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SERMON
5 Sunday after Epiphany – Lectionary 5
February 6, 2011
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Isaiah 58:1-9a [9b-12]
Psalm 112:1-9 [10]
1 Corinthians 2:1-12 [13-16]
Matthew 5:13-20
Brothers and sisters in Christ, grace to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord
and Savior Jesus, who is the Christ. Amen.
Raymond’s father was always telling Raymond that he would never amount to anything.
Eventually Raymond began to believe that to be true. He would say to the rest of the kids, “I’m
not very good at this. My dad says I’ll never amount to anything”.
Raymond’s father could be heard yelling “Raymond. Don’t you know anything? Jeez kid,
you’ll never amount to anything!” And do you know something? Raymond never did amount to
anything. Last heard, Raymond was in jail.
You see, the voice of Raymond’s father was so loud, so overwhelming, buried so deep in
Raymond’s psyche, that there was no way that Raymond could have overcome the handicap.
Now I would guess that most of you know a Raymond to two – don’t you? As a matter of fact,
there may be a few people here today who have a voice like the voice of Raymond’s father
somewhere inside of you. Maybe it isn’t as strong as the voice Raymond had to contend with,
but so many of us have to deal with that inner library of tapes that carry messages like, “You’re
not good enough. You don’t measure up. Better let someone else try that.”
And the more significant a person is in our life, the more damaging a negative message from that
person can be.
On the other hand, what a powerful difference it makes in our lives when we have been
nourished with messages like, “You can make a difference – you are very gifted and have many
talents – you are loved no matter what” Messages like this can lift us up and give us hope.
From the earliest days of the civil rights struggle in America, there was a positive, nourishing
message that sounded through the whole movement like an anthem.
In the darkest of times, and in the deepest despair, the refrain could still be heard; “We shall
overcome. We shall overcome. We shall overcome – some day. Deep in my heart, I do believe,
we shall overcome some day.” Without this deep seated belief, the gains of the late sixties and
early seventies would never have come to pass.
Today’s Gospel story puts us in the middle of what has come to be known as Jesus’ Sermon on
the Mount. It began with the beatitudes which we heard last week.
Blessed are the poor in spirit. Blessed are those who mourn. Blessed are the meek. Blessed are
those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. Blessed are the merciful and the pure in heart.
Blessed are the peacemakers.”
In those words we hear the opposite of what was spoken to Raymond, “You’re not good enough
– you will never amount to anything.”
For the beatitudes were words of hope to those who were hurting – to those who were broken.
And then todaywe hear more words of hope. “You are the salt of the earth,” and “you are the
light of the world.” These are the words which Jesus spoke to those who were following him.
Therefore, as fellow disciples of Jesus, these words can also speak to us.
Now I would like to point out one small word in both of these declarations. The word is “are”.
“You ARE salt”. “You ARE light”. Jesus did not say, “You could be salt and light if you tried
hard enough”. Or he didn’t say, “It’s good to be salt and light, but you will never be good
enough to make it”.
Jesus declared us “salt of the earth”, and “light of the world”. WOW! That’s kind of scary.
Let’s take a closer look.
Now salt has received a bad reputation in recent decades. Even though humans require a certain
amount of salt for survival, most of us eat way too much of it which can be detrimental to our
health. Individuals who eat too much salt are at risk of developing high blood pressure, heart
disease, stroke, and even stomach cancer.
How many of you know what the daily recommended salt intake is? It’s one teaspoon – one
teaspoon. And that’s on the high end! Most of the salt we eat is hidden in things like cheese,
butter, snack food, breakfast cereals, canned goods and virtually all processed foods. It is used in
many foods as a color additive, a binder, an element for giving texture, and a control agent in
making bread.
Now in our culture, salt is very inexpensive. In addition to the few pennies we spend on table
salt, we buy it in 40 pound bags for use in water softeners. And just this past week TXDOT
poured tons and tons of salt on our roads so that we wouldn’t go sliding all around in our cars.
But you see, in Biblical times, salt was extremely rare and precious. Salt was so valuable in the
ancient world, that the Greeks called it divine. A Lain jingle, “Nil utilus sole et sale” stated
“There is nothing more useful than sun and salt”.
There were times when Roman soldiers actually received their wages in salt. In fact, the Latin
word for salt is also the root word for salary. I wonder what would happen if companies tried to
pay their employees with salt today?
There were also other uses for salt. Salt was a symbol of purity. It was used by the Jews to
purify their offerings to God. Salt was used as a preservative to prevent food from spoiling.
Even today, salt is used to preserve certain meats. And salt was also used for healing from the
time of the ancient Egyptians for its antibacterial properties.
So what did Jesus mean when he said to his disciples, “You are the salt of the earth”? Perhaps
what Jesus is saying is that those who follow him are empowered to be part of God’s Kingdom
which is breaking loose in this world.
By using the analogy of salt, Jesus is saying that those who follow him will be those who purify
the injustices of this world. They will be those who offer healing to those who are sick or
broken. They will be those who preserve what is good and right. And in the mean time,
disciples of Jesus might just add a little flavor to the world.
Jesus also says to his disciples; “You are the light of the world”. So besides salt, we are also
light. Now this statement is even more amazing. For in John’s Gospel, we are told that Jesus
said; “As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world”. Here in Matthew’s Gospel,
Jesus says; “You are the light of the world”.
Do you realize what Jesus is saying here? In other words, Jesus says; “when I am no longer in
the world, it is all up to you!” “You are Christ to the world!”
Now I don’t know about you, but I don’t always feel that I am the light of the world. I think my
family could probably testify to that. I don’t always feel like Mr. Sunshine. Actually, I rarely
feel like Mr. Sunshine. But then again, I’m not going to argue with Jesus. If Jesus says I am the
light of the world, then I guess that I had better listen.
And of course, light is something that is seen rather than heard. After all, you can’t hear light.
So perhaps when we try to understand what Jesus is saying, we might reflect on the fact that to
be “like Christ” does not mean to say something per se, but to be something that people can see.
In other words, hearing the Gospel is actually seeing the Gospel. Come and see the light that has
come into the world. And then see that light reflected in those who follow that light.
In the Sermon of the Mount, Jesus stretches our understanding of faith by giving us countless
teachings that are daunting, to say the least; love your enemies, turn the other check, go the extra
mile.
But first, he pronounces blessings – surprising ones at that. Blessed are the poor, the grieving, the
persecuted. It is hardly what we would expect. But Jesus is opening us up to the view from the
kingdom. Then: “You are the salt for the earth, light for the world.” Another surprise! Another
blessing!
We may be far more aware of how we have grown stale, and hidden whatever light we once
thought we had. We may feel stress, in danger of being snuffed out or trampled underfoot. In
naming us salt and light, Jesus is not making a simple statement of the obvious, but is bestowing
an affirmation from a living and creative God.
For Jesus is expressing God’s faith in our acceptance of God’s gift of grace – grace that
empowers us to love one another. For it is God’s grace alone that frees us to serve; it alone
brings real joy.
“Let your light shine,” we say, handing the newly baptized or godparent a candle – a miniature
pillar of fire. It is the light of Christ – shining before we receive it – that will never be snuffed
out.
It shines in all the baptized so we may share our bread with the hungry and shelter the homeless
poor. So we may undo all injustice and restore peace and compassion in the world. It is then
that others will taste and see the goodness that God has put before us and glorify God’s precious
name.
For you Raymond’s of the world out there, God does not give up. The words, “You’ll never
amount to anything” do not exist in God’s vocabulary. For each and every one of us are salt and
light. We are God’s instruments in the building of the Kingdom. Know that you indeed belong
to God. Amen.
May the peace that passes all understanding be with you now and for life everlasting. Amen.
Can any of you tell me what salt is?
You probably sprinkle salt on your food. What kind of food do you sprinkle salt on?
Do you know what I like to put salt on? Pumpkin Pie
In our Bible story today, Jesus says that his followers are “salt of the earth”. What do you think
he meant?
Well, did you know that people need salt to live. Sometimes we eat too much salt, but all of us
need a little bit to live.
In the time of Jesus, people used salt on food so that the food would not spoil. That’s because
they didn’t have refrigerators. But sometimes there wasn’t enough salt to go around. Salt was
very expensive. It was almost like gold. It was very important.
Another thing Jesus talks about that is important is love. Jesus tells us to love each other. So
when he tells us to be like salt, he is telling us to love.
The world needs people to love other people. We need to be salt – to love other people.
How is it that you can be salt? How can you love other people? You can share. You can tell
them that they are loved. You can tell them about Jesus.
So always remember, that because Jesus loves you, he says that you are salt and that you are
light. You are very special.
Let us pray…. Dear Jesus, help us to be salt and light in the world so that we might know your
love for us and share that love with everyone. Amen.