Matthew 5:13-16: Salt and Light

Introduction

God wants us to impact our world for Him.

How do we impact our world? By living as Salt and Light: Matthew 5:13-16

Being Salt and Light

I. We need to live as SALT.

A. Read Matthew 5:13.

1. Discuss that these are metaphors that describe the nature of Jesus’ disciples.

2. Discuss the way to interpret the Sermon on the Mount – we are not Israel, and the church is not the kingdom, but Jesus was speaking to prepare His disciples to enter the kingdom – in this way it has many applications that directly relate to us. E.g., the beatitudes reflect the ethics of the Kingdom. The key is that we are disciples of Jesus, just like many of his listeners were back then on the hills of Galilee.

B. Jesus declares that his disciples are SALT.

1. Declaration – Disciples are Salt

The metaphor is one of identity. Once we understand who we are as Jesus’ disciple, we can begin to understand the implication of our identity.

a. Salt was a very common and useful material in Bible times.

1). Taste enhancer.

2). Mixed as a fertilizer.

3). Cleaner.

4). Preserver – cure meat and fish.

b. Of the World – identifies those who are unbelievers – parallel with “world” with the light metaphor.

c. Implies that Jesus’ disciples are to have a preservative effect in the world.

As R. V. G. Tasker puts it, the disciples are ‘to be a moral disinfectant in a world where moral standards are low, constantly changing, or non-existent’

Salt is sharp. It’s distinct. The world is putrefying and believers are to live in as a distinct and purifying way in the world.

2. Qualification of Salt

a. Jesus asks a rhetorical question: if the salt loses its saltiness what is it good for?

1). Technically salt cannot lose its saltiness unless it is chemically altered. But it can be defiled or diluted. They would harvest salt from the Dead Sea, it was often mixed with other chemicals (no refining). So if the salt was leached out of the mixture, the “salt” would become ineffective and worthless.

The word for “lose its taste (savor)” is from the verb “to be foolish.” It is likely that Jesus is saying that if one loses his impact as salt in the world around him it is because he is acting foolishly.

2). The only conclusion is that it is good for nothing and should be discarded on the street or pathway. This is not talking about eternal security – the metaphor is only talking about one’s effectiveness a salt agent in society.

b. This raises a warning for disciples: our ability to function as salt is dependent upon depends on their being distinction from what is around us.

D. So how salty are you?

II. We need to live as Light.

A. Read Matthew 5:14-16. Show the parallels with vs. 13

B. Jesus declares that His disciples are LIGHT.

1. Disciple are Light.

Light has numerous implications in the Bible.

a. Purity -- that exposes the corruption

b. Truth and Revelation—sheds light on the darkened hearts and minds of the lost.

c. Jesus is the Light of the world (John 8, 9).

d. Jesus’ disciples reflect the light of Jesus.

e. The Point: Believers are to bear the light of the God into the world.

2. Jesus uses two illustrations to qualify this light.

a. City on a Hill - lifted up and visible

b. Lamp on a Stand - lifted up and visible

3. The purpose of shining the light is two-fold:

a. The first purpose is so that the world will see the disciples’ good works.

b. The second purpose is so that they (the world) might glorify God the Father.

C. So how visible is your brightness?

Conclusion

Salt and light have one thing in common: they give and expend themselves—and thus are the opposite of any and every kind of self-centered endeavor.

Nevertheless, the kind of service each renders is different. In fact, their effects are complementary. The function of salt is: it prevents decay. The function of light is: it illumines the darkness.

So Jesus calls his disciples to exert a double influence on the world, being a purifying influence and by bringing light into its darkness. For it is one thing to stop the spread of evil; it is another to promote the spread of truth, beauty and goodness.