NLT Mathew 5: 14-16  You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.

Dont hide your undying love for God and His Holy Words just because people around you dont have the ears to here. Stand strong in the convictions of the Lord. You are a light to people who do not know God and this world is in much darkness. In  Matthew 5 we are told to penetrate the darkness and be the light of the world, let your good deeds shine out for all to see is the command.  However... Matthew 6:1 “Watch out! Don’t do your good deeds publicly, to be admired by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven. “  What Jesus is telling us is that we must do good to glorify God in this world, but not for the publicity or fame, for all Glory is to be to God and is not of our own doing.  Our motivation for doing these good deeds is what we have to keep in check. Am I busy doing random acts of kindness so that I will be praised?  Mathew 5:16 is saying to us that it is vital to do good deeds so that God the author of all good and love will be glorified, and this shall be my or your motivation to good good work. But if my motivation is simply to do good out in the public sphere to  be admired by others then ye already have recieved your reward, which will be earthly praise.

I have a parable for you of my own. Their is this big candle which provides all light and good. You take a much less signifigant candle and it ignites, then it ignites another, many many more, perhaps a hundred times more and when that one begins to grow dim, then the other candles rekindle the first.  What do I mean by this, simply put God is the giant candle from whom all light comes forth. When this light catches one person, they continue to pass it on and on and on. This light is passed on one from another, just like a candle, one candle ignites another, The holy spirit working in us passes on this light one to another, and it never goes out, rekindling us when needed.  God Bless.

Matthew 5:16 it says to do your good deeds so that God will be glorified, that should be my motivation for every good work that I do, if I am doing good out in public with the motivation found in Matthew 6:1, to be admired by others then I already have my reward

 
In our deepest being, in our most inner portion of our body we know God loves us, and God is love, theirfore we must be loving as we are called to godly lives. This idea that love is above all and trumps all such as  when paul sas Faith Hope and Love, the greatest of these is love. We must love one another for Jesus said people will know you are my disciples by your love for one another. This means you must look for signs of Jesus in everyone, you must remember no matter what state they are in, how they may appear or act, that they are still God's children and love them, for they are equally created in his image as you and I are. Paul doesnt say you love them if you like them, he doesnt say oh I only like and love republicans or democrats. This is a comandment, not a suggestion, it is required of us. If you do not know love, it doesnt matte if you know God's word because you are not applying it to your life, you knoweth not God for the bible say ye that do not  know love, do not know God, for God is love. We are called to be giving, a person of service-Jesus king and savouir of all washed his disciples feet, one of the lowset of low jobs, and our example is he. We are supposed to be humble and of service to God and his people, for Jesus did not come to savv the self righteous. Rember the tree of the garden of Eden of the knowledge of Good and evil. Adam and Eve ate of this tree despite God's waning. They didnt eat of the Tree of Life,  they chose for themselves what is love, this is where man Kind has followed ever since.That is why their is such a mix of good and evil, as well as confusion. If you do good with not route in love, it doesnt mean anything, it is useless and it is of pride and for glory in this life, We must love,

1 Corinthians 13 1-7 I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. 3 If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing. 4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. 6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.

Many of us misunderstand the bible first of all just bible describes some horendous incident doesnt mean it approves of it, we must learn to distinguish the pre descriptive aspects of the bible from those that are prescriptive. The bible is a particular kind of liteture with many generes. The bible is how God tells us what he does, what he will do. One of the most important thingswe can realise about the word of God is that it is concentrated on the action of God. This isnt something that happened long ago or a matter of historcal record (I do believe with all my heart it is historically acurate, but that doesnt make it a history book)-but it speak here and now and continues day by day. God is the same now as in the bible and we are told what sort of God we follow and the standards by which we are to abide. Our God lovingly and freely creates, a God who is loyal to his creation despite its lack of devotion to him the source of all life. A God who sets us free, he walks  and speeks to us in the Life, death, and reserection of Jesus of Nazareth. The body of Christ his church isnt a group of people looking for an interesting book to read and happen to pick the bible up. Its also not that bible fell from Heaven an wamb a church forms around it. From the begining the Church has used the bible and it has echoed back. Without the Holy Spirit the bible is just words on paper, and it is by God's grace and Holy Spirit alone can bring life from its words. Remember Jesus was the word made flesh, the bible is the word made text. Some people read the bible as a strict text book, a matter of rigid info and revelation from the distant past with no relevance to the present is unclear. Remember that what holds the bible together is the Holy Spirit. The Spirit breathes life and meaning through the words of the bible, making it the word of God- a spirit within and the third person of the God Head that brings us to Christ. So remember that even the bible can become a idol and is not to be worsiped, let the Holy Spirit teach you through the bible making it the word of God, let it teach you in life, and let it Bring you to God and Jesus.

What is the call  Its a call to life, its a call to love, its a call to be
all you can be in the image of God, its a call to love God and care for all that he has created. Its to stand up for the rights of all people as all are children of God, its to spread peace. One of our greatest tasks and responsibilities is to build a world through God where all people and I do mean  ALL people can live freely and fully as Children of God, to have life abundant, and for them to be  all they can be as people made in God's image. God is love, we should sow seeds  of Love for all People, as they are all loved by God. Jesus said by this people shall know you are my disciples when you love one another. When we begin to be faithful of this message, then will world see a mighty Reformation. The world will begin to see the body of Christ as it was intended, the world will look once again at the body of Christ and find life, love, and holiness-for that is what God is all about and that is what I and other disciples of Jesus must also be all about, for God is love. Sweet are the stories the savouir once told for  all those who wish to hear, the love in his words can only be heard when you learn to listen to your heart. Since I was five all I ever wanted to do is spread the love of  God and help all people of all people races, nationalities, black, white, chineese, all people of all walks because God is love and in order to truely be God's children we must be full of Love, for Love transforms the world into that God had desired in his creation of it. Nothing can seperate you from the love of God. Even you deny, forsake, betray, and kill the love of God (Jesus the Christ), the love of God still loves you. Jesus didnt come to make you or me religous for God knows we have enough of that and it is usually destructive-but he came to provide us with a Relationship with God, so we may have life and have it abundantly. Also Jesus didnt come to make us self righteous, for my experience with those who are self righteous know a great deal about Judgement, but almost nothing about Love and remember the bible says God is Love. NLT Mark 2:17-When Jesus heard this, he told them, "Healthy people don't need a doctor--sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those  who know they are sinners."  Jesus didnt come to make us religous, for that brings no life, nope most religous people sit in wagon circles and shoot those who disagree. Nope he cam to provide us life and a relationship with God. Rember Jesus cam for those who need him, not those who believe they themselves are righteous. Spread Gods love and show it in your actions for all people are God's children and deserve to be treated as such whether they acknowledge it or not. In the fourth Gospel Jesus said I have come to give you FULL life and bring it abundantly. Remember God work through any human weekness, frailty, or anything else-prostitution, murder, hatred, physical, or or anything else. Gods choice in leaders are always the lowest among us, often suprising choices such as murderous Moses, young and week David, Solomen, Samuel over Eli, even when he himself came he came as the humble baby in the manjor, and then as a simple carpenter. Remember to look for God in everyone, as we are all his and are beloved by him. Amen.

The way Home is through truth and life, and isnt found in lesser things. Jesus was and is God incanate. This means the humble Christ was born unto us as a mere baby wrapped in swaddling cloth and lying in a manger. The that our God came into this world  from his throne and the word became flesh provides unbelievable amount of comfort and nothing is more important than knowing God is with you and Loves you endlessy, even unto death. This means God isnt just some good distant idea, but God is with us, Emanuel, in times of joy and those of intense suffering, especially when we feel lost. God is in it with us and for us, making us friends of God. Have you ever had looked at a situation and just wanted to weep for the injustice, most of us have. The question is how far are we willing to go to set things right, what are we prepared to do to help someone else. The Bible or Word of God tells us his stake in us is all cards in, meaning he is in it with us. He too weeps at the suffering of others, Through the Person of Jesus of Nazareth, God incarnate took his place in the suffering of the world so he could be a part of putting things right once again. He died and was brused for our transgressions, Jesus went father than anyone has done to put things right. On the cross Jesus took upon himself, all the pain, all the suffering, and anguish of the world and broke its power forever more. Jesus showed us how far God is willing to go to restore things and to set things right, their is no where God will not go to make a diffrence, even death and hell holds no FEAR. Jesus through himself showed us their is a way to conquer through God anything we may face. Jesus through his teachings about love, justice, morality, poverity, and God the Father showed us the way back to God the  Father. In the cross God discloses the essence of what it means to be God. All power deservantly belongs to him, by right, by self sacrafice, not through self service. Well God has done more than anything to set this world wright and restore his Glorious world.   The latest political issue often becomes an idol or socail view of the world. Issues such as  the dept sealing, and others are very important,  but are not the way to God  Yes God wants you stand up for those in need and the truth but their is more to this than meets the eye. Worship God not lesser things. While most of us dont have the probem of setting up multiple wooden or metal statues of multple lifeless gods on alters anymore or as Jermiah said dumb scarecrows in our Cucumber fields. Rember God is present and wishes to have your love, all of it and he has earned it by his sacrifice of himself for you salvation so you may have life through him three in one, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.