Series: Cliff Hangers - part 2
Introduction to series: last week we started a series out of Matthew from Jesus famous Sermon on the Mount teaching. We will be gleaming spiritual truths from Jesus owns words as He addresses the crowd that is following Him.
We are calling our series “Cliff Hangers”
These teachings will be risky, some would even say dangerous, they would be teachings that would be opposite of what the religious leaders of the day were teaching, they would become points of dissension and points of exhilaration.
What Jesus was about to teach them would put them on the edge of their seats and totally change the way people of this day thought or perceived what the Kingdom of God was. Jesus teaching along with their acceptance by the crowd would change the course of history between God and mankind.
Sermon: Salt licks and Spot lights/Salt and Light
Scripture Texts:
Matthew 5:13-16: 13“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. 14“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
Illustration:
Reference the how to video: http://www.videojug.com/film/how-to-make-a-light-turn-on-with-salt-and-water. Props on stage: Salt block, bag of road salt, table salt, and spot light. On table light bulb connected to socket with loose wires in jar of water and table salt. Pour salt into water light will turn on.
Application: I find it amazing that Jesus first says to those who are part of the Kingdom of God that they are salt – a powerful preserving force in this decaying world. He then tells them that Saltiness is to be expected of every believer – their job is to preserve society and then be a light to all so they can find their way to God.
Salt can be the acronym – S.A.L.T. – Salt and Light Together.
Thesis: Jesus said we are the salt a preservative of this world created by God and we are also His created light which will lead people out of darkness. One works quietly behind the scenes but you can taste and see what it keeps from spoiling, while on the other hand light is very blatant and all will see it. Light is not hidden and behind the scenes but in the fore front of life.
Introduction:
Salt and light are two essential ingredients we need for life - one is a preservative designed by God to keep things from spoiling and the other lights up our days also designed by God and it helps us to see in the darkness of night. Jesus on the mount looks at the crowd and informs them that they are the salt and light of the earth. He points to their earth – their society – their village or city. I am sure the crowd of every day normal people and hurting people thought “Who me?” I am a preserving force in my village? I am a beacon of light for God in my hometown and residence? Jesus lets them know that the people who reside, who align with the beatitudes just spoken about are the preservatives in this world, their silent presence keeps this world from totally rotting and spoiling. He then adds that they also are the ones who can light the way to God in the darkness of evil. They are the ones who can light the way for a lost and dark world. Now interesting salt is not seen but tasted and light is seen vividly – one works quietly and another is very blatant – very obvious.
I. We are to be salt in this society and this world which keeps it from decaying.
a. The benefits of salt from Paul Fritz (Paul Fritz at sermoncentral.com 40 benefits of salt and light):
i. As I pondered over Paul’s list of benefits I picked out 12 benefits of salt to go with my message today. As I read this list of benefits think about the importance of salt in our society and how important salt was back in the days of Jesus when they had no refrigeration.
• Preserves
• Purifies
• Flavors
• Melts Ice
• Works quietly but has power
• Creates Thirst
• Heals
• Inexpensive but valuable
• Necessary for life
• Universally Available
• Works in all temperatures
• Created by God
b. In Salt and Light Witnessing by Jose Marin on sermoncentral.com he notes the importance and some interesting information about salt in the times of the Bible:
i. In ancient times salt was seen as a necessity of life. Because of its seasoning and preservative qualities was one of the most highly prized minerals. In many societies it was so highly valued that it was used for money. The English word salary is derived from the Latin word Salarium which refers to the payments made to a Roman soldier with salt.
ii. Herod’s temple had a chamber of salt for ceremonial use of salt in the sacrifices. (Mish. Midodoth, v.3)
iii. Whenever a city was defeated the custom was to throw salt throughout the city. This meant that the city had been separated from its past. Elisha used salt to purify the water of Jericho (2 Kings 2:20)
iv. The normal procedures when a child was born was to be rubbed with salt (Ez. 16:4)
v. Salt was gathered in Palestine from along the seashore or inland lakes.
vi. Salt was used to flavor the offerings and sacrifices (Lev. 2:13, Ez.43:24) “All who would present themselves “a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God: (Rom 12:1), must receive the saving salt, the righteousness of our Savior.”
vii. Salt was seen as a covenant relationship “It is a covenant of salt forever before the Lord with you and your descendants with you.” (Numbers 18:19) So salt also represented a relationship. “It represented hospitality that cemented on friendship” Arab Saying “There is salt between us”
c. So the question could be asked “What did Jesus mean when he told the crowd hanging on the edge of their seats on the mountain “You are the salt of the earth!”
i. He was telling the crowd that if they lived the beatitudes and was connected with God then they would be a preserving force in this world. They would be a mineral – a valuable mineral which would prevent this society from rotting away.
ii. They had to be willing to allow their salt – their righteousness and holy living to rub off on those who were around them so they too could be preserved from decay.
iii. The general theme of Matthew 5:3–16 which we discovered last week is promises and expectations, and these expectations follow the promises of the first part.
1. Jesus expected the residents and members of the Kingdom of God to be His preserving force in this world.
T.S. – Jesus informed the crowd that as new members in the Kingdom of God he expected them to be a vital preserving force in the society that they lived in. It was His expectation of every born again believer. They were created by God to be effective in keeping a society from spoiling. He then moved from the preserving force which is much subtle to the obvious beacon of light which was not to be covered.
II. We are the light of God in a world filled with darkness.
a. Scientists are baffled by the mystery of light they can study it but still don’t understand what light is. God is light according to the Bible and He’s as mysterious as light in the natural sense but like scientist we can study God and understand what light does in our life physically and spiritually.
i. A few years ago I was sitting in the doctor’s office and picked up the Oct. 2001 edition of the National Geographic. It had an amazing article on the “Power of Light”. The articles introduction caught my attention:
1. Light reveals the world to us. Body and soul crave it. Light sets our biological clocks. It triggers in our brains the sensations of color. Light feeds us, supplying the energy of plants to grow. It inspires us with special effects like rainbows and sunsets. Light gives us life- changing tools, from incandescent bulbs to lasers and fiber optics. Scientists don’t fully understand what light is or what it can do. They just know that it will illuminate our future (3).
ii. After just reading this introduction in the article I said, this article has spiritual insight for us as Christians. So I read on and the verses on light in the Bible just raced through my mind. Wow I thought! The Bible tells us that God is light.
1. Scripture Texts which raced through my mind:
a. I John 1:5: 5This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.
b. Psalm 74:20: Have regard for your covenant, because haunts of violence fill the dark places of the land.
c. John 8:12: When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
d. John 1:1-12 1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was with God in the beginning. 3Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4In him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. 6There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. 7He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. 8He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. 9The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.10He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.
b. Today I want to explore some spiritual application points from this scientific study on light which I discovered in the National Geographic.
i. Scientist’s tell us that light reveals the world to us. I thought this is true God Himself reveals the real world to us!
1. We never see the real world until God illuminates it to us through the lens of His Word and His Presence.
a. Psalm 119:130 “The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.”
b. 2 Samuel 22:29 David sang, “You are my lamp, O Lord; the Lord turns my darkness into light.”
2. Years ago I picked up one of Charles Swindoll’s books called, Simple Faith and there it was beaming off the page to me, the importance of light. He made this comment about light,” What is the purpose of light? The answer is not complicated. Light dispels darkness “(60).
a. Light helps us to see with the eyes of God and see things that before we could never see when we were in darkness.
i. Psalm 119:105: “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.”
3. Here are just a few things I saw after God’s bright light shined into my life.
a. I was lost and going deeper into the dark pit of hopelessness. His light showed up and showed me how to get out of the dark pit of life. I was too:
i. Walk toward the light.
ii. Repent of my sin.
iii. Die to myself and let him come in.
iv. Seek him with my whole heart, mind and soul.
v. If I did these steps then I would never be trapped in darkness again.
1. It proved to be true!
4. I recall a time I spent a day in darkness. My dad and my Cub Scout troop went to some caves in Penna. We spent the day down in these caves and it was pitched black in them-no light at all. If we would not have had our flashlights we would have never been able to explore the cave or been able to find our way out.
a. I hated this time in the cave and we were in there for 4-5 hours. But when we came toward the end of the cave I could see the light at the end of the tunnel. I ran out of that dark dingy cave into a beautiful sunny day. It was a great feeling of refreshment. My attitude changed. I felt overjoyed with the sunshine and the beauty I could see in the surrounding mountains. I thought to myself there is no way I am going back into that black hole ever again.
b. It was the same when Jesus illuminated my life and brought me out of darkness.
i. I could see the purpose of life.
ii. I felt joy in my life like never before.
iii. I felt hope rush into my soul- all because of His light.
ii. We have discovered that God’s light reveals the world to us. We also learn from the study of light that our body and soul crave it. Let’s explore this scientific fact for a moment.
1. Scientists say, “Body and soul crave it.” I agree! I remember that my body and soul craved God.
2. The scientists tell us that light is essential to our daily lives. This is why we crave it and desire it.
3. Light is as important as air is I have been told. Fish need water like we need light.
a. God is as important as air is as a matter of fact He breathed life into man in Genesis 2:7: “The Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.’
iii. Scientist’s tell us that light gives us Vitamin D for healthier bones. It’s called the “Sunshine vitamin.”
1. God’s light makes us healthy and strong.
2. Proverbs 3:7, 8: “Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.”
3. Achenbach tells us on page 14 of the article, “Visually impaired children swarm around a lit table to learn shapes and colors at Marquette School in Detroit, Michigan. “The Kids crave light so much,“ says Carol Walker who works with 30 students in the Detroit public school system. “The light levels in most homes are inadequate for them. They need more light to stimulate their vision.”
4. Light gives us sight and actually keeps us cheerful.
5. God’s light also brings joy to us and gives sight to the blind.
a. Psalm 19:8: “The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes.”
b. 1 Peter 2:9: 9But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
ii. Achenbach illustrates another point on light on page 18, “Moods darken when the sun goes into exile during winter in the northern Russian village of Lovozero… A shortage of light can unleash the winter blues, diagnosed as seasonal affective disorder (SAD).
1. Many medicate this disease with drugs and alcohol.
2. Suicides always increase during these times.
3. Domestic violence also always increases.
4. When you don’t have light you have SADNESS.
a. God is one that dispels depression and sadness.
i. John 16:20-24: 20I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. 21A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. 22So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy. 23In that day you will no longer ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. 24Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.
ii. Psalm 27:1: The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?
iv. Light sets our biological clocks. It tells us when to rest when to work when to get up and face the day.
1. God’s light directs our path.
a. Psalm 42:8: By day the LORD directs his love, at night his song is with me—a prayer to the God of my life.
b. Isaiah 48:17: This is what the LORD says—your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the LORD your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.
v. Light triggers the sensation of color in our brains.
1. God triggers the color of His beautiful world in our brains. He helps us to see the rainbows in life. He helps us to learn to stop and watch the sunsets and the sun rises.
a. They are beautiful when you take the time to observe His beauty.
b. Genesis 9:13: I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, 15I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. 16Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”
2. I recall the sunsets at Sand Hill lake Bible Camp. Wow they were amazing!
vi. Light makes the plants grow which produce our food.
1. I Corinthians 3:6: 6I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. 7So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 8The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor. 9For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.
2. God helps us to grow as we follow His Word and direction.
3. We have learned how are bodies and souls crave God’s light spiritually and we also need to learn that light – God’s light - gives us life changing tool’s.
c. Scientist’s do not fully understand what light is or what it can do.
i. Achenbach says, “There has been light from the beginning. There will be light, feebly, at the end. In all its forms-visible and invisible-it saturates the universe. Light is more than a little bit inscrutable. Modern physics has sliced the stuff of nature into ever smaller and more exotic constituents, but light won’t reduce. Light is light-pure, but not simple. No one is exactly sure how to describe it. A wave? A particle/ yes, the scientists say. Both.” (8).
1. It’s just like man to try to dissect God who is pure but not simple. No one knows exactly how to describe Him.
2. We give bits and pieces of Him to others but to totally describe and understand Him is not easy. We have described him as the Father, yes! We have described Him as the Son Jesus, Yes! We have described Him as the Holy Spirit, yes! Theologians say. He is all three!
a. I agree God is someone I don’t fully understand. But He is the light. I see his light in this dark world breaking holes in the darkness. But I don’t fully understand all that He does.
ii. God is far beyond my simple understanding.
1. He is all knowing, according to the Bible- How’s does He do that?
2. How could God be manifested in three ways Father, Son and the Holy Spirit?
3. He is in all places. Wow I have just wanted to be in two places a few times and I could not do it.
4. He sees everything that’s going on in this world! Amazing he must have a lot of eyes.
5. God can do more than I could have ever thought was possible. Things that I have said are impossible become possible with Him.
6. He can heal supernaturally when there seems no hope.
7. He can do miracles in lives.
8. He can change people’s hearts.
9. He can bring about so many amazing coincidences in my life that I sit there and scratch my head.
a. We do not fully understand the Lord but we know He will illuminate the future.
d. Scientists just know that light will illuminate our future. I shouted there right! When you find God’s light it will illuminate your future.
i. He will guide you and lead you.
ii. He will tell what to do and what not do!
iii. He will show you which path to walk down!
1. In Revelation 21:23 – 27: “The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. 24The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. 25On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. 26The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. 27Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.”
2. Yes it’s true! In the end we will not need the sun or the moon because God’s light is what lights up Heaven. Why? Simple --- God is light!
Conclusion:
Charles Swindoll gives us some interesting advice as we close today talking about the mystery of Light. He states:
When you live in darkness, you not only have no ray of light, you don’t even know where home is. That is the way it is for the majority in the world. Some folks are born, raised, and die in cultures that have never seen their first flashlight of hope. Imagine it! When the truth of that hits me, I find myself a little impatient with Christians who do nothing but shine lights for themselves. They even have what we might call flashlight parties where they just shine the light on each other. Lots of light! Too much light to be hoarded! Jesus says to shine for the world. Shine your light into the darkness; that’s where it is really needed. Spend less time in your own little well-lighted all Christian world and more time there in the darkness (63)!
Truth is our culture has been engulfed in darkness. Our city here has darkness in it and we are to be the light in it. Jesus tells us we must let our light shine. Light will draw attention from those in darkness. They will move toward the light. Just like mariners follow the lighthouse we can be a lighthouse in this bay for the Lord. They will come if we shine!
So we have to let the light of Jesus shine if we want to lead others out of darkness!
Truth is this:
No God – No Light – No sight
Know God – Know light – Know sight
Choice is yours! Will you let the light shine and your saltiness preserve this earth?
If you are a member in the Kingdom of God then Jesus expects you to do both!
