“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; 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. 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” Matthew 5:13-Matthew 5:13-16

It is not that we should BE salt and light; Jesus declares that we are. This declaration is, no doubt, based on the Beatitudes that precede. As those who face their spiritual poverty, earnestly seek a solution, and actively seek to be peacemakers between God and sinners, we become salt and light.

As salt, we are to maintain our saltiness. In our culture salt is sodium chloride, which cannot be lost. In ancient times, salt was a composite of this essential compound and other impurities. Sodium chloride could be leeched out, leaving a residue of little worth or effectiveness. With the main purpose and use of salt being that of a preservative, the remaining impurities - minus sodium chloride - were truly worthless and good only for being trampled under foot.

The application for us is clear: we are to be preservatives in the world by conforming to kingdom standards. We are called to be, as one writer words it, “a moral disinfectant in a world where moral standards are low, constantly changing, or nonexistent.”

As light, we are purity in an impure world, and truth as opposed to error. As light, we are to show our good works. This does not mean that we “put on a good religious show,” as the religious leaders did in calling attention to their prayers by parading them on street corners, or making a spectacle of their devotion to fasting, etc. Everything we do is to reflect the mind and will of God.

The gist of being salt and light is that kingdom standards work out in the lives of kingdom citizens so as to produce a kingdom witness. As salt, we delay decay and, as light, we illuminate a sin-darkened world.

Not to be overlooked is the declaration of the “you” of salt and light. It is not so much that Jesus speaks to individuals, but to the community of believers. It is the people of God collectively who are salt and light, impacting and influencing the world. And this means that we have contact with the world; we cannot preserve and illuminate if we withdraw into a monastic-type existence. In our day to day activities and encounters we, as the people of God, preserve and illuminate per our point of contact. As the simple illustration of salt in a saltshaker makes clear, salt will not be effective until it is shaken out of the saltshaker.

As salt and light, it is not so much what we do as it is who we inherently are. As those who embody kingdom standards, our very presence in the world has its effect. There are varieties of opinions as to what actions the people of God should take in the world, but we must ever remember that our primary impact will be, not the actions we take, but the character we embrace and live. May that salt and light character be effective in our lives in the world today.

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