Matthew 5:13-16
Salt and Light
August 31, 2014
On Sunday, April 8, 1945, German pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer was taken from a worship service he had just conducted for prisoners to a concentration camp in Flossenburg. He was tried for treason and hanged just a couple weeks before the Allied Forces liberated the prison camp. A doctor at the scene described Bonhoeffer’s final moments:
“Through the half-open door in one of the huts I saw Pastor Bonhoeffer, before taking off his prison clothes, kneeling on the floor praying fervently to his God. I was most deeply moved by the way this lovable man prayed, so devout and so certain that God heard his prayer. At the place of execution, he again said a short prayer and then climbed the steps to the gallows, brave and composed. His death ensued after a few seconds. In the almost fifty years that I worked as a doctor, I have hardly ever seen a man die so submissive to the will of God. (H. Fisher- Hullstrung, "A Report from Flossenburg," in I Knew Dietrich Bonhoeffer, p. 232).
Bonhoeffer believed the words of Jesus, even to the point of death. ‘You Dietrich, are the salt of the earth and you are the light of the world.’ When we accept those words, it may mean that we are called to do something which will lead to persecution, ridicule and difficult decisions. It means radical obedience to Jesus. It means we should make a difference for Jesus. If you believe those words of Jesus, then are you being salt and light to this world? In order to best answer the question, let’s take a look at what Jesus meant when He told the disciples and us we are to be salt and light.
Let’s look at the words of Jesus from Matthew 5:13-16 ~
13 “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet.
14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
15 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.
16 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.
Salt adds flavor to whatever it touches. In fact most of us don’t even think about salt unless we’re on salt-free or low-salt diets. Who wants to eat salt-less potato chips, or saltless pretzels, even a little salt on french fries and potatoes. And to benefit those who can’t have salt, there are items we can buy which taste like salt, but do not contain any.
A Christian who is the salt of the earth, gives taste to a world that is sinful, bland, and without joy. Christians who influence this world give taste to a tasteless world. We add divine flavor.
Salt creates thirst. If you eat salty food, you get thirsty. If you go to a Chinese buffet, they intentionally make the food salty. Why? So you’ll have to drink more liquid, which fills you up, so you eat less. Have you ever been to a bland buffet?
Generally speaking people who are described as ‘salty’ are usually considered irritating, unpleasant and angry people. Most people don’t really want to hang out with them. So, we don’t want to be described as this type of salty Christian. That will actually lead people away from Christ.
But, as salty Christians, we should create a thirst for God in those who don’t know Him. A Christian should help people have the desire to drink from the living water of Christ. There should be something about Christians that is different from the world.
In his book How to Live, G. Campbell Morgan, the famous minister of Westminster Chapel in London, told about a conversation he had with a man who said he invited a coworker to church. He told Morgan they had worked together for 5 years and never knew the other was a believer in Christ. The man thought it was funny. But to his surprise, Morgan exclaimed, "Funny?! No, it isn't funny at all! You both need to be born again." You see, it was inconceivable to Morgan that two men could be Christian, work side-by-side and not be aware that they were brothers in Christ.
Do the people around you know that you are a follower of Jesus Christ? Do they see it in your actions? Do they see it in your words? I know when I’m coaching, I will never curse. I may raise my voice to get someone’s attention. But I will also put my arm around them, talk to them, find reason to praise them. This week one of the boys on the team told me that someone else from the team was calling him names. He’s not the best player, but I was able to spot him doing something right in the game, and I called him out and praised him in front of the other boys.
How can we show the world, even in subtle ways, that we are followers of Christ? We can’t be silent about who we are in Christ? We are physical representations of Jesus. If the world does not know we are Christ followers, why is that?
George Barna's research has shown that the average Christian in the average evangelical church is almost indistinguishable from the rest of society. He is referring to the fundamental moral and ethical difference that Christ can make in how we live. This is what he wrote ~ ‘When Christian teens, get pregnant and do drugs at the same rate as the general teenage population - when our marriages end in divorce at the same rate as the rest of society - when we cheat, lie, steal, and commit adultery at the same statistical level as those who say they are not Christians - something is wrong.’
If you are a Christian, what makes your life different than non-Christians? Philip Yancey asks the question, "If a nonbeliever came to you and asked how your life as a Christian differs from theirs as a moral nonChristian, what would you tell them?" (Reaching for the Invisible God)
Our lives must make a distinguishable difference in the lives of others. Not just through our morality, but through our spirituality. Our life in Christ must drive our morality and ethics. Do you hear that? Our life in Christ must drive our morality and ethics. It must drive everything about us. If it does not, what does that say about who Christ is in your life?
As a Christian you have the opportunity to accept God’s gift of salvation — love, hope, joy and peace. My sister, who was Jewish, who died 9 years ago, once told me ‘I will always have something she doesn’t have, “HOPE.” She knew I believed in eternal life with Christ, while she didn’t.
We’re called to be the salt of the earth. We’re called to season the world with the flavor of Grace. We’re called to bring healing. We’re called to lead people to become thirsty for Jesus.
We’ve all known people who can demonstrate God’s gift of joy, love and peace, even in the worst moments. And we ask, “Why are you like this?” What we don’t always realize is that God may be using them as a means to make people thirst for Christ. Through your life, you can make people thirsty in their hearts.
Salt also acts as a preservative. In Jesus’ day, there were no refrigerators, so they needed to use salt so meats wouldn’t spoil. Rubbing salt all over meat, acts as a preservative and the meat would last for a long time without spoiling. Salt has a preserving effect on meat, and Christians should have a preserving effect in our world. When Christians express their faith through their lifestyle, society cannot help but be changed.
Salt was used on wounds to bring healing, and we are to be healers. Our calling is to walk alongside one another when they are hurting. We aren’t there to solve their problems. We are not supposed to do their work. Instead, we walk with them, we sit with them, we cry with them, we hold them. We care for one another as brothers and sisters in Christ. As a pastor, I am beyond privileged to walk with so many people in their darkest and worst moments. It’s no fun, really, it’s no fun to be with people who are struggling with loss, grief, death, separation. BUT . . . when we see the hand of God, the presence of God at work, when we see the joy of life still being present . . . even in the midst of trauma and tragedy . . . ah yes, that makes it all worth it.
Part of our calling is to help people as a preserving influence on society. To preserve the world from decaying to the effects of sin. You know when salt loses its saltiness, or its potency, it is good for nothing. Nothing like eating a chip which has lost it’s saltiness, that’s bad, although not quite as bad as eating celery.
Not only are we to be the salt of the earth, but we are also to be the light to the world. We are to be a visible influence of Jesus Christ.
Salt is a hidden but powerful influence. Light is a visible and revealing influence. Jesus calls us to make a visible impact on the world around us. How do we do that? Jesus said that we need to make the light visible to as many as possible by refusing to allow it to be hidden. But rather positioning it so our light shines on everyone around us.
Light reveals things as they really are. Whenever you turn the light on, even a little light begins to destroy the darkness. Light reveals what is hidden.
Light also gives life. What happens when the sunlight has been diminished? What happens in Revelation when the sun is hidden? The world becomes colder and plants will not grow. Living things need light to live. God created light to give life.
When we allow our light in Christ to shine before others, people will see our good works, and they will also see God in us. God who is the source of our light. Our good works don’t save people, but God uses those deeds to save people.
President Woodrow Wilson told the following story: "I was sitting in a barber chair, when I became aware that a powerful personality had entered the room. A man had come in to have his hair cut and sat in the chair next to me. Every word the man uttered, though it was not in the least didactic, showed a personal interest in the man who was serving him. And before I got through with my haircut, I was aware that I had attended an evangelistic service, because Dwight L. Moody was in that chair. I purposefully lingered in the room after he left and noted the singular effect that his visit had brought upon the barber shop. They talked in undertones. They didn't know his name but they knew something had elevated their thoughts, and I felt that I left that place as I should have left a place of worship." (Sermon illustrations.com)
Our lives should reflect something more than the world has, because we have more than they have, we have Jesus. He has forgiven us, saved us, changed our hearts, given us hope, put His love in us, given us joy, and set our feet on the rock which can never be shaken. If He doesn’t make a difference in your life, then do you really know Jesus? If not, come and meet Him; and if you have lost Him as your first love, then come and be reacquainted with Him.
Jesus said we are to let our lights shine before people in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify God. There must be an intentionality to letting our lights shine. We must determine to do things that will bring honor and glory to God. We don’t do them to find salvation. That is already ours for the asking. We do good works because that is part of the reason we were created (Ephesians 2:10). When people see that we care because we are people who know God, they will see more clearly. The light of Christ, which is in us, will shine on them.
Our light is displayed in our behavior. The depth of your spiritual commitment will be measured by your behavior. How you act, what you do, how you behave will be the measuring stick people use to determine your relationship with Christ. If you are filled with light, then your whole life will be radiant, as though a floodlight is shining on you.
On the other hand, it doesn’t matter how strongly you announce that you are a light, if it’s not shining, you won’t be believed. Nowhere are the words truer “What you are doing speaks so loud I can’t hear what you are saying.”
When we hear about Christian leaders who are embroiled in sin, whatever it is, it leaves a bad taste on the world. It opens the door for the world to stay away from the very person they need, Jesus. When churches fight amongst themselves, what type of a witness is that to the world? We may think what we do is a private matter, but really it’s not. When we follow Jesus, we live in that fishbowl. Others will see how we act. They will see if we really are salt and light. They’ll know it by our actions. You know that old campfire song. “They’ll know we are Christians by our love.” They will, because our love is demonstrated through our actions.
People are watching how we live, and when we blow it, we are blowing out our light. We should always be seeking to live our lives according to the fruits of the Spirit — love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).
While we are far from perfect, our goal should always be to make these fruits visible. When we do, we are salt of the earth and a light to the world.
Maybe you’ve been living a life that is at odds with the message of Christ. Or you’ve been acting in an unloving manner toward others. What do you do? Well, light the torch again, just because it’s gone out doesn’t mean it has to stay out. We can’t change the past. But 1 John 1:9 reminds us of God’s grace, “But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong.” Your sins can’t be undone, only forgiven.
John Piper said: “You are either a microscope or a telescope! When people see you, do they see a dinky little God who can be seen only under a microscope? Or do people see a holy, awesome, majestic God, as if they were looking through a telescope? Let’s shake and shine and be the salt and light of this world.”
Is the light of Christ being made visible in your life? Or has the light gone out? Has the passion for God become religious ritual and routine? Don’t hide the light. Take it out and hold it high. We were not created to be secret disciples. We were created to be torch-bearers for God, torches which are held high.
Is your life making a difference? Jesus said we are to be salt and light. If you live for Him, it will! Go rub shoulders with the world. Help others experience Christ. When we stick close together, we have more power to shine the light of Christ. We are different — we are salt and light. May we be telescopes when people see us, so that they may see the magnificent, glorious, power and love of God.
