Daniel 2:1-49. It makes absolutely no sense to light a lamp and then hide it under a bucket because the lamp is supposed to bring light to the whole house. I suggest that one thing implied here is that we so live lives of love and concern for the people in our world that it leads to questions and opportunities, so that then we can tell people the Gospel of the Saviour and Lord in whom we believe. We’re blessed because we’re God’s chosen people, and as those who have been blessed by God we can’t help but be salt and light. Nor do we salt the earth and shine our light that we somehow obtain God’s favor and forgiveness. ( Log Out /  Change ), You are commenting using your Google account. We sin, we fail to shine our lights, and we don’t sprinkle our salt, so every day we need to remember that Christ is for us too. The text that I have chosen for this morning’s sermon is the Gospel, which was read a few minutes ago. One is to season, and the other is to preserve. Jesus says, “A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Here is the sermon for this coming Sunday, the second in our series from the Sermon on the Mount. Sermon by J. Ligon Duncan on December 7, 1997. When we are living out the standards of the Lord Jesus in our lives, we will be like salt and like light. Salt has two primary uses. So salt the earth and let your light shine because you are God’s instruments to bring Christ to this world, and that is an awesome and wonderful calling for you and me. Introduction: God refers to believers as the “salt” and “light.” Too many Christians fail to appropriate the benefits, privileges, and responsibilities of being salt and light. Phil preached about salt and light from Matthew 5 for our series “The Vision of Jesus.” He explained why Jesus might have picked these two metaphors from among other choices to describe His people. A seemingly impossible riddle that just might bring me greater enlightenment […] Four world-renowned communicators who bring life-changing messages to... Jul 19, 2020. In your twenties and thirties, he said, you are faced with a lot of life changes. Some will tell you that salt is a preservative, and so Christian involvement in the world is about preventing moral degradation in society. February 5, 2017. Salt and light are natural in life; they’re needed and welcomed. Pastor John Pavlovitz wrote an article on why he is a Christian – or as he puts it, why I am still a Christian. How am I going to do it? Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. Summary: "Salt and Light" is a part of the Sermon on the Mount series. Part 3. We look at both the qualities of being salt (creates thirst, a seasoning, part of the sacrifice, and preservative), and light (exposes and guides). It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. One of the problems he cited as making the church unattractive to people in that age range was the disconnect between Sunday and Monday. If we go too far in either direction, we risk doing more harm than good. But the salt that we season the world with and the light that we shine in the darkness is more important and more powerful. Jul 19, 2020 | Albert Tate. If you’re not a follower of Jesus, your life can be changed. Unfortunately [says Kandiah] what 20-30s often hear in church is not encouragement to take huge steps in their faith, but to take on huge responsibilities within the church. With a touch of grudging admiration, a local Communist Party official said, “He has earned the right to speak.”. You are forgiven for hiding your lamp. Jesus says, “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? If the Sermon on the Mount is where we learn to be disciples before the watching world, as I argued in my introduction last week, then salt and light are prime examples of this. And that, positively, is Jesus’ point when he goes on to describe Christians as the light of the world: You are the light of the world. We do good works, we help those around us, we share the love of Christ not so others say what good people we are, but so that they would say how good God is. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Over the years, he has had a special concern for some of the impoverished nations in the Caribbean, such as Haïti and the Dominican Republic. Light shines for hours every day and when the sun goes down, we simply flip a switch to light our homes. It’s not because we are holier or better than everyone else, it’s just because we’ve been changed through faith in Christ. Because, I argued, it meant losing another person from the front line of Christian witness in the world. In the Roman market place salt was even used at times as money and without electricity light was a valuable asset at night. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! While there is an award winning Biographical Documentary Film titled ‘Salt of the Earth’ according to the Meriam-Webster Dictionary it’s a phrase used to refer to people of good character. Matthew 5:13-20 New International Version (NIV) Salt and Light 13 “You are the salt of the earth. Let me say it simply: When we are salt and light, the world listens to us. We don’t need to earn those because Christ has done all that is necessary that we would be forgiven. We are to be salt and light! No: Jesus calls us to see the church as the people of God gathering to edify one another and strengthen each other for witness in the world. We need a Salt and Light Revolution in our day. We don’t shine our light to be saved, rather we shine our lights because we are saved. The salt could lose its saltiness. Don’t we want our witness to attract other people to Jesus and his Father? Not only do we live our faith while the world is watching – as if we were actors in a TV show being viewed by others – we live our faith with those people and towards the world. Change ). A New Lens. We tell people of their sin and we share with them the forgiveness that is theirs through the crucified Christ. This is the Word of the Lord from the Gospel of Matthew. And this is why we do what we do, that Christ would be the focus of those on whom we shine our light and sprinkle our salt. It is a dark, drab world obsessed with and immersed in sin, and it desperately needs the salt and light that is Christ Jesus. That is, when Jesus calls us the salt of the earth and the light of the world, he is telling us we live as disciples for the blessing of the world. He calls us to stop treating the church as our one-stop provider of religious services and our social life, and to get our hands dirty in the world. In short, cutting some ties from the institutional church and simplifying some of the ways we do church in order to release ourselves to spend more time blessing people in our communities with the love of God in word and deed is absolutely critical to our sharing in the mission of God. You are forgiven for failing to be faithful in your vocations. Last week we heard the Beatitudes. Making A Lasting Impact, Matthew 5 4. Moreover, the status of salt and light is something that follows naturally from the Christian’s humble obedience to the commandments of Christ. But I’m going to say more, because this is so important. And this is a high calling for you and me, it is one that our Lord takes most seriously and it’s one that we should take seriously as well. 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