On Being Salt & Light | Pastor Benny Ho

[Music] good morning htvb thank you pastor miles for giving me the joy and the privilege of speaking to you all the way from perth western australia i have a very practical message that i want to share with you this morning which is entitled on being sought and light it comes from matthew chapter 5 verses 13 to 16. so why don't we read the scriptures together this morning matthew chapter 5 13 to 16. you are the salt of the earth jesus said but if the salt loses its saltiness how can it be made salty again it is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot you are the light of the world a towel built on a hill cannot be hidden neither do people light a lamp and then put it under the bow but instead they put it on a stand and it gives light to everyone in the house now in the same way let your light shine before others that they may see your good deeds and glorify your father in heaven let's bow and behave over the prayer father i pray that this morning you open our eyes to behold wonderful things from this passage even though this passage is so familiar to many of us i pray that this morning you give us fresh insight help us to see things there that will enable us and inspire us to really become salt and light in this world god may you come and speak to us as we prepare ourselves to enter 2021 may you give us this passion to really be an influence wherever you place us in jesus name we pray amen now jesus said two distinct things about us as his disciples in this passage in matthew chapter 5 verse 13 and 14 here are two things that jesus said about you about me as his disciples firstly he said you are the salt of the earth it's interesting that the word you there the preposition is really not singular it is plural which means to say that it's not just talking to you as an individual but it's talking to us as a people and he said you are the salt of the earth secondly you are the light of the world now the first thing you need to note is that the influence of salt and light which is our identity is really not based on what we say it's not just based on what we do but simply by being who we are what makes salt and light work is simply by being present it is their distinctiveness which makes them special which tells us this your presence my presence wherever god has placed us makes a difference it sees salt and light affects the environment simply by being there so i want to challenge us as we enter into 2021 that we would prepare ourselves to be salt and light by first understanding clearly and contextually what jesus is saying to us here in matthew chapter five so i propose that we will look at salt and light one at a time so question what does jesus mean by the salt of the earth now we all tend to bring our own paradigms into the reading of the scriptures like when we think about salt our mind will immediately think of salt as in the kitchen because that's what we are used to right so immediately you think about salt you think about jamie oliver you think about gordon ramsay but so most sermons as a result on salt and light here in matthew 5 would actually talk about how salt would preserve how salt flavors which is what we do with salt in cooking is that right therefore a sprinkling of salt will just make all things right but do you know brothers and sisters that the gospel of liu actually defines specifically what jesus had in mind when he talked about the salt of the earth and in the context of discipleship jesus actually said in luke 14 34 and 35. listen to this he said salt is good but if it loses its saltiness how can it be made salty again it is fit neither for the soil nor for the manual power but it is thrown out now listen carefully to this what did jesus have in mind when it comes to the use of salt at that time he wasn't thinking about salt as is used in the kitchen but it is he's thinking about salt that is used in the field and in the manure power isn't that what he says in luke chapter 14 he's thinking about the field and the manila power therefore he was thinking about salt that is used as fertilizer in the field and disinfectant in the toilet and actually that is more in line with what is going on culturally and geographically during the time of jesus now if you remember there is a body of water called the dead sea in israel and this sea we all know has a very high content of salt so much so that you can literally float in the water effortlessly you know you can literally float there lie on your back float there and read the book because there's so much salt you know in in in the dead sea in fact the salt content is so high that if any of you have ever been to israel and you go and visit the dead sea one of the things that your tour guide will always tell you is no whatever you may do do not put your face into the water why because the the salt content is so high that it will really stink your eyes and some people can get blind because of this and that is why anyone who've been to israel will know this is because of the high salt content in the dead sea and during the summer months the water and the dead sea will evaporate even more and salt will be left behind along the shores in huge amounts and then what happened is that the salt merchants would then come collect them and then sell them as fertilizer sell them as disinfectant in huge bags you see salt that is collected from the dead sea is not pure sodium chloride which is used for cooking but it can be a mixture of different types of salt including potassium chloride or potash which is actually used for fertilizer so here's my point salt in the mind of jesus as he was talking about salt of the earth is a great fertilizer that makes good things grow now the other common usage of salt at that time was as a disinfectant in a manure pile and here we are not talking about animal manure but we're actually talking about human waste human manure and at that time please understand they don't have flush toilets right so how do they do their business they would actually do it on a pile of dirt and then they they will always have a box of salt that is next to them so after the man finishes after the person finish his business he will take all this take the salt and then sprinkle it over the manure so that it stops it disinfects it and therefore stop bad things from growing so this was what jesus had in mind now you put all that together and you get this vivid picture of what christians are meant to do you see god plans us where we are needed in the marketplace in our society in the mission field basically to promote the growth of that which is good and to prevent the growth of that which is evil and brothers and sisters this is the powerful influence of the church we are meant to be the salt of the earth and we will do this not by just what we say or what we do but first and foremost by being who we are and we are the salt of the earth you see we are fertilizer that god plants us everywhere as fertilizer to actually cause good things to grow we are disinfectant that will cause bad things to stop growing i think that is the role of the christian in the marketplace that's the road the christian in our neighborhood in our schools in our campuses we are fertilizer that that that cause good things to grow we are disinfectant that cause bad things to stop growing so this is who we are so why don't you turn to your neighbor right now and tell them you are disinfectant you are fertilizer because that's who we are we are the salt of the earth okay what about the light of the world now you notice that light also has its positive and it's negative right the positive side is that light can display light can show up what is right and what is good right where there is light what is good can be seen clearly so when the christian is walking in the light of christ we become a shining beacon that draws man to god but the reverse is also true light cannot just display what is good but light can also expose what is not good right it exposes what is wrong that's why when light comes on all the cockroaches scatter why because darkness cannot stand the light because light exposes light confronts but this is what light does simply by being there it's another vivid picture of what christians are supposed to do in order that the world may see god plan us in our office in our schools in our campuses in our neighborhood so that our presence as the light of the world will exhibit what is right and expose what is wrong so we point people to the good that is in god and we steer people away from the evil and the wickedness that is in this world and that is why the apostle paul wrote in philippians chapter 2 verse 14 to 16. listen to this paul says do everything without grumbling or arguing so that you may become blameless and pure children of god without fault in a warped and crooked generation and then you will shine amongst them like stars as you hold firmly to the word of god now now that you know what jesus actually meant by the salt of the earth and the light of the world i think we have a fresh understanding right of what it means to be salt and light we are fertilizer that cause good things to grow we are disinfectant that cause bad things to stop growing we are light that exposes that which is wrong and it displays that which is right see and that's our role by simply being there by being distinctly different we are playing our role as salt and light in society now let me in the light of this outline for us three requirements that will enable salt and light to really operate effectively in this world okay and i want to outline for you three key requirements and remember jesus was not talking to us just as an individual because the word you the pronoun used is actually plural right and it's talking to us as a corporate body so here are three key requirements for us as a people number one is this in order for salt and light to really work effectively we need to have the right quality we need to have the right quality in order to fulfill its function well salt must be salty so question can salt actually lose its saltiness personally i think it's not possible physically because it salt cannot just change its dna you can't see in the same way a born-again christian has a new nature in christ and we cannot change that so the problem is not that our nature is changed but rather it can be adulterated okay it can be mixed and tainted by the things of this world we have a new nature but that nature can be mixed and tainted by the things of this world and then it can no longer be distinctly different remember what happened to the people of israel right in psalms 106 35 and 36 what was their problem here's their problem they mingled with the nations and adopted their customs and they worshipped their idols which became a snare a trap to them see once we lose our saltiness and we can no longer influence positively i think we are no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot we lose our distinctiveness and we lose our ability to influence see we can become so like the world that people can no longer see the distinctiveness of christ in us and then our presence does not make a difference anymore now jesus actually asked in verse 13 this question right if salt has lost his saltiness how can it be made salty again you know what the answer is i believe that the answer is this is to go back to the beatitudes and be like what jesus calls us to be now have you noticed that this passage that we just read about salt and light is actually sandwiched between two very major treatment of jesus when it comes to the sermon on the mount one is the beatitudes on top and then after that he talked about salt and light then he goes on to talk about the moral laws of god so here's the thing if salt has lost its saltiness what must it do i think it must go back to the beatitudes and we begin to live out who god has called the people of the kingdom to be now it is the same with light if our light becomes deemed then what must we do you see if our light has become deemed i believe we need to go back to the moral laws of god you see because if our light is shining clearly then all we need to do is put it on a stand and then let it shine by itself and it will bring light to everyone in the house it will draw all men to god and then they will glorify him and the whole world will see but if light is hidden it is no use right we used to sing that old song shy jesus shy i'm sure you sang that before but actually it's a nice song but it's not very accurate i don't think it should be shine jesus shine because jesus is always shining but it is shine christian shine shine church shine say we are supposed to shine okay jesus is always shining but not us so we the song exhausts us to shine for jesus now how are we supposed to shine for the lord i think it is by holding ourselves to a higher standard of morality that is why if you assault the laws of saltiness go back to the beatitudes but if light has deemed what must we do go back to the moral laws of god we hold ourselves to a higher standard of morality in order to shine in this world see the world often lowers the moral standard to meet the people that's what the world does but jesus is so counter culture that he actually raised the people to meet the moral standards see he never compromised that so it's not just about not doing all the bad things like stealing and killing and murdering but what jesus did was to go on in matthew chapter 5 to outline the inner workings of the law that's how we shine for the lord you see what moses declared for the outside for the people of israel jesus actually took it to the inside he took it into the heart see so you read the rest of chapter 5 it talks about this while the law says do not murder jesus said if you are angry with your brother you already committed murder see it's the issue of the heart now the law says do not commit adultery but jesus said if you just look at the woman lustfully you have already committed adultery in your heart see the law says do not break your oath but jesus said let your yes be yes your no be no you don't even need to swear you just mean what you say and then you say what you mean it's all about the inside see he even told the disciples in matthew chapter five right do not worry about anything because worrying is a sin and that's why christians never worry right you know that's not true see what's my point here's my point see jesus raised the standard of morality is so high that it's almost impossible to fulfill it isn't it and that's true because he never expected us to be able to do this on our own strength and with our own willpower but what we need is the power of the holy spirit and the truth of god's word that's what we need this is the only way that the world can see and that's why it's so powerful it is not our doing but our being and this is what it means to be salt and light it begins by having the right quality you see you live out the beatitudes and we uphold the moral standards of god that is salt and light and it begins by having the right quality here's number two in order for salt and light to really work in this world we need to also have the right quantity you see in the kitchen we may only need a little bit of salt for flavoring for preservation but if we're talking about being fertilizer and being disinfectant then we are talking volumes isn't it if we just want to light up a little room that all we need is a little lamb but if we want to influence society i think we need more light to be effective salt and light in society we don't just need the right quality but we also need the right quantity in order to turn the kind of evil in our world we need enough salt and light to actually change the trend you see one of the latest social studies that are done by the world economic forum have shown that if there is 25 in any gathering that is distinctly different it can change the social trend and we're not just talking about the quantity here but we're talking about uh the right quality to start with so if there is 25 percent of really committed christians say in any organization or in any church it can begin to effectively fertilize and cause good things to grow and effectively disinfect and prevent bad things from growing in any company any campus any family any organization you see and if we want to become trendsetters then let us prepare to keep reaching out keep evangelizing keep discipling until we see enough salty salt and shiny like bursting into our nation a really good target will be at least 25 so that we can change social trend but let's not kid ourselves if our churches are simply growing by transferring christians from church to church then we will never be able to let the world see so until we see people safe until we plunder hell and populate heaven the needle of transformation has not moved at all so brothers and sisters we need greater quality of salt and light and we also need greater quantity of salt and light and here's the third thing we need to be in the right place right quality right quantity and we need to be in the right place see if we want to let the world see if we really want to influence our world we must make sure that salt and light is found in the right place you see salt is not useful as a fertilizer until it is in contact with the earth right it is not useful as a disinfectant unless it is in touch with the manual now it is not even useful as a flavoring in the kitchen unless it is sprinkled into the food right it must be in touch light if it is hidden under a bait it does not show the way or expose any danger that is lurking in the darkness light must shine into the darkness in order to dispel it you see a light that is shining into the sun if you hold a candle to the sun it's actually useless see for a candle to be really useful for this light to be really useful it must be found in the place of darkness so what's my point my point is this sword and light are meant to function in the world and not just in the church it operates by being present in this world and in places where darkness prevail and that is why god did not call everyone to become pastors and missionaries but he has called many of you here to the front lines of the marketplace to be salt and light so that the world may see come monday morning many of you are going to be scattered into the marketplaces of the world and that's where you should be see you are going to work tomorrow morning not just get a paycheck but you are there to make a difference in the broken world your work is actually a platform for you to function as salt and light in this world your work takes you to places uh that your pastors can never go your work you know put you in touch with people that your pastors may never meet see i cannot walk into citibank tomorrow morning and start preaching right but if you work in citibank then you have the right to be there as salt and light to fertilize the bank and cause good things to grow you are there to be disinfectant that stops bad things from growing you are there to be a signpost that will point people to a better kingdom and introduce people to a better king and his name is jesus amen [Music] you

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Length: 23min 48sec (1428 seconds)

Published: Sun Mar 07 2021