The Church as Light
So from the beginning of the Bible last week, we jump now right to the end to Revelation 21 and 22, in which we read about a beautiful city, the New Jerusalem, which John says is a bride prepared for her husband.
Recently I read a very interesting book by Kenneth Gentry, called The Book of Revelation Made Easy, which really did clear a lot of things up for me about this difficult book. Gentry explains on page 134 that this city, this bride, is a picture of the church, Christ’s people. And the descriptions here all talk about what the bride of Christ, the church, should look like. He says this: “Though John presents them in ideal form, they exist in spiritual principle in the present.” So this is not just a picture of the future, but a picture of what the people of God should look like now.
Radiant Reflection
And John begins by describing the church as light. In Revelation 21:11 John says that the bride of Christ “shone with the glory of God”, and down in verse 23 we see that “The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it.”
This is not something that is new in the book of Revelation – the whole New Testament talks about the church being a light to the world, because it reflects the light of Jesus himself. Jesus in Matthew 5:14-16 says “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”
And Paul’s writing contains similar words, for example Ephesians 5:8 says “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light”.
Eternal Radiant Witness
So, there will come a day where this is truly fulfilled and completed – where the church of Jesus will be shining so brightly as His own glory reflects off of them, that the world will be utterly transformed and sin will be conquered for good. But in the meantime, the church must still be light! We must still shine brilliantly so that the glory of Jesus is shown in us.
As people of God today, let’s shine! Let’s not go back to the darkness that Jesus freed us from. Let’s live as the bride of Christ – sparkling in our love and holiness, so that through the darkness the world sees us and longs for the light that we have.
Don’t hide your light under a bowl. Let the light of Christ shine in all you do today, because you are His precious and chosen bride.
