Pastor David Koop

If believers will understand their identity as salt and light they will have a profound affect in a broken world.

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Matthew 5:13
You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavour, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.

Matthew 5:14
You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.

Matthew 5:15
Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.

Matthew 5:16
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Jesus makes it clear that we are the salt. He didn’t say we might be the salt, could be the salt or should be the salt. Salt has a distinct role to play:

1. It is to add flavour. A little salt can flavour a whole neighbourhood or a whole workplace.  The word flavour in verse 13 comes from the Greek word moraino (mo rah’ ee no) which means to be a fool, act as a simpleton, dull, stupid, heedless, absurd or blockhead. Verse 13 would read “if the salt has acted like a fool, like a blockhead, stupid, etc.” Note men throw it out, not God.
   
   
2. It is to be a preservative and prevent decay.  We have a cause!
   
   
3. It is to cause thirst. The way we live our lives should cause a spiritual thirst in others.

Jesus also makes it clear that we are the light. The light also has a distinct role to play:

1. The light is to shine out of us, not “heaven”.
   
   Colossians 1:27
   To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
   
   Ezekiel 36:23
   I will show how holy my great name is—the name you dishonoured among the nations. And when I reveal my holiness through you before their very eyes, says the Sovereign Lord, then the nations will know that I am the Lord.
   
   Isaiah 60:1-3
   Up! let your face be bright, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord is shining on you. For truly, the earth will be dark, and the peoples veiled in blackest night; but the Lord will be shining on you, and his glory will be seen among you. And nations will come to your light, and kings to your bright dawn.
   
   
2. To be light we must expose ourselves to the Lord. The moon is exposed to the sun to be light and the candle submits to the fire to be lit.
   
   John 1:4,5
   In Him was Life, and the Life was the Light of men.   And the Light shines on in the darkness, for the darkness has never overpowered it.
   
   
3. It exposes the treasure in the darkness.
   
   Luke 15:8-10
   Or suppose a woman has ten valuable silver coins and loses one. Won’t she light a lamp and look in every corner of the house and sweep every nook and cranny until she finds it?  And when she finds it, she will call in her friends and neighbours to rejoice with her because she has found her lost coin. In the same way, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels when even one sinner repents.

Differences between salt and light:

1. Salt works silently. Things taste delicious without ever seeing the salt.
   
   Matthew 7:20
   Therefore by their fruits you will know them.
   
   
2. Light is visible. This is when you openly explain your faith to others.
   
   2 Corinthians 4:3-7
   If the Good News we preach is veiled from anyone, it is a sign that they are perishing.  Satan, the god of this evil world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe, so they are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News that is shining upon them. They don’t understand the message we preach about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God. We don’t go around preaching about ourselves; we preach Christ Jesus, the Lord. All we say about ourselves is that we are your servants because of what Jesus has done for us. For God, who said, “Let there be light in the darkness,” has made us understand that this light is the brightness of the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ.  But this precious treasure—this light and power that now shine within us—is held in perishable containers, that is, in our weak bodies. So everyone can see that our glorious power is from God and is not our own.
   
   1Peter 3:15
   Through thick and thin, keep your hearts at attention, in adoration before Christ, your Master. Be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are, and always with the utmost courtesy.