Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

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 Call and Commission to be Christ’s Disciples

Bible Portion: 2 Corinthians 4:6

For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God's glory. 2 Corinthians 4:6
Devotion

Many people are scared of darkness and dark places. Darkness had a kind of ominous enveloping feeling and our overactive imagination would add fuel to the fire by replaying scenarios from the visuals we had from our audio-video engagements. However, we agree with the common notion that, ‘darkness is nothing but the mere absence of light.’ Often, we hear about spiritually being in the dark but what does it really mean and how can we find light? Spiritual darkness happens when a person lives apart from God or disconnects from Him. And how would we know if we are in spiritual darkness? Galatians 5: 22-23 outlines the fruits of the Spirit as love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. When we lack any one of these fruits, we find ourselves in spiritual darkness. The reason we lack these fruits is because we are not connected with our Lord. Jesus has very bluntly said He is the light of the world and whoever follows Him, will never walk in darkness. In order to remove the darkness from our lives, all we need to do is follow in Christ’s footsteps. With Jesus in front of us, our paths are illuminated, and we shall not stumble or fall. 
 
Once we have been illuminated, it is our duty to share the light we have been given. As Jesus mentioned in Matthew 5: 14-16, people don’t light lamps only to cover them; rather, the lamp gets placed on a stand so that its light spreads all around and illuminates everything as far its rays can reach. It is our choice whether we choose to be the lamp under the basket or the lamp on the stand. We have been specially chosen, called and commissioned to be Christ’s disciples. It is not an easy task but an amazing privilege. It is one thing to be chosen and called but add in the factor of being commissioned, and the act of being chosen and called takes on a whole new meaning. The word ‘commission’ originates from the Latin word ‘committere’ which means to entrust. We have been entrusted by our Lord to carry out a very particular task: to bring His light wherever darkness prevails. When we want to entrust a task, we don’t hand it over to anyone but only to those whom we know we can trust to see the task to its intended end result. So, these people have to be specially chosen for the task. We have been uniquely selected, called, and commissioned to be Christ’s disciples.
 
Prayer
O Lord, open our hearts so that we may recognize our calling and commission. Help us to receive Your light and be illuminated to drive away the spiritual darkness that prevails in each one of us. Help us to be lighted so that we may lighten others. May Your goodness and mercies be with us all the days of our lives. Amen.
Thought for the Day
What fruits of spirit I have, and which ones are lacking. How can I nurture them and acquire the ones I lack

Susan Cherian Varghese
Epiphany Mar Thoma Church New York

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