EPHESIANS EXTRA #20

RAYS OF LIGHT

G5457 φῶς phōs, foce; from an obsolete φάω pháō (to shine or make manifest, especially by rays; compare G5316, G5346); luminousness (in the widest application, natural or artificial, abstract or concrete, literal or figurative):—fire, light.

Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible

This complete definition helped me to visualize being light in the Lord and living as a child of light. Children often draw the sun as a round ball with pointed rays extending outward from it. At first these rays are just lines, but as the artist matures, they become angles of varying length. The sun is usually smiling at us from a corner of the paper.

Jesus, the Son, who is referred to as “the Light” several times in John 1, tells his followers, “You are the light of the world.” (Matthew 5:14a) I picture Jesus as that smiling round sun and his followers as the rays of light extended from him. We receive our goodness, righteousness, and truth from our light source —Jesus. Without his power we are unable to manifest any of those three attributes. When we do exhibit them, we are simply allowing His light to shine through us and extend to those around us.

When I was a little girl, I loved to sing, “Jesus wants me for a sunbeam to shine for him each day.” Perhaps the writer of that song had this passage in mind. I don’t know. But I do know that Jesus still wants me to shine and that I can only radiate his love when I am controlled by his Spirit.

Father, let your goodness, righteousness, and truth shine in our lives today. Help us to put aside those attitudes and actions that would hide your light and become Son-rays that lights the path for others to come to you