Matthew·Light·8 of 34
Ye are the light
Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
Matthew 5:14–16 · King James Version
You are not asked to become light. You are asked to stop covering it.
An inner reading
The saying does not say “ye shall be the light if you improve.” It says ye are. A lamp under a bushel is still a lamp. The bushel is everything we use to manage how we are seen: false modesty, cynicism, the wish not to be responsible for what we know. Hiding does not put the light out. It only withholds it from the house.
The glory is steered away from the ego at the last clause. People seeing good works are not meant to stop at you. The work is transparent. It gives the Father away. Metaphysically, a life becomes a candlestick when the person agrees to be a place where light is visible, rather than a personality collecting credit for the flame.