Send, Take, or…
I don’t remember the first time it happened when I was present, but it was a number of years ago. It has only happened, maybe, a half-dozen times when I have been present, but it continues to cause me to think.
We were getting ready to sing the old hymn, “Send the Light.” That great old hymn is a tremendous missionary song, reminding us that there are people all throughout the world who need to hear the Gospel, and that we have a responsibility to send “the blessed Gospel light.”
However, a few times I have been present where a song leader took a good amount of time telling us that we did not need to sing it that way, but we needed to change the lyric to “take the light.” The reason given was that we each have a responsibility to share the Gospel with anyone and everyone who will listen, all over the world.
Now, I obviously do not disagree that we have that responsibility. Jesus clearly taught that we are to spread the Gospel. In the passages we often call “the Great Commission” our Lord made it crystal clear that His followers are to be going about sharing the Gospel (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16). So, yes, we are to “take” the light.
However, if we continue to read the New Testament, we find congregations that were considered faithful, in part, because they supported workers and missionaries, including Paul and his traveling companions. Those Christians may not have gotten on the ship with Paul or gone to some far-flung region of the Roman Empire, but they were clearly approved by their actions of giving and praying and encouraging. They were sending the light.
So, maybe, instead of thinking of this is some “either/or,” it would be correct for us to make sure we see it as a “both/and.” Should we be sending the light? YES! Should we be taking the light? YES!
There’s nothing wrong, so far as I can tell, with wanting to sing “take the light” every so often. But maybe we need to stop the speeches, because we also need to be people who “send” the light.
Send? Take? How about both.
By you and me. Constantly.
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AUTHOR: Adam Faughn
