WHo are you

ME

What are your top 3 necessities in this life outside of food and water?

Air conditioning? (especially here in Tennessee 😄)

Your phone?

Internet?

Because when we say “necessities,” we’re talking about the things we believe we cannot live without.

These are things in everyone’s life that would seem to be a necessity and if I were to ask this question to numerous individuals i am sure these would be the majority answers.

Jesus is going to use some necessities to teach a lesson as he is going through his sermon on the mount. He has already confused them so much of the type of person that is blessed in God’s eyes. The one who the world may look down upon and now he is going to expand on that a little bit more.

Since v.11, Jesus has been speaking directly the crowds that have come.

V. 11 — you are blessed when persecuted for my names sake

V. 12 — You rejoice becuase of this persecution

Now in v. 13 & 14 we find Jesus telling these people who they are. I wonder if he looked certain people in the eye when he said these things? Did he look peter directly in the eyes when he said you are the salt of the earth and then he moved over to John’s eyes when he said you are the light of the world?

ONe thing is for sure, even though he may have looked at certain individuals those who are striving to be right with God are the salt of the and are the light of the world.

Now this is also true. Look at what Jesus does not say. He does not state that SHOULD BE the salt of the earth. Or that they SHOULD BE lights in this world. He says they ARE. Present verb. Meaning at this moment, those who are my disciples are the salt and the light of this world.

GOD

Matthew 5:13–16 “13 “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how will it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out to be trampled under foot by men.

What does Jesus mean when He says they are the salt of the earth?

Before salt ever sat quietly on our dinner tables, it preserved food, sustained communities, and carried remarkable value in the ancient world.

In Jesus’ day, salt was not just a seasoning—it was essential to survival.

Without refrigeration, people depended on salt to keep food from spoiling. Fish from the Sea of Galilee were packed in salt so they could travel miles inland. Meat was preserved the same way, slowing decay and extending its usefulness. In a world where food could spoil quickly, salt quite literally helped sustain life.

Because of this, salt was highly valued. It was traded, taxed, and woven into everyday economic life. In fact, our word salary comes from a Latin term connected to salt, reflecting just how important it was in the ancient world.

But salt wasn’t only practical—it was also symbolic.

In the Old Testament, salt was used in offerings and associated with covenant faithfulness (Leviticus 2:13). It represented purity, preservation, and something that endures. In a world constantly threatened by decay, salt stood for what resisted corruption and held things together.

So when Jesus stood on that hillside and said, “You are the salt of the earth…”

His audience didn’t picture a small shaker on a table.

They thought of something essential. Something valuable. Something that pushed back against decay.

They thought of something the world could not do without.

moraino - foolish. To make dull, not acute, to cause something to lose its taste or the purpose for which it exists

Lexham Geographic Commentary on the Gospels Metaphors and Analogies of Jesus

You are the salt of the earth” (

Lexham Geographic Commentary on the Gospels Metaphors and Analogies of Jesus

Like the salt utilized at Magdala, Jesus’ listeners both add flavor to and preserve the created order. But, Jesus admonishes his listeners to persevere and maintain their unique quality as his disciples, lest they lose their ability to influence human affairs.

14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;

15 nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.

16 “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

YOU

Apply the Scriptures in a convicting way

WE

Charge the people to change this week.