Who are we “in Christ?” What is our purpose “in Christ?" Think on that for a moment. If we are “in Christ” we are “saved.” We talked about that we are “a new creation in Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:17). If there was no further purpose for us on earth after our conversion, why are we not taken up to heaven to be with Jesus right away. What is the reason we are still here?
Look around our nation today? Consider the strife and the immorality around us. Are we, as the church, been the influence on our world as God would have us be? Have we been the “salt and light” we have been called to be? Today we are looking at being “the salt of the earth,” and being “the light of the world.” That is our purpose, that is why we are here now. We are going to examine what salt and light means.
Matthew 5:13–16 (CSB)
How valuable is salt? 40 million tons are required each year to fill our needs. Homer called it divine. Plato called it a "substance dear to the gods." Shakespeare mentioned salt 17 times in his plays. In ancient Greece a far-flung trade involving the exchange of salt for slaves gave rise to the expression, "...not worth his salt." Special salt rations were given to Roman soldiers and known as "Solarium Argentums" the forerunner of the English word "salary." Thousands of Napoleon’s troops died during his retreat from Moscow because their wounds would not heal--their bodies lacked salt. Wars were fought over salt – Economies were based on salt. The human body contains about 4oz. of salt. Without enough of it, muscles won’t contract, blood won’t circulate, food won’t digest and the heart won’t beat a beat. Without a doubt, salt is one of the essence of life. And Jesus said, "You are the salt of the earth."
Let’s look at the big picture here for a moment.
Matthew 5:13a “You are the salt of the earth …
Matthew 5:14a “You are the light of the world …
Serval points we need make here. Jesus said “you are.” He did not say you should be, or you might be, or you will be. To those who belong to Him, you are salt, you are light. Question is how good a salt are you, How good a light are you. Let’s look at what it means to be salt.
Matthew 5:13 (CSB) “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt should lose its taste, how can it be made salty? It’s no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.
Practically speaking, and understanding Jesus’ original audience, salt did three things. It was used for preserving meats. They had no refrigeration, so salt rubbed into meats delayed decomposition, or decay, or spoiling. Salt was used for seasoning, it gave flavor to food. Salt increased thirst. We’re going to concentrate our look at salt as a preservative.
Jesus is talking to his people – he talking to the church. The call to be salty is a call to be an influence in the world. Clearly Jesus did not call us to be a separatist - or to live in a monastery. Quite the opposite – Jesus call us to be his agent in the world.
In this Sermon on the Mount, Jesus called his followers to the highest standards of conduct. He challenged us to "turn the other cheek." He commanded us to love our enemy, to forgive those who do us wrong, and to be sure we act with the purest motives. He said there were two roads, a wide road that leads to destruction and a narrow one that leads to life. And here in today’s verses he calls those who follow Him to choose to be a godly influence on the world in which they live. Those are tough commands. Jesus clearly expects the world to be transformed by our presence.
1 Peter 2:4–5 (CSB) As you come to him, a living stone—rejected by people but chosen and honored by God—5 you yourselves, as living stones, a spiritual house, are being built to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
Acts 1:8b you shall be witnesses to Me
These are calls to be salt in the world. As salt – we are to be a preservative – stopping corruption, preventing moral decay and decomposition. Being a preserving agent – often means being an irritant, calling the world to God’s standards. So look around – so how are we doing? It would appear that the church has lost a good bit of her saltiness.
"But if the salt should lose its taste" The Greek word here is “moraino” - a real play on words. It can be translated "foolish" like in Rom 1:22 - “Professing to be wise, they became fools.”
Now at first look, this is a little difficult to understand. There is no such thing as "un-salty salt." If you pour the granules out of your saltshaker and it’s not salty, somebody played a trick on you because pure salt does not go bad. Sodium Chloride, table salt like Morton’s that you buy at the store is pure. But the Morton Salt Co. did not exist back in the first century. Chemically speaking, it is impossible for pure salt to loose its saltiness. But in Jesus ‘ day, there was no pure salt. Salt had impurities in it. A good bit of the salt in Jesus' day was obtained by evaporating the water from the dead sea, leaving behind the salt and other impurities, like crystalized gypsum, which looked very much like salt and can be mistaken as salt except it does not taste like salt.
With too many impurities, salt becomes worthless and is thrown out. The fact is – chemically speaking – salt cannot lose its saltiness. But salt can become polluted – can become defiled.
As the church looks more and more like the rest of the world, the church is becoming like polluted salt. Christians are not standing up to the standards of God. Often times the church is sucked up into its own world – “as long as it is not my backyard.” We separate ourselves from the rest of the world. The church stops salting the world.
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.’ [1]
What is polluting the church? "christian" couples living together outside of marriage. Many with additions – drugs and alcohol. Pornography – destroys as many homes inside the church as outside of the church. Life during the week bears little resemblance to life on Sunday.
The church or the individual Christian who profess to believe one thing but does another and who looks like the rest of the world – is often scorned by the world. They are called “hypocrites.”
Many so-called Christians are atheistic in lifestyle. Their lives do not express a belief in Jesus. When they conform to the world – the good news start changing to what the world wants to hear. Paul warns Timothy about preaching what the world wants to hear.
2 Timothy 4:2–5 (CSB) Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; rebuke, correct, and encourage with great patience and teaching. 3 For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear what they want to hear. 4 They will turn away from hearing the truth and will turn aside to myths.
I am not here to preach what people want to hear – I am here to preach the Word of God. In some politically correct circles, the word of God would classified as “hate speech.” If that is the case, so be it.
But salt in a wound will burn, and so does the word of God. And we have a world around us that desperately need to be salted.
But what is our position with Almighty God? We have been redeemed from a position of being hopelessly lost. We were unable to find our way. We did not know the way. Then Jesus called us, “While we were yet sinners ...” He saved us from eternal damnation – a hopeless eternity. We have come to know the Prince of Peace. We have been given the Word of Life. Now do we want to hold all that in close? Hide it? Tell no one? Jesus said:
Matthew 5:14–15 (CSB) “You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house.
What Jesus is telling the people is nothing new.
Isaiah 42:6 (CSB) “I am the LORD. I have called you for a righteous purpose, and I will hold you by your hand. I will watch over you, and I will appoint you to be a covenant for the people and a light to the nations,
Jesus and God the Father have always been portrayed as light (John 8:12), but so has God’s people, and so has all true believers.
Ephesians 5:8 (CSB) For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light—
Philippians 2:15 (CSB) 15 so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God who are faultless in a crooked and perverted generation, among whom you shine like stars in the world,
1 Thessalonians 5:5 (CSB) For you are all children of light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or the darkness.
The light is meant to be seen. Not hidden. “A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden.” The reference may have been to Jerusalem, and the temple mount, that was set on a hill. There was no missing Jerusalem, especially at night. As light in the world, we are set where we can be seen. “No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand” The ancient lamp did not put out a lot of light. It was place on a stand without anything to hamper its lights from shinning.
That light should not stay inside this (church) building, but taken out into the world around us. We are not to hang around “safe” places for Christians, but take our witness to the world.
Ill: A woman came to her pastor to get his approval to leave her place of employment. She said, “They are so bad, and not one of them is a Christian.” But the pastor asked her a question. “If you had a candle where would you put it?” Not really listening she went on to say that they lie and cheat and this was no place for a Christian to be employed. But the pastor asked her the same question. “If you had a candle, where would you put it?” Frustrated that the pastor wasn’t listening to her she said, “Pastor you don’t understand, they tell ungodly and profane jokes and take the Lord’s name in vain.” The pastor then stopped her and said, “Please answer the question. If you had a candle where would you put it?” Exasperated she said, “I guess I’d put it someplace where it’s dark.” And the light came on. She went back to work and within six months several of her co-workers came to know Jesus as their Savior and Lord. People need us to be the salt and light witnesses for Christ. They need both, not just one or the other. [2]
Matthew 5:16 (CSB) In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.
Jesus tell us to let our works been seen - We need to be careful – the works – not us - are seen so that God is glorified – and not us. Let your works be seen in such a manner that God is seen, not us.
Matthew 6:1 (CSB) “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. Otherwise, you have no reward with your Father in heaven.
The question we need careful answer about showing our good works is who gets the glory? Us or God? We are to do everything humbly and in such a manner that God get the all glory.
We as the church have been set in the world with a double role: as salt to arrest, or at least hinder the process of social decay, and as light to dispel the darkness.
The fact is, Christians are different from the rest of the world. We were meant to be different and as salt and light, we were meant to stand out and be noticed.
When we see the meat of the world going bad, we can’t blame the meat for going bad. It cannot do anything else. The question to ask is, “Where is the salt?”
We are to dispel the darkness of the world, and not cover up the light that we were called to be. When we consider the lawlessness and godlessness that is ever so prevalent in our world today. The question is asked: Where is the church? Where is God’s people? We were called to make a difference, not just keep it to ourselves.
Now here is the critical part - Letting our light shine is dependent on being plugged in to the source of the light.
John 15:5 (CSB) I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without me.
This whole sermon is for the believer. The question is question – Are you plugged in to Jesus?
Maybe you do not know Jesus and you have been in darkness and desire to be in the light. This invitation is for you.
Maybe you are Christian – you know you have Jesus – but you have been far from the sources of the light. The closer we are to Jesus, the more His light shines through us.
[1] “Salt and Light,”: sermon by Michael Deutsch. www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/salt-and-light-michael-deutsch-sermon-on-salt-and-light-189637?ref=SermonSerps
[2] “Salt and Light,” sermon by Dennis Lee Jun. www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/salt-and-light-dennis-lee-sermon-on-salt-and-light-202742?ref=SermonSerps
