Be A Moon - October 15

Read Galatians 1:21-24

Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia. And I was still unknown in person to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. They only were hearing it said, “He who used to persecute us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.” And they glorified God because of me.

Reflect

Have you ever met someone who reflected Christ so much that you glorified God because of them?

I once heard an illustration that as Christians, we are like the moon. The moon is just a lifeless rock with no light of its own. But when the sun shines upon the moon, the moon reflects the sun’s light making it the brightest object in the sky apart from the sun. Now, all illustrations about Christianity break down at some point. But we are similar to the moon because apart from Christ, we are dark, dead, and lifeless. But, in Christ, we have His light and life! Our calling in Him is to spend the rest of our lives reflecting the Son’s light in order to share His glory with a dark world until He returns.

The apostle Paul is the perfect example of this. In today’s verses we read that as Paul was traveling around preaching the Gospel, word of his transformation was reaching the churches in Judea. They were amazed and glorified God because Paul, a man who had previously been so hostile and violent towards Christians was now a completely changed man. Formerly, he had been zealous about putting Christians in prison. Now, he was zealous for preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Christians in Judea wisely recognized that a transformation like Paul’s can only be a work of God.

The same is true for all of us. When we accept Christ, we become a new creation: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:17-18, emphasis mine). We cannot spiritually renew ourselves. It is a work of God through Christ.

But this work of God in our lives should be noticeable to those around us. They should recognize the change in our lives and see how different we are from the rest of the world. In John 8:12, Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

In Matthew 5:14-15, Jesus used this same analogy for us, the members of His body: “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 5:14-16.

Many of us are so used to thinking of the old song “This Little Light of Mine” as a children’s Sunday school song that we forget it’s not just for kids. It’s our commission! It’s what Jesus called us to do! When we receive Him, we receive His light of life and we are meant to walk in it and shine it brightly so that others can find the way to eternal life as well. What about you? Are you letting the little light of your transformed life shine? Are you acting like the moon, reflecting His light to a dark world for His glory?

Respond

Lord, please give me the courage to shine Your light in a dark world. I want to be the reason someone glorifies You today. Amen.

Reveal

Paul’s story shows us that when God transforms a life, other people can’t help but take notice—and give Him credit. One of the most powerful ways you can “shine” is not by preaching at someone, but by letting them see the small but real differences in how you live and love. This week, pick a simple act that reflects the new life Christ has given you—maybe it’s apologizing sincerely when you’re wrong, choosing patience in a tense conversation, or going out of your way to encourage someone who usually feels overlooked. Then, when someone asks why you responded differently than they expected, don’t make it about you. Share honestly that your life is being changed in ways you couldn’t pull off on your own. In that moment, you’ve reflected His light—and given someone else a reason to wonder about the God who makes such change possible.