1 Peter 2:9
“But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:”
God says about the Christian, “Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.” (Matthew 5:14) God says in the verse above that He has called us “out of darkness into his marvellous light.” When the Christian got saved, they were called out of the darkness of Satan’s power, immorality, powerless living, no hope and eternal punishment. When a person gets saved, they are saved to eternal life, a relationship with God, a blessed hope, an empowered life and a life of purpose.
God is making it very clear that when we get saved, we are no longer to live a life that represents darkness, but we are to live a life that represents light. When God uses the light as an illustration, He is making it clear that the Christian is to live a transparent life so the world will come out of their darkness into the same light in which you are called. There are four ways you are going to accomplish this life of living in the light.
First, you must realize you are chosen. Notice that God says, “But ye are a chosen generation…” Out of all the things in this world that God could have chosen to use, He chose you. God could have chosen the heavens to declare His praises, and they do, but He specifically chose you. He could have chosen the animal and plant life to declare His praises, but instead He chose you. You must realize that you are chosen by God to declare His praises to the world. You will never live in the light until you accept that you are chosen by God to represent Him. What an honor!
Second, you must recognize your calling. God says that we are a “royal priesthood.” In other words, just like the priests in the Old Testament were the ones who testified about God to man, you are called by God to tell the world about the wondrous Gospel of Jesus Christ. You will always struggle with coming out of the life of darkness until you recognize you are called to tell others about Christ. Being the soul winner God has called you to be will help you to drop the works of darkness and live in the light of Christ.
Third, you must validate your example to others. God says that we are a “holy nation.” In other words, you are the measuring stick of truth to the world. Yes, God’s Word is truth, but the world will only look at Christians to determine truth. If the Christian does not live a holy life, then they are keeping the world from seeing the light. You are the light to the world. They will only see their darkness if you will let your light shine brightly. Don’t let sin darken the Light that shines in your heart.
Fourth, you must accept your distinction if you are going to come out of darkness. God calls us, “a peculiar people.” In other words, you are to be distinctly different from the world. The world is to look at you and see a distinct difference in your life. Too many Christians are identifying more with the world than they are with Christ, and there is no distinction for the world to see. You will continually struggle with the old life of darkness as long as you shy away from being distinct.
Christian, we are truly saved by grace, but the world must see the light shining in our life in order to see the grace of God in our life. The world will never see the praises of God until you realize you are chosen, recognize your calling, validate your example and accept your distinction. Let me ask you, does the world around you see the light in your life? If you will come to grips with these four areas in your life, then you will see that coming out of darkness into light will be a rewarding task.