Never Too Much Salt Mt. 5.13-20

Matthew 5:13-21      Salt and Light

    ¹³ “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.

   ¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

The Fulfillment of the Law

    ¹⁷ “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. ¹⁸ For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. ¹⁹ Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. ²⁰ For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven

 

 

 

With the Federal goverment's new dietary guidelines out reminding us to eat less salt, this text reminds us that when it comes to being called into the work of God, there can never be too much salt!

 

Notice at the very beginning of this portion of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount he tells us, "You ARE the salt of the earth".  Now the commentators will point out that the 'of' can be translated 'from' because Greek prepositions are funny, but I want you to notice the ARE.  (Did I make that obvious enough?)

 

You ARE the salt....not, you will become, or you might be one day, or if you get it right you are the salt, but right now, in this settting as his disciples, you ARE the salt of the earth.   Jesus had a large crowd listening to him, but you will notice that his words arer directed to his disciples, the ones who are following and learning from him.

 

Now he wants them to understand they have a role in this alternative kingdom that Jesus is ushering in, and it has to do with salt and light.  God calls everyone into the kingdom, but these disciples have responded and now they have work to do as the called ones.  By their very presence alone (as faithful followers of the Jesus way) they are to give taste to the world around them - a little piquant, beyond the ordinary, toward something bright and desireable. 

 

They are to be the light by which others can see their way to follow this Jesus as well. Notice, the light we bring is not our sinless shining, but the light of Jesus that shines through us ...in our words, our deeds, our breathing in and breathing out. 

 

How do we do this?  By living in Jesus, living as Jesus in the midst of the crazy world that oppresses us.  We are the thousand points of light (to use GHW Bush's phrase) but we are lit from inside by the power of the Spirit and the grace of Jesus.  So don't go translating that WWJD bracelet into thinking you are Jesus, you are the light.  No, but you bring the light.......or you don't.  You either add to the light or you choose the darkness.

 

I will stop here - the next part on fulfilling the law is good for another day - but think about how to link this idea with the Isaiah rant about fasting.  What is Isaiah calling us to do.....and how much does it resemble Jesus' call to be salt and light?