Elihu said, “Bear with me a little, and I will show you, for I have yet something to say on God’s behalf” (Job 36:2). Not every one of Elihu’s deductions are true, but we are thankful for the desire to speak for God.
We must try to balance “not practicing our alms before men” and “letting our light shine before men.” Our attitudes and intentions make the difference. Spurgeon said,
“We ought not to court publicity for our virtue, or notoriety for our zeal; but, at the same time, it is a sin to be always seeking to hide that which God has bestowed upon us for the good of others. A Christian is not to be a village in a valley, but ‘a city set upon a hill;” he is not to be a candle under a bushel, but a candle in a candlestick, giving light to all” (Morning and Eveneing Jan. 12).
Let us use every moment for God’s glory, not for our own. We must yet speak for the Lord. The greatest thing we can do for those around us is to tell them of Jesus. The greatest thing we can do for ourselves is to tell others about Jesus. The greatest thing we can do to shape our eternity is to tell others about Jesus.
I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching (2 Timothy 4:1–2).
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