Salt and Light | Bob Reid
Matthew 5:13-20 | Salt and Light
“You are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world…let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in Heaven.” –Jesus
What is the nature of Christian witness? What should Christianity’s witness look like? The images that Jesus uses in Matthew (city on a hill, light in the darkness) have inspired some bizarre applications. The United States has, throughout its history, borrowed the language of Jesus as a rallying cry. Churches have applied Jesus’ words in myriad ways, sometimes in self-sacrificial ways, at other times, in order to justify violent hegemony.
On Sunday, Bob preached a sermon about the nature of the church’s witness. Here are three points I found most significant:
1. Not you, but y’all. Bob made the point that Jesus is talking to the church. In other words, Jesus’ audience is not a group of people who are unfamiliar with each other and who will therefore have to go off and apply these truths on their own. Jesus is talking to the community who is following him. He is telling them what their community must look like. Jesus is creating a new community. In his life, death, and resurrection, he redefines what it means to be the people of God. Here, he is telling that community what they will look like. This statement about salt and light isn’t for the context of a you-God relationship. It is for a community of faith wrapped up in the life of Jesus.
2. Not imperative, but Indicative. Strangely enough, Jesus doesn’t say, “You should be like salt. Or, you should be a light. Or, you should be a city on a hill.” He says that it is simply a matter of fact that the community who follows Jesus IS salt, light, and a city on a hill. We should not deceive ourselves, thinking that we have a choice in whether or not we are light or salt. Being the church necessarily implies that we are witnesses. What there seems to be some variance in is to what extent we point people to God’s love for the world rather than to our own glory.
3. Following Jesus Visibly. Bob closed his sermon referencing Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Bonhoeffer is a German theologian who was killed during WWII for being a part of a resistance movement against Hitler. Bonhoeffer had a rich understanding of what the community of faith ought to look like. Being a city on a hill took on significant meaning for German Christians during WWII. He insisted that the church be a visible sign of God’s coming kingdom. Bob mentioned Grace Chicago’s partnership with Breakthrough Urban Ministries as an example of how we practically and visibly seek to live out the gospel.
As the church, we are called to “live in a way that draws all to God’s love for the world.” We do that as we embody God’s love in our own community and as we engage our city in ways that point back to God’s love.
Prayers of the People
We pray for those who have lost family members recently. Many in our community are mourning losses. We pray that you would pour out your Holy Spirit upon them that they may know your presence in this difficult time.
Our prayers go out to the family of a youth who was killed over the weekend to the violence that continues to plague our city. The young man was from the southside and was a former farm worker at the Gary Comer Youth Center. We pray that city leaders can continue weaken the gangs in our communities and that both state and federal leaders can work together in a manner that truly seeks the best for all people in our community. May we all seek your wisdom to how we can be a part of your vision in this time.
We pray for Andrew, Amy and Irene Fields in Columbia. We pray for Andrew as he teaches and takes on some new responsibilities. We pray especially for the students in his class, many of whom are new and adjusting to seminary life. We also want to lift up to you Amy as she has been in poor health since they returned to Columbia. We thank you for her continued improvement and ask that she can return to full health soon.
Lord in your mercy....Hear our prayer