13 "You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot. 14 "You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. 15 No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 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. 17 "Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. 19 Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
You are the salt of the earth
· What is salt used for? (asking the congregation)
o Spice
o A symbolic welcome and sign of hospitality in some places (bread & salt)
o Preserving food (salting & brining)
o Preparing food (dairy & cheese)
o Cleansing wounds
o Scrubbing wood cutting boards & Coffee pots (with ice)
o Melting snow & ice
o Removing water (hay barns)
o Conditioning water (for soft water)
o Retaining water (salt tablets)
(added by congregation members) - Killing weeds
- basic nutrition
o What would pretzels be without salt? An edible toothpick maybe?
o Are there any other uses? Admittedly, too much can be a problem, resulting in high blood pressure and other ailments. Too little is a problem as well. In another way, rough and truly plain speech is sometimes called “salty”, although this might not be a problem for many.
o We can’t live without salt. Animals crave it. Our blood is said to be of a similar salt percentage as the oceans of this world. Salt and the need of it has caused political upheavals in history. It’s even been considered so valuable that it has been used as money.
o In the sermon of the mount, Jesus tells his disciple “You ARE the salt of the earth…” He does not say “You will be the salt of the earth”, but that Jesus’ disciples are already the salt of the earth. They (and because of that, we) are already the spice, the preserving agent, the cleansing substance that the world needs. Without being too proud, we might say that the life of the human race – the people that need the mineral salt to live – need Jesus message lived out, shared, and spread by his disciples in order to have the fullness of life.
o This is what discipleship is all about. One writer put it this way: We exist for mixing it up with the world. There are other passages of Scripture that compare Jesus’ disciples to leavening in bread dough. Without leaven, the bread would be flat and quite possibly tasteless. If we are “the salt of the earth” as Jesus says, it is not our own selves and our “saltiness” that we share, but the grace of God that we have received and live in, the grace our lives are meant to show.
o What about the salt that has lost its taste? Such salt is really no longer salt. It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot. There isn’t much to say about this except that we need our “saltiness” renewed all the time – in the reading and hearing of Scripture, in the Lord’s Supper, in the community of disciples found in the Church, and in sharing the common mission we all have.
o Remember… we are already the salt of the earth. Jesus has declared us to be so, not at some future time or at some time when we get our act together and live in perfect faith and sinlessness. Jesus takes us just as we are and seasons the world… unfreezes the world… preserves the good in the world… and prepares a welcome in the world for the Kingdom of God… using us like good salt, the mineral and spice humans can’t live without.
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.
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