Inside-out discipleship

Read > Luke 11:33-36

Your eye is a lamp that provides light for your body. When your eye is good, your whole body is filled with light (v. 34).

I used to work in a hospital, and as I walked from ward to ward I was fascinated by the X-ray and CT images. It’s amazing that you can see what’s inside a person’s body – the trauma caused by an accident, the effects of a disease, a beating heart, even a new life taking form.

Wouldn’t it be useful if there were some sort of spiritual X-ray machine we could use to see how we’re doing on the inside? Sometimes we just want to know, Am I walking in the light of Christ?

Jesus’ words in Luke 11 are all about what we’re like on the inside. But rather than just reacting to a problem, like an X-ray machine being used to view a broken arm, Jesus’ words do something much better. His words help us ensure what we’re like on the inside so that we’re ready for the ups and downs of being a disciple.

Jesus said, “When your eye is good, your whole body is filled with light” (v. 34). What goes into us really makes a difference to how strongly we hold on to Christ. “Your eye,” after all, “is a lamp that provides light for your body” (v. 34). We should all want to walk in God’s light. The way to steer clear of the world’s darkness is to avoid spiritual blindness and a hard heart before God. There’s a real danger that what we believe to be light may in fact be darkness that pulls us away from Jesus (v. 35). But when we follow Christ’s example, our “whole life will be radiant” (v. 36).

Jesus is powerful enough to change us from the inside out. Pursue Him today by walking in His light. – Jon Lindsay

More >

·         Ephesians 5:8-12

·         2 Timothy 3:16-17

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What is keeping you from walking in the light of Christ? What will you do to turn from the darkness of this world and embrace His truth?