The following passage of scripture is during the early days of Jesus’ ministry on earth. He is speaking to His early disciples, Simon Peter, Andrew, James and John, as well as a crowd that has gathered.
“You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavour? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown away and trampled underfoot as worthless. You are the light of the world – like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.” (Matthew 5:13-16)
Q: What is salt?
A: Salt is “precious*”. Twas a hot commodity back when Jesus was walking on the earth. Salt is preservation. “Salt was used to preserve meat and slow decay*.” Salt adds flavour.
Jesus calls us precious. We are precious to Him.
He chose to give birth to us by giving us His true word. And we, out of all creation, became His prized possession. (James 1:18)
Jesus calls us to be a preserving influence on the people around us. We have to preserve the presence of God in our lives and on earth by walking out His commands.
You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind. And love your neighbor as yourself. (Luke 10:27 also Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18)
Jesus calls us to add flavor to the earth. Often when people are eating they say, “Hmmm something is missing… It needs salt!” In our world today, when we are seeking solutions to everyday struggles, the missing piece is Jesus. We are called to add flavor (or add Jesus) to the situations that people haven’t invited Him into. If you know Jesus, share Jesus.
One day Jesus called together His twelve disciples and gave them power and authority to cast out all demons and to heal all diseases. Then He sent them out to tell everyone about the Kingdom of God… So they began their circuit of the villages, preaching the Good News and healing the sick. (Luke 9:1-2,6)
In our time here on earth, we must STAY SALTY for Jesus. How do you stay salty?? You pursue Jesus, you read the Word, you pray and you surround yourself with a community that lifts you up and points you heavenward. Believing in Jesus but not changing the way that you live loses the saltiness in your life. Don’t let your salvation be the peak of your relationship with Jesus but rather a breakthrough and stepping stone into all that He has for you! It is so much easier to fall into temptation than to stay obedient and focused on Jesus. Temptation is knocking on every door. And temptation looks different for all of us. I have found that even on my race, I get so stuck in temptation and need my teammates to lift me up and encourage me. I also have to make the active decision to not choose into that temptation and sometimes it takes saying “no” over and over and over again. Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are. (1 Peter 5:8-9)
Q: Who is the light of the world?
A: Jesus is the light of the world. And we are the light of the world.
Jesus says, “you are the light of the world.” Woah woah woah. This is both a compliment and responsibility* for us as believers and followers because Jesus also calls himself the “light of the world.” I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life. (John 8:12) Jesus gives us a title that He has also given to himself. As followers of Jesus, we must walk in alignment with Christ. He has given us His light so that we can be a light in the darkness to point people to God. We must not keep this light hidden. Being a follower of Jesus should not just be a characteristic of ourselves but rather a lifestyle and foundation for our lives. Don’t hide your light under a basket! You must let your light shine for the world to see, not so that people give you praise but rather they are pointed heavenward and see the goodness of your Father in heaven. By being that light, we are exposed which can be frightening. By being vulnerable and open with our obedience to Jesus, this will allow for us not only be successful for Christ but allow people to see when we mess up. But take heart! For God sees our hearts and our intentions. God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way. (Matthew 5:11-12) People won’t always like it when we illuminate the light of Jesus in the darkness of the earth. It exposes what is hiding in the darkness. We don’t want people to see those things. I often get worried about sharing about Jesus to people because I am afraid of what they will think of me or how they will treat me. Even with people I will never see again!! This is pride that I have been learning about and walking through during the race. My team has seen all of us struggle with pride at some point and I think it is something we all struggle with! But our team continues to call it out and EXPOSE it so that we can drop our pride and share Jesus. This is fearing things of the earth rather than fearing the Lord. (This is another thing I am walking through so that’s a conversation for another time.)
All that we do should glorify God and not ourselves. I had a prideful mindset when I entered the race and have been working to walk away from it since day one. God has humbled me so much over the last six months. HE is the God that was literally able to make a virgin pregnant (Matthew 1:18). HE was the one that was able to preserve life in the belly of a whale (Jonah 2:1-10) AND in a lions den (Daniel 6:17-23) AND in a fire (Daniel 3:19-27). He does not need me in order to reach people. He lovingly invites me to partner with Him to share the gospel. I have been humbled knowing that He doesn’t need me but rather He wants me. Big difference. Let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father. (Matthew 5:16)
So to sum up… STAY SALTY AND BRIGHT MY FRIENDS!
*commentary and information from the Enduring Word app, I encourage you to check it out for further understanding of scripture!
Love your pal,
Hannah
PS. Our squad is off to Nicaragua on March 1st! Entering the last three months of the race!
