Faithful Steward Ministries and FSM Women's Outreach

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16.

Apart from Christ man is incapable of “Good Works”. I know many will argue this and say people do ‘good things’ every day, and that may be true but by what, or better put who’s standard? The world with the advent of Post-Modernism in the late 20th century states that “The assumption that there is no common denominator in ‘nature’ or ‘truth’ … that guarantees the possibility of neutral or objective thought” is a key assumption of postmodernism.^[12]  In other words, It is impossible to determine good or bad via ‘nature’ or ‘truth’ which therefore denies all Biblical Teaching. The Bible clearly teaches God, His uncompromised Word, is the Standard by which Good is measured and only His children His elect, or those He tasks with a specific mission are capable of “Good Works.”

CONTEXT MATTHEW 5:16

5:14–26 light of the world. The people of God are transformed by knowing God’s glory in Christ so that their good works attract people to become worshipers of God (Isa. 60:1–3; John 8:12; 12:35–36; 2 Cor. 4:6; Eph. 5:7–14). city … on an hill. Christ’s church is the new Jerusalem (John 4:21–24; Gal. 4:26; Heb. 12:22; Rev. 21:9–10).

Joel R. Beeke, Michael P. V. Barrett, and Gerald M. Bilkes, eds., The Reformation Heritage KJV Study Bible (Grand Rapids, MI: Reformation Heritage Books, 2014), 1363.

13–16. Well may the LORD’S people rejoice, convinced of their interest in him. Luke 10:20. Philip. 3:3. But with respect to the reward the LORD speaks of, let not the Reader for a moment overlook the cause. It is all of grace, not of debt. All on CHRIST’S account, not their own. Ephes. 2:8, 9. Rom. 11:6. And blessed is the example of the Prophets in this particular. Heb. 11:33 to the end. James 5:10, 11. The figures of salt and light are very expressive. CHRIST is the salt of the covenant. Levit. 2:13. Numb. 18:19 with Mark 9:49. CHRIST is the light of the world. John 1:4. And hence by so much as there is of CHRIST in his redeemed, by so much salt and light is there in the world. And well is it for the world that CHRIST’S seed are in the earth. For without this salt the whole otherwise would be in a state of putrefaction; and without this light the whole would be in a state of darkness. Oh! the blessedness of such a state of the church. Such honor have all his Saints! Philip. 2:15.

Robert Hawker, Poor Man’s New Testament Commentary: Matthew–John, vol. 1 (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2013), 37–38.

IN these verses MATTHEW 5:13–20, the Lord Jesus treats of two subjects. One is the character which true Christians must support and maintain in the world. The other is the relation between His doctrines and those of the Old Testament. It is of great importance to have clear views on both these subjects.

True Christians are to be in the world like salt. Now salt has a peculiar taste of its own, utterly unlike anything else. When mingled with other substances, it preserves them from corruption. It imparts a portion of its taste to everything it is mixed with. It is useful so long as it preserves its savor, but no longer. Are we true Christians? Then behold here our place and its duties!

True Christians are to be in the world like light. Now it is the property of light to be utterly distinct from darkness. The least spark in a dark room can be seen at once. Of all things created light is the most useful. It fertilizes. It guides. It cheers. It was the first thing called into being. Without it the world would be a gloomy blank. Are we true Christians? Then behold again our position and its responsibilities!

Surely, if words mean anything, we are meant to learn from these two figures, that there must be something marked, distinct, and peculiar about our character, if we are true Christians. It will never do to idle through life, thinking and living like others, if we mean to be owned by Christ as His people. Have we grace? Then it must be seen. Have we the Spirit? Then there must be fruit. Have we any saving religion? Then there must be a difference of habits, tastes, and turn of mind, between us and those who think only of the world. It is perfectly clear that true Christianity is something more than being baptized and going to church. “Salt” and “light” evidently imply peculiarity both of heart and life, of faith and practice. We must dare to be singular and unlike the world, if we mean to be saved.

The relation between our Lord’s teaching and that of the Old Testament, is cleared up by our Lord in one striking sentence. He says, “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.” These are remarkable words. They were deeply important when spoken, as satisfying the natural anxiety of the Jews on the point. They will be deeply important as long as the world stands, as a testimony that the religion of the Old and New Testament is one harmonious whole.

The Lord Jesus came to fulfil the predictions of the prophets, who had long foretold that a Saviour would one day appear. He came to fulfil the ceremonial law, by becoming the great sacrifice for sin, to which all the Mosaic offerings had ever pointed. He came to fulfil the moral law, by yielding to it a perfect obedience, which we could never have yielded—and by paying the penalty for our breach of it with His atoning blood, which we could never have paid. In all these ways He exalted the law of God, and made its importance more evident even than it had been before. In a word, “He magnified the law and made it honorable.” (Isaiah 42:21.)

There are deep lessons of wisdom to be learned from these words of our Lord. Let us consider them well, and lay them up in our hearts.Let us beware of despising the Old Testament under any pretence whatever. Let us never listen to those who bid us throw it aside as an obsolete, antiquated, useless book. The religion of the Old Testament is the germ of Christianity. The Old Testament is the Gospel in the bud. The New Testament is the Gospel in full flower.—The Old Testament is the Gospel in the blade. The New Testament is the Gospel in full ear.—The saints in the Old Testament saw many things through a glass darkly. But they all looked by faith to the same Saviour, and were led by the same Spirit as ourselves. These are no light matters. Much infidelity begins with an ignorant contempt of the Old Testament.

Let us, for another thing, beware of despising the law of the Ten Commandments. Let us not suppose for a moment that it is set aside by the Gospel, or that Christians have nothing to do with it. The coming of Christ did not alter the position of the Ten Commandments one hair’s breadth. If anything, it exalted and raised their authority. (Rom. 3:31.) The law of the Ten Commandments is God’s eternal measure of right and wrong. By it is the knowledge of sin. By it the Spirit shows men their need of Christ, and drives them to Him. To it Christ refers His people as their rule and guide for holy living. In its right place it is just as important as “the glorious Gospel.”—It cannot save us. We cannot be justified by it. But never, never let us despise it. It is a symptom of an ignorant and unhealthy state of religion, when the law is lightly esteemed. The true Christian “delights in the law of God.” (Rom. 7:22.)

In the last place, let us beware of supposing that the Gospel has lowered the standard of personal holiness, and that the Christian is not intended to be as strict and particular about his daily life as the Jew. This is an immense mistake, but one that is unhappily very common. So far from this being the case, the sanctification of the New Testament saint ought to exceed that of him who has nothing but the Old Testament for his guide. The more light we have, the more we ought to love God. The more clearly we see our own complete and full forgiveness in Christ, the more heartily ought we to work for His glory. We know what it cost to redeem us far better than the Old Testament saints did. We have read what happened in Gethsemane and on Calvary, and they only saw it dimly and indistinctly as a thing yet to come. May we never forget our obligations! The Christian who is content with a low standard of personal holiness has got much to learn.

J. C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on Matthew (New York: Robert Carter & Brothers, 1860), 36–39.

I think these preceding comments make it clear that God expects us to be lights in an otherwise dark world. Not just the average bulb hanging from a ceiling but one of the modern go-anywhere LED lights that goes Good Works where needed. However nowhere does He mention it will be easy. That is why we must never compromise the Word of God in any manner.

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