Salt and Light
Matthew 5:13-16 ~ September 25, 2016 ~ Heritage Lutheran Church
It was a hot day under the Etruscan sun. Nearly a hundred Roman legionnaires stood in
a long line waiting to receive their salary from the paymasters. Even the gentle breeze
off the Adriatic Sea did little to cool them. Beads of sweat stood out on their faces and
contributed to the dark stains on their well worn leather armor. The only sounds were
the low murmurings of quiet conversation between comrades and the occasional clank
of weapons as the line periodically shuffled forward.
At the front of the line sat the richly robed paymasters at a table flanked by well armed
legionnaire guards. The paymasters were deeply engrossed in the business of marking
ledgers and measuring out piles of white crystals that were being used to fill the small
sacks the soldiers carried. These soldiers were being paid with salt. In fact that is where
the word "salary" itself comes from. The word salary means an allotment of salt. And
soldiers that did their duty were worth their salt.
In the ancient world, when Jesus lived on earth, salt was a very valuable commodity.
Vast ancient cities were built because of their proximity to salt sources. Wars were
fought over the control of salt. Merchants made vast fortunes in the trade of salt. Salt
was very valuable. Unlike gold, which was valuable for it rarity and beauty, salt was
valuable because of its usefulness. Salt was the best preservative known to humanity at
that time. Meat that was carefully prepared with salt could resist decay for hundreds of
days. Salt was also a crucial ingredient for health, enabling humans to better retain
water in hot dry climates. And salt tasted good as it woke up the flavor of the blandest,
most mundane foods.
So when Jesus first spoke the words, "You are the salt of the earth," he was saying
something that meant a great deal to the disciples seated at his feet. Today we have so
many means of preserving food that salted meat is kind of a special item. We can pick
up generic boxes of salt for less than a dollar each. And we are puzzled, and perhaps a
little put out if salt is not readily available each time we sit down to eat. So what do
Jesus’ words mean to us?
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You are the salt of the earth. 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.
It is the change in the metaphor of salt that causes to misunderstand Jesus. Cheaper,
more effective preservatives and dramatically improved salt production has changed the
illustrative power of this metaphor for modern Christians. But what Jesus says is still
true. It is still vital. It is still the hope of the world. In Jesus day, the only hope for
preventing food from rapid decay was salt. That metaphor has changed. But the truth
that it is talking about has not changed. The only hope for preserving human society in
the world is Christianity itself. That is what Jesus meant when he said, "You are the salt
of the earth." Remember that when he taught on the mountain he was speaking
directly to about one hundred and twenty Jewish peasants who were his closest
followers. From them, from their work by His Spirit, a massive miracle has taken place
down through the ages. Only tiny little isolated cultures in the deepest darkest jungles
of this planet have escaped the transformative, preserving power of Christianity. And
even those isolated instances grow fewer each year.
Before the end of the first century Christianity had begun affecting cultures of all kinds
along the whole height and breadth of the civilized world. By the fourth century, the
entire Roman Empire itself embraced the preservative power of Christianity. Even in
the darkest years of the Dark Ages the bells of Christianity rang in more and more lands
calling their people to faith and trust in Jesus. And out of that dark western European
world emerged a scientific and technological society spurred on by the preservative
power, the love of truth, and the courage by faith that comes from the saltiness of
Christianity. That saltiness comes directly from those Judean peasants and has swept
through human society in a way that completely shapes our modern culture. This is
what Jesus meant when he said, "You are the Salt of the earth." He meant that he
would use his followers to preserve and flavor human society in the world from now
until Kingdom come.
"You are the Salt of the earth," meant that some would be preachers and teachers of
the word. Others would be martyrs and theologians. Some became rulers, many
faithfully worked the land and fed generation upon generation. Some became scientists
and inventors. Others were great thinkers and statesmen. Some of the greatest served
in homes, where their faith was passed from generation to generation. God claimed
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this world for his own through the advent of Jesus Christ. But he has preserved it and
moved it in his intended direction through the saltiness of generation upon generation
of Christians living out their lives in faithful love with Jesus. "You are the salt of the
earth," has taken shape upon Christ's lips in each age as he continues to commission his
church to serve him in the preservation of this world.
What would lead you to believe for an instant that his voice has gone silent in our age. I
assure you it has not. Listen up, people! "You are the salt of the earth." It is what
Christ has made you. You need do nothing special, just be what you are. You are the
salt of the earth when you practice soccer, or hockey, or valley ball, or wrestling, or
cross country with your team. You are the salt of the earth when you have coffee with
your friends, when you step into the voting booth, when you do your job with integrity
and when you spend your money wisely. Jesus has put you here for his own reasons.
Your saltiness does its work of shaping and preserving society almost without your
notice. This is exactly what Jesus was teaching those disciples long ago at the top of that
mountain. It is what he teaches us today as we hear his words read from the pages of
Holy Scripture. Jesus is alive and through the work of his spirit he is declaring us salt and
making us salty wherever we find ourselves in life. In this way God is at work preserving
the world and making it palatable for the kingdom of God.
This brings us to the matter of light. Jesus puts it this way;
You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light
a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the
house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your
good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
Now where salt disappears to do its work, light makes itself ever more visible. As Jesus
so clearly points out, we never light a lamp to put in under a bushel. In our modern era
we rarely ever light lamps at all, unless we are camping. But we have enough
experience with that the concept for it to make sense to us. I suppose we could say that
we never put on a blindfold as we turn on the light in a room. The purpose for turning
on a light is exactly for being able to see our way around the room. We turn on the light
so that we will know what is in the room and where it is. We turn on the light so we can
move about safely without tripping or bashing into things. We turn on the light so that
we can work, play, and live in the freedom being able to see gives us.
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This is just exactly what Jesus is talking about when he calls us light. The Church is the
way that God turns the lights on in the darkness of this world. When we gather to
worship we proclaim that Jesus is the light of the world. Your car in the church parking
lot on Sunday morning is light. Your efforts to follow Jesus are light. And your answer
to the question, “why do you have faith?” is light. It points the way to those searching
in the darkness. It shines out with a direction to find hope and peace for those whose
very existence is torn apart by the woes of this world. The church is a light house. It is a
guide to those trying to find their way in the blackness of sin and death in the kingdom
of Satan.
When you give aid or service in the name of Jesus you are being the light that Jesus says
you are. It was for this reason that Jesus gave himself for you. His grace, the gift of his
precious blood in sacrifice, lit you up. It made you light. The grace that has taken root
in your life as faith has the power to lead you forward into a life of service for Christ.
That process is indeed the light of the world.
So whether you are disappearing like salt or appearing ever brighter like light, you are
being what Christ has made you to be. You are the preserving power of God at work in
our society. You are the savory addition to our community that gives it flavor and
depth. You are the beacon of hope for those who have lost their hope. You are the
herald of the gospel shining out through service to others. You are the guide to those
who are lost at sea, needing the lighthouse of your faith to get their bearings. You are
salt and light. You are salt and light because Jesus has said you are salt and light. You
are salt and light because through his Spirit Jesus seeks to make it so. And what Jesus
says, Jesus does.
You are the salt of the earth … you are the light of the world.
The cross is full. The tomb is empty. Jesus is alive and leading us out to go, make,
baptize and teach disciples. Let us take up our cross and follow him.
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