Salt & Light

Matthew 5:13–16

You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

What do you think Jesus means when he says you are “the salt of the earth” and “the light of the world”?

What do Salt & Light have in common?

A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. How does this image help explain what Jesus expects from his followers?

Why would someone put a lamp under a basket instead of on a stand? (Matt 5:13–16) What’s Jesus warning against here?

Looking around this park right now, how might your behavior today (at this picnic) be like letting your light shine?

If being salt and light is your calling as a Christian, what obstacles or fears might keep you from shining brightly? How can your church family help you?

Are the spaces you occupy daily your home, neighborhood, and workplace noticeably better because you’re there? Think about someone at this picnic: what would they say about your influence on them over the past month?

Worldliness means adopting the standards of those around you, and you cannot be spiritually effective while compromising in this way. Where in your daily routine do you feel pressure to blend in rather than stand out? What would it cost you to resist that pressure?

What you do is really the expression of what you are. If someone followed you around for a week observing your choices at work, how you treat service workers, what you do when no one’s watching what would they conclude about what you actually believe? Does that match what you claim to believe.

Jesus says let your light shine so others may see your good works and give glory to your Father. What’s one specific way you could do this in your daily life this week?