Candlestick Christianity! Mark 4:21-23

Text: “And He, (Christ Jesus) said unto them, Is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, or under a bed?  And not to be set on a candlestick?”

Mark 4:21.

Good morning, candlestick Christian!  Yes, you and I are called to be ‘candlestick Christians’ for Christ Jesus our Lord and Saviour, for He alone has called us effectively, to be “…the Light of the world…”  Praise and all glory to His Holy and wonderful Name!

“Ye are the light of the world.  A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.  Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in Heaven.”  (Matthew 5:14-16)

If the Lord God has saved us by His power of Spiritual regeneration, and Sovereign grace – it is that we should serve Him, not secretly, but as outward witnesses; the observable truth of the Gospel of Christ Jesus, and Him Crucified for the sins of “His people”.  Hallelujah!

“Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; which He shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour.  That being justified by His grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of Eternal life.”  (Titus 3:5-7)

“And you hath He quickened (made alive!), who were dead in trespasses and sins…But God Who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved.)  (Ephesians 2:1-6)

Can you and I imagine trying to HIDE the miracle of Christ, evidenced by so many, in the raising of Lazarus from the dead?  Never!  It just could not be done.  (John 11:1-45) 

However, we might, perhaps, be surprised to see so many professing Christians today, in this increasingly apostate 21^st Century, professing to have been given Spiritual life by Christ, yet seeking desperately to hide their profession of faith from the eyes of those they meet day by day!  It is as though they are quite ashamed of the Christ Who has saved them, and most reluctant to reveal what He has done for them on that cruel Cross at Calvary!

Heed the clear warning of Scripture, fellow professing Christian, take heed today!

“Whosoever therefore shall confess Me before men, him/her will I confess also before My Father which is in Heaven.  But whosoever shall deny Me before men, him/her will I also deny before My Father which is in Heaven.”  (Matthew 10:32-33)

“For there is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested; neither was anything kept secret, but that it should come abroad. If any man/woman hath ears to hear, let him/her hear.” (V.23)

“It is no secret what God can do; what He’s done for others, He’ll do for you.”  (It Is No Secret (What God Can Do) is a Southern Gospel song composed by Stuart Hamblen in the 1950s. It's been recorded by famous artists such as Billy Kenny of the Ink Spots, Elvis Presley, Jo Stafford and Jim Reeves, to name a few.” (YouTube online)

‘Candlestick Christians’ are always seeking to shine the light of the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the Eternal Salvation He alone can impart, by His grace, through God-given faith.  We SEE Christ living within and in the lives of such outwardly witnessing Christians, learn that there is such an Eternal Salvation to be obtained from God, and if we be “His people”, He will begin to draw us with faith to Himself.  This is the power of ‘Candlestick Christianity’.  Praise God for His matchless grace!  (Ephesians 2:8-10) (Matthew 11:28-30)

J.C. Ryle Comments:

“We learn from these verses, that we ought not only to receive knowledge, but to impart it to others.

“A candle is not lighted in order to be hidden and concealed, but to be set on a candlestick and used. Re­ligious light is not given to a man for himself alone, but for the benefit of others. We are to try to spread and diffuse our knowledge. We are to display to others the precious treasure that we have found, and persuade them to seek it for themselves. We are to tell them of the good news that we have heard, and endeavour to make them believe it and value it themselves.

“We shall all have to give account of our use of know­ledge one day. The books of God in the day of judg­ment will show what we have done. If we have buried our talent in the earth, —if we have been content with a lazy, idle, do-nothing Christianity, and cared nothing what happened to others, so long as we went to heaven ourselves, —there will be a fearful exposure at last: “There is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested.”

“It becomes all Christians to lay these things to heart. It is high time that the old tradition, that the clergy alone ought to teach and spread religious knowledge, should be exploded and cast aside for ever. To do good and diffuse light is a duty for which all members of Christ’s Church are responsible, whether ministers or laymen.  Neighbours ought to tell neighbours, if they have found an unfailing remedy in time of plague.

“Christians ought to tell others that they have found medicine for their souls, if they see them ignorant, and dying for want of it. What saith the apostle Peter? “As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another.” (1 Peter 4:10) They will be happy days for the Church when that text is obeyed.” (J.C. Ryle’s Expository Thoughts on the Gospels 1816-1900)

Thought:  If you and I have found Eternal forgiveness of sins, and Eternal life in Christ and through the shedding of His sinless and precious Blood – we must seek to be ‘Candlestick Christians’ and spread Christ’s Light to all the nations still in Spiritual darkness and fear.