The Salt And The Light
04/25/10 AM
Reading: Matthew 5:13-16
Introduction
This morning we continue a sermon series on the Sermon on the Mount. This series of messages, titled “Jesus began to preach,” encompasses all of Matthew chapters 5, 6, and 7, the longest uninterrupted teaching by Jesus in all the Gospels.
Jesus’ words to His disciples begin at Matthew 5:1 and continue through to Matthew 7:28, providing clear teachings of what is expected from a disciple of Jesus and in this series we will examine these expectations and consider how they are to apply to our daily walk in Christ. In the sermon on the mount, Jesus reveals what needs to be the character of those who follow Him, how that character will influence the world, and how it need play out in their lives.
Last Lord's day we began with the lessons given to the blessed found in Matthew 5:3-10. This lesson addresses the heart of those who would be His disciples, illustrating the characteristics of those who are blessed of God, that is, those who are approved and favored of God. And we see right away that the blessed of God stand apart from those of this world. The blessed of God are not the powerful, or popular, or most successful as the world judges such things. The blessed of God are those characterized by a poverty of spirit, they are humble and contrite before God and sorrowfully seek His grace and His mercy. The blessed of God do not have to be reminded or cajoled to attend worship services, to study the scriptures, to pray in and for all things as they hunger and thirst after righteousness. They are the meek and the merciful, they are the pure in heart and the peacemakers. And they will be persecuted but in this the blessed of God may rejoice.
This is to be us, transformed by the grace of God through our knowledge of Jesus Christ, restored and reconciled to our Father in Heaven. This is to be our heart, leading us to humble ourselves, confess our sins, and pursue His righteousness knowing that in this way we are the blessed of God.
And with such a heart Jesus now tells us the function of the blessed in the world. Read Matthew 5:13-16
I. We Will Influence The World
A. Our function in the world boils down to a single word: influence
1. In Matthew 5:13-16 Jesus talks about the influence of His people on the world for God and for good.
a. John 17:15-16, 18 In His prayer Jesus said to His Father, “I do not ask Thee to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world…. As Thou didst send Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.”
b. 1 John 2:15 John wrote, “Do not love the world, nor the things in the world.”
c. The blessed of God are not to reflect the world but they are to influence the world; they are to be in it but not of it.
2. When we live the life of the blessed of God some people will respond favorably and be saved, others will ridicule and persecute us.
a. 2 Corinthians 2:14-16 In the words of Paul, we will manifest “the sweet aroma of the knowledge of [Christ] in every place. For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; to the one an aroma from death to death, to the other an aroma from life to life”
b. The Beatitudes are not to be lived in isolation or only among fellow believers, but everywhere we go. God’s only witnesses are His children, and the world has no other way of knowing of Him except through the testimony of what we are.
c. Whatever the outcome our mandate is emphatic, we are the salt of the earth, we are the light of the world.
II. We Are The Salt Of The Earth
A. In the time of Jesus the purpose of salt was to flavor and to preserve.
1. Sin brought death and decay to the world and to all mankind. The scriptures detail the decaying effect of sin over and over.
a. Before the flood in Genesis 6, after the flood in Genesis 8. The Psalms and the Prophets proclaim the lost state of man again and again. When Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus he reminds them that before Jesus they (and we) were dead in their trespasses.
2. Sin brings decay and corruption to the world but the presence of the blessed of God will preserve and refresh the world.
a. As salt preserves and brings out the best flavor of food, so believers should affect others positively.
b. Jesus clearly tells us as His disciples (the word “you” is emphatic, meaning “you, my followers”) that to make a difference in the world, we will have to be different from the world. God will hold us accountable to maintain our “saltiness” (that is, our usefulness).
c. If a seasoning has no flavor (has lost its taste), it has no value. If we are too much like the world, we are useless. Christians should not blend in with everyone else. Jesus tells us, as he told the disciples, that we must be different if we want to make a difference. We dare not allow the world to dilute our effectiveness. If we do, we are of no value to him.
d. As salt makes a difference in people’s food, so light makes a difference in their surroundings.
III. We Are The Light Of The Earth
A. Light dispels darkness.
1. There is no such thing as the presence of darkness. Darkness is the absence of light.
a. When we turn on the light, darkness disappears.
b. John 3:19, 20 “This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. “For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.”
B. Light exposes the darkness.
1. The Light of Jesus approves that which is right and reproves what is wrong.
2. Ephesians 5:7-13
3. It illuminates objects--both good and bad.
C. It enables sight.
1. Have you ever stubbed your toe on something in the middle of the night?
2. Have you ever wondered whether there was a pathway for you in which to walk in the dark?
3. Psalm 109:105 “Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path.” It is there so we can see both things that get in the way and the clear path itself.
4. John 9:39a “And Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, so that those who do not see may see…”
D. By the blessed of God, Jesus extends His light to the world.
1. Acts 13:47 “For so the Lord has commanded us, ‘I have placed You as a light for the Gentiles, That You may bring salvation to the end of the earth.’”
2. Matthew 5:16 ““Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”
a. In the same way that a light shines from a lampstand, Christ’s disciples must let their light shine before others.
b. The very reason for the existence of that light is to illuminate, helping show people what to do and where to go. How would people see this light?
c. Through the good works of Christ’s followers. Jesus made it clear that there would be no mistaking the source of a believer’s good works. Others will see and give glory to your Father in heaven.
d. The light of the blessed of God shines not for himself but to reflect the light back to the Father and so direct people to him.
Conclusion:
As the blessed of God we have a mandate to influence the world. The Beatitudes are not to be lived in isolation or only among fellow believers, but everywhere we go. We His children are God’s only witnesses.
The figures of salt and light emphasize different characteristics of influence, but their basic purpose is the same, to show His savor and His light and bring glory to God..
Invitation:
Our God and Savior is alive this morning and He reaches out to all who would respond to His invitation. So we offer that invitation with great love realizing that maybe there is someone in this midst who has never accepted Jesus as Savior. We appeal to you not let this moment pass by.
If you are without Jesus then come now, name His name, be faithful to Him in Christian baptism, arise to walk in the newness of life. God’s invitation is offered to you. Will you come as we stand and we sing?
