Words of Wisdom for the Weekend ~ Children of the Light

"The gospel offends in that it makes a man face himself, and it always tells his that selfsame thing . . . 'Men love darkness rather than light', that is the trouble, and the gospel alone proclaims it. It stands as light in the heavens and it should be revealing itself through all of us amidst the problems of this dark, miserable, unhappy world of men.   

"But thank God we do not stop at that. Light not only exposes the darkness; it shows and provides the only way out of the darkness. This is where every Christian should be jumping to the task. The problem of man is the problem of a fallen, sinful, polluted nature. Can nothing be done about it? We have tried knowledge, we have tried education, we have tried political enactments, we have tried international conferences, we have tried them all but nothing avails. Is there no hope? Yes, there is abundant and everlasting hope: 'Ye must be born again'. What man needs is not more light; he needs a nature that will love the light and hate the darkness . . .   

"Christian people, you and I are living in the midst of men and women who are in a state of gross darkness. They will never have any light anywhere in this world except from you and from me and the gospel we believe and teach. They are watching us. Do they see something different about us? Are our lives a silent rebuke to them? Do we so live as to lead them to come and ask us, 'Why do you look so peaceful? How is it you are so balanced? How can you stand up to the things as you do? Why is it you are not dependant upon artificial aids and pleasures as we are? What is this thing that you have got?' If they do we can them tell them that wondrous, amazing, but tragically neglected news, that 'Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners', and to give men a new nature and a new life and to make them children of God. Christian people alone are the light of the world today. Let us live and function as children of the light."

~Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Studies in the Sermon on the Mount 

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{Words for Wisdom for the Weekend: These are words that I have been challenged or encouraged by that I have read throughout my week that I kept pondering; words that I couldn't get off my mind and heart throughout my week.  

For other Words of Wisdom for the Weekend posts see here.}