“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all 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. Matthew 5: 14-16
We begin a new series with the theme word Glow. Matthew 5:14-16 with its rich imagery of a glowing light and the declaration “You are the Light of the World!”, carries a weight of importance. You are important. You are needed. Light overcoming darkness is a big deal!
Light is always pushing away darkness and giving vision to what can be seen when only a moment ago was unseen. We are using Glow and the Matthew passage as a metaphor for the General Rules of the United Methodist Church in this series. If you don’t know what the General Rules of the Church are – here they are: Do No Harm. Do Good. Stay in Love with God. Nearly two decades ago United Methodist Bishop, Ruben P. Job, wrote a devotional classic, Three Simple Rules to discuss the spiritual aspect of the simple rules on Wesley. John Wesley and the early followers were known for his “Method for Salvation”, as some detractors called it. But we know them as essentials called the “Means of Grace” which come in two forms – Works of Mercy and Works of Piety.
Works of Piety are those soul filling activities that include communion and baptism, the reading of scripture, prayer, meditation and contemplation, Christian Conferencing and so on. These are the energy building structures that fortify the soul and enliven the spirit. The Works of Piety are crucial for anyone who desires the strength to life on behalf of others.
Like Works of Piety, the other side of Wesley’s “Method” includes “Works of Mercy” which is central to the work of the church. Works of Mercy include caring for each other – feeding the hungry, clothing the naked and giving drink to the thirsty. Likewise, they include stewardship, care for the environment and seeking out the marginalized in culture on the inside and the outside of the church.
The admonition to “Do good” comes from the Means of Grace in these General Rules of the Church. In 1743, John Wesley wrote these down as the guiding principles for the gatherers of Methodist peoples. Gather in three different organizations, Bands or very small groups, Class Meetings, about the Size of a Sunday School Class, and United Societies, roughly the size of a congregation. Each had an inward as well as an outward component to them. All of these groups were bound by the old Methodist Greeting, “How is it with your Soul today? The person asking the question always waited for the answer.
Wesley was a genius when it came to understanding how to create accountable community around shared actions. The Wesleyan movement grew and prospered because these General Rules were easy to understand for both leadership and participants.
Putting your lamp on a lampstand is easy to understand too. The higher your lampstand the greater area of darkness is overcome with light.
So, in closing, “Let Your Light Shine! “Do Good” “GLOW”!
-Pastor Todd