you to speak God’s words of truth in
love? You are His child. You are lights for the world and here is why letting
your light shine by upholding every part of Scripture as God’s truth just as
Jesus did is so important. “Faith comes from hearing the message and the
message is heard through the word of Christ.” God’s word is God’s tool to
transfer the gift of faith from His hand to people’s hearts. Rise and shine,
brothers and sisters, by upholding every part of Scripture.
And by really obvious repentance. “From
that time, Jesus began to preach: “Repent, because the kingdom of heaven is
near.” The kingdom of heaven is the ruling of Jesus in the hearts of His
followers. It begins when faith takes root in our hearts so we want to live for
Jesus here and will extend throughout our eternity. Repentance is that complete
change of mind in our hearts from only sinful nature thinking to new creation,
follower of Christ thinking. By very definition this takes place in our hearts.
So in reality, only God can see repentance. Changes of heart on the inside can
show up with changes of action on the outside. I have reminded people of this
truth, often when there is a rift in a relationship. I say, “Only God can see
your heart. He knows if you are repentant. Everyone else is going to make their
judgement based on what they see from you and hear from you. Now, you can make
it very easy for people to believe you are repentant, or you can make it very
hard. I suggest you make it very easy.”
A
similar truth as we let our lights shine brightly for Jesus. How winsome it is
when the people of God own up to others the fact that we are sinners in need of
forgiveness. How attractive it is when others seeing us striving to live the
Christian life willingly, not out of guilt or compulsion. That repentance
change of mind in the heart isn’t just about turning away from sin. It goes to
our priorities and how we choose to manage our time or how we go about decision
making. God knows your heart. He knows you belong to Him. Other people are
going to make their judgement based on what they see from you and what they
hear from you. Now you can make it very easy for people in your life to believe
you are a follower of Jesus or you can make it very hard for people to believe
you are a follower of Jesus. I suggest that in word and deed you make it very
easy. Let your light shine by really obvious repentance.
And by being purposeful with people. “As
Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is
called Peter, and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the sea,
since they were fishermen. 19He said to them, “Come, follow me, and
I will make you fishers of men.” 20They
immediately left their nets and followed him. 21Going on from there,
he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and his brother John. They
were in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets. Jesus called
them. 22Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed
him.” How brilliant is our Lord Jesus to call into service these simple
fishermen! See what He teaches us! Serving Jesus is not for the high and
mighty. Everyone can do it. Fishermen. They were used to being purposeful.
Their vocation was daily. Sometimes in preparation, getting their nets ready.
It took work on their part. Some planning and wisdom. They had to know fish and
when and where to lay down their nets. They understood that after you caught
the fish you still had to clean them.
What a lesson for us on letting our lights
shine! Translate fishing men into fishers of men. Be purposeful. It’s a daily
task to remember I get to represent Jesus. Know your people. There is a time
and a place for conversation and a time and a place to keep your mouth shut.
After you catch ‘em you got to clean them. I said recently in a Bible Class
that the best way to picture St Jacobi is a hospital for the sin sick but in
this hospital the doctors are sick too! Only the Holy Spirit can clean us. Don’t
look for what you consider good people. Look for people! Are you being
purposeful? Do you live each day and pause before every person interaction to
think about how it will affect your ability to shine for Jesus? I can’t help
but get a little nervous every time another major issue happens in our country
that lights up the internet. Will I or another Christian get tricked into be a
light for whatever social issue we are facing next instead of a light shining
for Jesus? Be purposeful in your postings and responses. Will this help me in
my most important role as an ambassador for Jesus or will it disqualify me?
Prepare yourself to let your light shine with time in the word daily like
fishermen mending and cleaning their nets. Think about who you are going to be fishing
for. Find joy in fishing whether you catch anything or not.
Brothers and sisters, Jesus is the Light
of the world. You are I are lights too reflecting Him. So rise and shine! No, I
mean it. Rise. You’ll shine when you leave!
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