Matthew 5:13-16 (ESV)
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 is an agent of change. It seasons. It influences what it comes in contact with. It can help to preserve and even be used in the process of healing. But all of these purposes for salt are moot if salt remains inside of the saltshaker or container it is concealed within.
Are you an agent of change? Do you bring seasoning to other peoples lives? Are you an influencer? Do you aid in the preservation of truth and the healing of the hurting? Jesus did not compare us to salt for no reason. It was not just an empty metaphor. As Christians, we are to be the salt of the earth.
Jesus knew His audience and He knew they would also understand a comparison that we may not be privy to without the aid of historical research. "Pure salt cannot lose effectiveness, but the salt that is common in the Dead Sea area is contaminated with gypsum and other minerals and may have a flat taste or be ineffective as a preservative. Such mineral salts were useful for little more than keeping footpaths free of vegetation." (from The MacArthur Bible Commentary)
I refuse to be reduced to ineffectiveness because I've lost my "saltiness." I will do all I can, every where I can, for as long as I can. I will love the unloveable, touch the untouchable, and forgive my enemies. I am the salt of the earth!
Darkness is not the opposite of light, it is the absence of it. The smallest of light can penetrate through the darkness and begin dissipating it. Light serves to illuminate the path. As Christians we are called to be the light of the world and illuminate the path leading to Christ!
Our lives, our songs, our methods must all point people to Christ. As light, we must show people the way to "The Way!" We are mere reflectors of His glory. He is "that Light" that came into the world. Filled with His Spirit, we now shine to show others that there is hope!
We will be known by our fruit, and if we are truly filled with the Spirit, we will bear the fruit of the Spirit and shine brightly against the darkness of sin and immorality.
We are a city set on a hill that cannot be hidden. Once you've been consumed by "that Light" you cannot conceal it. But why would you want to anyway?
I have an idea - rather than report that society is getting "darker" let's unite together and shine our light brighter for God.
Salt has a way of making people thirsty. Let's be so salty for Christ that people become thirsty for the Living Water that He freely gives. Let's also shine so brightly for Him that there is no question which way leads to the Truth, the Way, and the Life...
