Matthew 5:1–16 〈 The Light of a New Life Revealed by the Gospel 〉

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📖 Matthew 5:1–16 〈 The Light of a New Life Revealed by the Gospel 〉

16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

✨ The Declarations of a People Shaped by the Gospel — The Beatitudes

Jesus proclaims a new standard of life to His disciples and the crowds. Poverty of spirit, mourning, meekness, and hunger for righteousness are not human achievements; they are conditions produced by the gospel.
These blessings are given to those who have been emptied before God. While the world speaks of success, Jesus declares that a life that begins with grace is the life that is truly blessed.

✨ A Life That Appears as the Result of Grace, Not of Works

The Beatitudes are not conditions we fulfill in order to receive blessing. They are the inevitable fruit that appears in those who have already been called by God’s grace.
Therefore, we confess that salvation is not a reward for good works, but a gift given by grace alone and received through faith. A holy life is not the cause of salvation, but its result.

✨ Salt and Light of the World — Bear Witness by Your Very Being

Jesus calls His disciples “salt” and “light.” Salt dissolves itself to prevent decay, and light silently pushes back the darkness.
This is the natural influence that flows from a life renewed by the gospel. Our lives are seen by others not so that we may be praised, but so that glory may be given to God, for that is the purpose for which we have been called.

🙏 Prayer

Gracious God, we thank You for calling us not by our merit or righteousness, but by the grace of Jesus Christ.
Keep us from becoming religious people who merely imitate the Beatitudes, and make us people truly transformed by the gospel.
May it be that when our lives are revealed, glory is given not to us, but to You alone.

🔍 Application

• Examine whether the standard guiding your life today is achievement or grace.
• Instead of striving to display yourself, choose to remain in the gospel throughout the day.
• Take one concrete step to bear witness to the gospel through your life rather than your words.

💡 Meditation Point

Matthew 5 is not a list of new ethical rules, but a portrait of a new kind of human being shaped by the gospel.
We are not people who struggle to become light; we are people who have already been called as light.
Begin today with grace, live by grace, and resolve to give glory to God in all things.

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