“No man, when he has lighted a lamp, puts it in a hiding place, nor under the corn measure, but on the stand, so that those who enter in may see the light.”
The first principle that has to be established is that every man must light his lamp by following Jesus Christ (John 8:12) and looking to His words, and that that light must then be allowed to shine. ‘Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify you Father Who is in Heaven' (Matthew 5:16). Every Christian should be putting the lamp of his life where it can be seen. Not in a hiding place where he hides away in embarrassment or indolence, not under a corn measure where he keeps it hidden because he is ashamed of it, but out on the stand where all who come near can clearly see the light. Compare Luke 7:16 where the warning is also given that in the end all will be brought to the light and judged.
For Jesus has come as the Light of the world. Those who follow Him receive the light of life (John 8:12). And that light must be allowed to shine forth to the world. We are to walk as children of light and of the day (Luke 7:16; Luke 16:8; Ephesians 5:8; John 12:36; 1 Thessalonians 5:5), revealing the splendour of His glory by life and lip.