Week 2 - Salt and Light
Text: Matthew 5:13-16
MT 5:13 "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 by men.
MT 5:14 "You are the light of the world. A city 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 men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."
Someone once said that at least 66% of all Americans say they believe in God and pray regularly.
Its summer, you know, time for cookouts and BBQs. Imagine if you were over at a friend's house, kids playing, music blasting, cold drinks, and everybody laughing and having a good time. You're starting to get hungry, and you look up to see your buddy mixing the hamburger meat. It looks like a great recipe. It looks like he's got about three pounds of meat, plenty for everybody. Some pepper, some Worcestershire sauce, and then he gets out the salt. To your horror, he proceeds to dump two pounds of salt into the mixture!
Don't you think that if a hamburger was 66% salt, you would notice the difference? Why then does our culture seem completely unaffected by two-thirds of its citizens being Jesus-followers? We could say, "Are they really Christians?" or, "What do mean by being a Christian?" But ultimately, the task to affect change in our world is assigned to each of us.
When Jesus uses salt and light, He does not pick two symbols at random. Both were important commodities in an ancient world without electricity or refrigeration. The world depended on these elements to survive. Their presence is undeniable, you always know when they are there.
The world needs the Church. Not the Church as we want it, or even as we sometimes think we need it. The world needs the Church the way Christ designed it, functioning as an agent of grace, mercy, compassion, love, and purity. The key to functioning this way is not in the Church as a body, but in the members of that body functioning in alignment with the Head.
Questions to think about:
MT 5:13 "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 by men.
MT 5:14 "You are the light of the world. A city 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 men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."
Someone once said that at least 66% of all Americans say they believe in God and pray regularly.
Its summer, you know, time for cookouts and BBQs. Imagine if you were over at a friend's house, kids playing, music blasting, cold drinks, and everybody laughing and having a good time. You're starting to get hungry, and you look up to see your buddy mixing the hamburger meat. It looks like a great recipe. It looks like he's got about three pounds of meat, plenty for everybody. Some pepper, some Worcestershire sauce, and then he gets out the salt. To your horror, he proceeds to dump two pounds of salt into the mixture!
Don't you think that if a hamburger was 66% salt, you would notice the difference? Why then does our culture seem completely unaffected by two-thirds of its citizens being Jesus-followers? We could say, "Are they really Christians?" or, "What do mean by being a Christian?" But ultimately, the task to affect change in our world is assigned to each of us.
When Jesus uses salt and light, He does not pick two symbols at random. Both were important commodities in an ancient world without electricity or refrigeration. The world depended on these elements to survive. Their presence is undeniable, you always know when they are there.
The world needs the Church. Not the Church as we want it, or even as we sometimes think we need it. The world needs the Church the way Christ designed it, functioning as an agent of grace, mercy, compassion, love, and purity. The key to functioning this way is not in the Church as a body, but in the members of that body functioning in alignment with the Head.
Questions to think about:
- What does it mean to follow Jesus?
- What would be the results of a fully devoted and committed Church?
- How do I affect my world on a daily basis?
- Like the presence of salt and light, is the presence of my faith undeniable?
- How can I create an undeniable faith in my own life?
posted by Brian Jenkins at 9:31 AM
1 Comments:
I have been thinking about how the church looked years ago too, in the early 1700's when the Puritans, and Separatists came over from Europe. The church made a huge difference in those days because the people looked at their relationship a little differently than we do today. They made "covenant relationships" both vertically, and horizontally. They were more ready to enter a life of self denial than we are today, but the results were much different then too! In our world today there seems to be too much of "what's in it for me" and not enough of "what does He want from me" I am as guilty as the next guy, but I feel the Lord tugging at my heart and gently saying that he wants all of my heart, not whats left. This is a struggle for me, because I am finding out just how selfish I really have been. God is patient and seems to continue his tugging without really getting tired of it. All I can say is that I am definately glad He is who He is, and that He loves me the way He does. I am praying that I will be able to get to the place He wants me to be. Sooner rather than later!
Post a Comment
<< Home