“No one lights a lamp and hides it in a clay jar or puts it under a bed. Instead, they put it on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light.” Luke 8:16 NIV
This is one of Jesus’s parables and although it is a short one, it still has a powerful message. Again, Jesus used parable about everyday things, ways of life, to communicate harder spiritual truths to the people He was ministering to so that they could understand them. On the surface this does not appear to be a very hard spiritual truth to understand, don’t hide the wonderful news of the gospel and let everyone know that you know Who is The Truth, The Life, and The Way, Jesus.
So, I wonder why then that Jesus, who had more difficult spiritual truths to talk about with the people who were following Him, would take time to discuss a lamp. I believe that even though this is not a difficult spiritual truth, it is an extremely important one. I want to state now that this is how I have interpretated this parable.
First, the light in this parable is Jesus, He is the Light of the world, bringing the gospel to us so we can know how to have a personal relationship with God. Second, the lamp represents our lives which He has provided the light for by teaching us how to be in communication with God. Third, the clay jar or bed represents our ability to have and keep secrets in our lives.
When we learn about Jesus and the gospel, it fills our souls with great news, with light so we are not walking in darkness any longer. This is wonderful and you would think that most people would simply not be able to contain this new information they have received inside and would want everyone to know about it as well. As the parable says when your lamp has been provided light, you put it out so that it can be a light to everyone around it, not hide it so that only you have it.
It is important for us to share the gospel, the truth we have been given and not to keep it for ourselves. Jesus said in Matthew 10:32-33, that if we acknowledge that we know Jesus to other people, then He will acknowledge that He knows us to His father, but if we deny that we know Jesus, are too embarrassed to say that we have a personal relationship with Him, then He will deny us to His father in heaven.
If we hide the light that has been given to our lamp, under a bed or in a clay jar because we don’t know what others in our lives will say about the decision we have made to show that light, then we are living in fear of what others believe and say about us more than we care what Jesus believes and says about us, more than we care about our eternal salvation.
Today, please think about this….are you showing off the Light that has been given to you to light your path in this world or are you hiding it from those around you?