MATTHEW 5:13-16
INTRODUCTION
Charles Colson and several other Christian leaders once met with President Borja of Ecuador to discuss prison Fellowship International’s ministry in Ecuadorian penitentiaries. They had no sooner been seated in luxurious leather chairs than the President interrupted the conversation with the story of his own imprisonment years before being elected to the presidency.
He had been involved in the struggle for democracy in Ecuador. The military cracked down, and he was arrested. Without trial, they threw him into a cold dungeon with no light and no window. For three days he endured the solitary fear and darkness that can drive a person mad.
Just when the situation seemed unbearable, the huge steel door opened, and someone crept into the darkness. Borja heard the person working on something in the opposite corner. Then the figure crept out, closed the door, and disappeared.
Minutes later the room suddenly blazed with light. Someone, perhaps taking his life into his hands, had connected electricity to the broken light fixture. “From that moment,” explained President Borja, “my imprisonment had meaning because at least I could see.”
Even more important than the light we see with our eyes is the light that Christ brings to our hearts, giving our lives the understanding and meaning only He can give.
I. BELIEVERS WHO PENETRATE AND PROVIDE
FLAVOR TO THE WORLD V. 13
In light of the counter-cultural perspectives which Jesus teaches in the Beatitudes, it would be easy to assume that Jesus was calling His disciples to a life of isolation and disconnection from the world. Here Jesus proclaims precisely the opposite. The medieval times or the Middle Ages were rightly called the “Dark Ages” when many of the Christians built monasteries and became monks. They concluded that there was too much sin in the world. Therefore, it was better for them to retreat from the world and live separate lives. This has become the standard practice of some contemporary cults in the world. But how wrong they are. Even in His High priestly prayer, Jesus prayed to His Father saying, “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one” (John 17:15).
In order for the disciples of Christ to impact and influence their world for Christ, Jesus uses two metaphors to describe them. What is a metaphor? A metaphor is a comparison of two different objects by the use of direct assertion. The first metaphor that Jesus uses for those of us who are His genuine disciples is salt. In the biblical times salt served many useful purposes. It was used as a condiment to season food (Job 6:6). It was used to preserve food from being spoilt (Exodus 30:35). Because of its medicinal values, newborn babies were bathed in it and rubbed with it (Ezek. 16:4). Some pacts or covenants were sealed with the gift of salt (Numb. 18:19; 2 Chron. 13:5). Salt symbolized loyalty, commitment, and fidelity.
Jesus is therefore teaching us that if we are to be His disciples then we are to be the spiritual seasoning and the flavoring element in a pagan world that has lost its way. Not only that but we are also to be life-saving element in a spiritually decaying society. In other words, Christians must permeate society as agents of redemption. We are to arrest corruption and prevent moral decay in a world gone awry. What influence are you having on people in your circle of friends? What impact are you making in your world?
Salt also has the capacity to create thirst, and has the idea of purity. When you and I live an exemplary Christian life we create a thirst among non-believers for the higher life in Christ. If we are to make impact in our world we must preserve our distinctive character as undefiled disciples of Christ. Jesus is saying that true disciples of His cannot lose their effectiveness. The danger lies in a salt that has lost its flavor. The moral failures of Christians and the politicizing of Christian causes are but two of the many reasons people perceive the church to be insipid and useless. If there are bickering and hostility among those who claim to be the followers of Jesus Christ, then the Christian community has become defiled. If you claim to be a believer and you make no effort to affect the world around you, you are of little value to Jesus Christ. If there is no distinction between the way you live your life and people of the world, if you are too much like the world, you are worthless to Christ. You should not blend with everyone else. Instead you should affect others positively. The positive qualities of your life should rub on others as seasoning brings out the best flavor in food.
While it is true that persecution is inevitable for faithful disciples of Christ, it is also evident in the Book of Acts that the Christians turned the world upside down for Christ. The positive influence of the Christian community could not be denied wherever they went. Do others recognize you as a Christian? If your coworkers, classmates, and business associates were here could they testify that you are a Christian? It was said of the commander of the astronaut crew of the Columbia spacecraft that he signed his autograph with Proverbs 3:5-6. This was a man who was not ashamed to identify himself as a believer. Are you a secret Christian? Secret Christians do not make any impact in their world. They are like salt that has lost its flavor. It is good for nothing. We live in a world where people are always trying to change the moral standards. We live in a world where people are always pushing the envelope to see how much they can get out with it, but Christians are to be moral and spiritual disinfectant in an immoral and corrupt world. However, believers who fail to arrest corruption in our world become worthless as agents of change and redemption. Christians may make peace with the world and avoid persecution, but we become impotent and useless to fulfill our ordained role. And the sad thing is that the corrupt world with which we have sought compromise will eventually reject us.
II. BELIEVERS WHO SHINE IN A DARK WORLD VV. 14-16
In verses 13 and 14 the pronoun “You” is emphatic and contrastive. It is also plural. In other words, Jesus was not speaking to a single disciple or a few of the disciples. He was speaking to all His disciples, the then and the now. He was saying, you, “My followers and none others” are the light of the world. The next metaphor that Jesus uses is light. I think that when Jesus said that the disciples are the light of the world, they were more startled than when He declared them to be salt. For all ancient people revered light and saw darkness as dangerous and foreboding. Light and darkness had darkness and mysterious dimensions about them and symbolized good and evil. Light and darkness also symbolized knowledge and ignorance. Light and darkness depict truth and error. Light symbolizes divine revelation and presence, while darkness depicts reprobation and abandonment by God. Obviously the primary purpose of light was, and is, to illuminate. Since Jesus is the Light of the world (John 8:12; 9:5), so also are His disciples to reflect that light. If Jesus is the fluorescent light, we are the incandescent light. If Jesus is the lamp, we are the candles of the world. If Jesus is the sun, we are the moon. The purpose of light is to illuminate so that we can see and walk without falling into a ditch.
Centuries ago in England lanterns were hung in some of the church staples at night. They were also hung in front of homes. When the lantern was missing or had gone out, the night watchman would cry, “Hang out your light, or “Light your lantern.” The lighted lanterns helped to guide those walking at night through London’s fog and darkness. Jesus said, “You are the light of the world.” Lights are made for dark places. Jesus has made you light so that you will bring others to His Light. But many Christians have hidden their lights under tables. Jesus did not save you to hide your identity from the world. You are a city built on a hill that cannot be hidden. Often the city built on a hill was built with white limestone that gleamed in the sun and could not easily be hidden. If that is the case why is it that only a few Christians are sharing their faith? If that is the case why is it that only a few Christians are witnessing to others about Christ? Today we live in fear of war and terrorism. Many Christians are constantly praying that we will not go to war or terrorists will not attack United States again. While I applaud such prayers, my concern, however, is how many are sharing the good news of Christ? How many are becoming true light to illuminate this present world of darkness? The apostle Paul captures the essence of Jesus’ declaration here on the Sermon on the Mount when he recounts his mission to the Gentiles (Acts 26:17-18). The caution is that in your effort to be an influence on others, make sure you do not call attention to yourself. You should let your light shine before the rest of the world so that others may praise God. You do not go out there to parade your own attributes and say to the world look at me. There are some Christians who draw attention to themselves instead of pointing others to Jesus Christ. And they wonder why the people they invite to church do not stay. They wonder why their impact on others does not last long. Your duty as a believer is to shine so that others may see your good works and glorify God, not you. Do you sing your own praises, or do you sing the praises of God? There is a whole lot of difference between the two. Notice that the good deeds of Christians are to draw attention and praise to God and not the Christian. If done for self-glory, then the deeds do not glorify the heavenly Father. Christians not only do the right things, but they do them in the right spirit for the right purpose.
We are not called to control secular power structures; neither are we promised that we can Christianize the legislation and values of the world. But we must remain active preservative agents, indeed irritants, in calling the world to heed God’s standards. We dare not form isolated Christian enclaves to which the world pays no attention.
A Christian girl found it difficult to be true to her Christian principles where she worked. One day she told her pastor about it. “Where do you put lights? In a bright place?” “Why, no,” she said, “in a dark place, to make it light.” Then she saw that the Lord has put her in those difficult surroundings, and she resolved to be faithful and let her light shine. Students let your light shine in school and you will have the opportunity to point other students to Christ. The first people who made impression on my life for Christ were not pastors. They were twin brothers in my school. Their Christian life was vibrant and contagious. One of them was my classmate. He took interest in me and we became close friends. It was through them that I started going to church and was eventually saved. It is only as Christ lives within our hearts and radiates His grace and love through us that we can be the light of the world. The best way for you to evaluate your Christian life is to ask the question, “Am I allowing Christ to radiate His light through me?” Is my life winsome and attractive? Christians who shine like light are conspicuous in our witness and penetrate the darkness.
Let me ask you a question: “Can you hide a city that is sitting on top of a hill?” Its lights can be seen at a distance. If you live for Christ, you will glow like lights, showing others what Christ is like. One of the ways you hide your light is by being quiet when you should speak for Christ. Many Christians can participate in politics, social chitchats, business transactions, and all kinds of arguments, but when it comes to the most important thing of sharing Christ with others their lips are sealed. They begin to give excuses like Moses, who said to the LORD “I am slow of speech.” Some of you are like that. When it comes to a topic or subject of your interest you emerge as the most eloquent lecturer, but when it comes to sharing your faith all of a sudden you are stricken with a disease of the cleft pallet that you cannot open your mouth. Some too, hide their light by going along with the crowd, whether the crowd is marching straight to hell or not. Some also let sin dim the light that Christ has given to them. If your light is covered with dirt and particles that blur its illumination what do you do? You cleanse them. You do the same thing when sin comes into your life by confessing and asking God for forgiveness. Don’t shut your light off from the rest of the world. Shine for Jesus wherever you may be.
This reminds me of the children’s chorus. “This little light of mine I will let it shine, let it shine, let it shine.” Let your light shine and don’t hide it under a bushel.
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