Lamps should be seen, not hidden (Thursday, Week 3, Year 1)

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Amongst other things, the letter to the Hebrews seeks to establish the superiority of the New Covenant to the Old Covenant in order to help the early Jewish Christians know more about their new faith, value it more dearly and live it out more confidently.


As hinted in Heb. 10:19-25, it is presumed that those Jewish Christians (to whom the letter to the Hebrews was primarily written) must have been significantly convinced that Jesus is the great priest over the house of God, not Aaron or the priests of the Old Covenant. They must have learnt that they could now enter the sanctuary by the blood of Christ, not by the blood of animals. Over and above all, it must have been made very clear to them that the New Covenant is a perfection and fulfillment of the Old Covenant. 


In the light of the above, what was then expected of them? They (that is, those Jewish Christians) were then expected to hold fast the confession of their faith and hope without fear. They were expected to stir up and encourage one another to love; expected do good works, and so on. Simply, they were expected to be a lamp that should be kept on a lamp stand to be seen by all, not to be hidden under a bed (cf. Mk. 4:21). As followers of Christ, the world may expect a lot from us.  Are we living up to those expectations?


Our new life in Christ is not for a show. We are not to advertise our Christianity on the premise that we are now much better than everyone else. Christianity is life, not a concert. As Christians, we are called to impact not to impress. We are called not to outperform or outshine others but to shine together. When there are more lights, the intensity of darkness is weakened. Lamps are supposed to be placed on a stand, not to be hidden under the bed.      


Prayer:

May we be true lamps with brighter lights, may we bring more light and not cause more darkness, Amen!


Have a blessed day!



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