Light of the World in Scripture

“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its
saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer
good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled
underfoot. You are the light of the world. A town built on a
hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put
it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives
light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your
light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds
and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:13-16)
We are called to be the salt and light in the world. But what
does that mean?
Salt:
When salt is applied, it dissolves inward and disappears. The
salt speaks of the inward part, the character of the Christian.
Light
Jesus also described His people as being like light, which is
on the outside. The light speaks of the testimony of a
follower of Christ, revealing and illuminating the truth.

You Are the Light of the World

Jesus was speaking to a crowd of just ordinary folks. Yet
Christ said to them, "You are the light of the world"
(Matthew 5:14). Even today, you are the light of the world.
That's how God intends to get his work done on earth today:
through you! It's not just pastors and missionaries who are
the light; it's everybody who loves the Lord.

How to Be the Light of the World

1. Share Your Faith in Christ
God takes an ordinary person and uses them to share His
message to people who needed Him. When we share our
faith, we spread His light. You were saved to shine! Don't
hide your testimony or be ashamed to take your Bible to
work. Don't be afraid to pray over your lunch at school. Let
others know that you love the Lord Jesus.
2. Take Light Where It’s Dark
Jesus describes what we are in this passage - the light of the
world, not the light of the church. That means we have to get
beyond the church walls and take the light out to where it is
dark.
3. Shine Together as the Church
Jesus also talked of the strength of collective light. Each
house in a city with its lights on cast a glow across the sky.
As Christians come together, there is a glow for the Lord that
we cannot create individually. We shine brightest when we
shine together.
4. Live Surrendered to the Lord
How can we shine for God? Jesus says that we are to let our
lights shine before men in such a way that they will see our
good works and glorify God (Matthew 5:16). That's how we
do it. We live for God.
We have to surrender our lives to Him completely. Christ
says we are to "let" our lights shine. In other words, when
you get right with God and are filled with the Holy Spirit, He
will simply shine through you.
Taken from "Bright Lights in a Dark World" by Love Worth
Finding Ministries/Adrian Rogers (used by permission).

What Did Jesus Mean When He Said, “I Am the

Light of the World”?
God is the light that shines within and through His church as
the light of the world. The same word the Bible uses for light
in Matthew 5 to describe Christ’s Church also describes
Christ Himself in John 8:12:
“Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the Light of
the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness,
but will have the Light of life.’”

Biblical Context of “I Am the Light of the

World”
This word, translated from the Greek Phos, means “to shine
or make manifest, the light, brightness.”
We know from John 8:20 that Jesus said these words in the
Treasury of the Temple. This was near the Court of Women,
“which was the most public part of the temple,” according
to this commentary.
The Feast of Tabernacles was going on for the past several
days. During this celebration, four gold candelabra were
lighted, illuminating the whole court. But the night Jesus
claimed to be “the light of the world (John 8:12),” Elliot’s
Commentary explains:
“On this night the light is not to shine; but the true Light,
which was ever in the world, is now in His own Temple,
speaking the words of light and life to His own people. There
is a Light there whose rays are to illumine, not only the
Temple, or Jerusalem, or Judea, or the Dispersion, but the
world.”

Light as a Metaphor
The idea of light chasing away darkness is central to
understanding Jesus and Christianity. One of the first Jews to
recognize baby Jesus as the promised Messiah called him "a
light of revelation" (Luke 2:32). This metaphor of light only
makes sense against a background of darkness. 
1. Darkness points to the simple fact of human
ignorance.
Those who are "in the dark" are those who lack knowledge.
To the Jewish mind, this metaphor had particular application
to the Gentile world - a world that had not received the grace
of God through the revelation of the Torah, the prophets, and
the written revelation of God. Even today, we know that
untold millions still dwell in deep darkness, having never
heard about the one true God or of Jesus Christ, His only
Son.
2. Darkness refers to evil and willful blindness.
This points beyond the mere fact of simple ignorance. In this
sense, darkness refers to the fact that many will outright
reject the light. As John 1:10-11 explained, "He was in the
world, and though the world was made through him, the
world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his
own, but his own did not receive him."