Zechariah 4:1-3 (ESV)
[1] And the angel who talked with me came again and woke me, like a man who is awakened out of his sleep. [2] And he said to me, “What do you see?” I said, “I see, and behold, a lampstand all of gold, with a bowl on the top of it, and seven lamps on it, with seven lips on each of the lamps that are on the top of it. [3] And there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left.”

There is a lot more to this chapter, but the thought that keeps coming to me as I read this chapter is that Jesus said, “You are the light of the world. . . . let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven” (Mt 5:14-16). The light of the lamps in Zechariah 4 are fueled by a direct line to two olive trees. Our light is fueled by a direct line to the Holy Spirit who dwells in us, guides us, and empowers us to truly be the light of the world.

As believers in Jesus Christ we are often passionate about pointing people to him. But we sometimes forget that a significant part of pointing people to Jesus is letting them see Jesus in us first. The light of Christ shines brightest through us. Just as Israel was God’s light to a dark world in the Old Testament, so the Church is to be that light today. The question we need to ask ourselves is: What does the world actually see when they look at us? Do they see light, or do they see just another exclusive, religious clique with nice polished lamps all lined up in a neat and orderly manner?

I fear that sometimes we are more interested in polishing lamps than in letting the light of lamps shine into a dark world. We are often more interested in arranging the lamps and making them look good, than in allowing them to do what they were created to do, which is to shine light. As believers our source of oil (fuel) will never run out. The Holy Spirit is infinite. The question is not whether there is enough fuel, but whether we are willing to trim the lamps and let the light shine.

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