You are the salt of the earth

 "Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.  Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

"You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned?  It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.

"You are the light of the world.  A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.  Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."

- Matthew 5:11-16

Yesterday we read that, seeing the multitudes, Jesus went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him.  Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:  "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.  Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.  Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.  Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

"Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.  Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you."  Those who suffer persecution for the sake of their faith in Christ walk the same road as did the prophets, saints, and martyrs.  In Greek, the word translated as be exceedingly glad means to "leap exceedingly with joy."  (See Acts 5:40-41.)

"You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned?  It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men."  Jesus gives two metaphors for the disciples and their role in society:  salt and light.  Because of its preservative powers, its necessity for life, and its ability to give flavor, salt had both religious and sacrificial significance (Leviticus 2:13; see also Numbers 18:19, 2 Chronicles 13:5).  Furthermore, to eat salt with someone meant to be bound together in loyalty.  My study bible says that as the salt of the earth, Christians are preservers of God's covenant and give true flavor to the world.  We may wonder how salt may lose its flavor, but we must consider that in ancient times, salt was found with the presence of other minerals.  Humidity could indeed leech the particular mineral that constitutes salt (and gives "saltiness") out of the compound.

"You are the light of the world.  A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.  Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."  God is the true and uncreated Light, says my study bible.  In the Old Testament light is symbolic of God (Isaiah 60:1-3), the divine Law (Psalm 119:105), and Israel in contrast to all other nations.   Psalm 36:9 declares, "In Your light, we see light."  In the New Testament, the Son of God is called "light" (John 1:4-9; 8:12; 1 John 1:5).  Light is something we need for clear vision and also for life itself.  Faith relies on the divine light, and believers become "sons of light" (John 12:36; 1 Thessalonians 5:5) who shine in a perverse world, my study bible says (Philippians 2:15).

When we think about Jesus' images of salt and light -- images of covenant, of wisdom, of God's love and truth -- we should think about the earlier part of this Sermon, the Beatitudes (see above, yesterday's reading).  That is because the qualities of the Kingdom are embodied in its blessings, which are conferred upon us in ways that are timeless and are unable to be taken away by others without our consent.  To be capable of manifesting and becoming people who carry those qualities of blessedness is to be peacemakers, to be pure in heart, to hunger and thirst for righteousness, to be merciful, meek (or gentle), to desire righteousness to the point of a willingness to be persecuted for it, and to be poor in spirit (true humility).  All of these qualities are not only the blessings of the Kingdom for those who choose and willingly become participants in it through faith, but they are blessings for the whole of the world, for communities, for families, for neighbors.  To embody these qualities is to "have salt" -- the capacity for covenant and loyalty, the ability to stick to something with one's word and faith, to be entrusted with something.  It is to shine a light, to show a better way, to live as one with such qualities even in a darkened world.  It is to bring something of true goodness to those who may not experience it otherwise.  A willingness to sacrifice even well-being for the sake of God's love and its presence in the world in terms of how one relates to neighbor and all of creation is to bring both salt and light into the world and into the lives of others.  Where all are willing to fight to the death for the sake of power or selfishness, one person who sacrifices personally for a true inward peace, or for the righteousness of helping one who is weaker, shines as a light and flavorful salt for something good that must be preserved.  To hold to a covenant is to preserve within oneself the bonds of love God calls us to hold within our hearts, to be loyal, and true to the things that make all the difference in a world that is either going to be a wilderness or truly "civilized."   This applies to every modern circumstance one can think of, whether it is what passes for political discourse or within a family in which love is sorely lacking.  It really doesn't matter what situation one describes; it also applies to online behavior out here in the world of the internet and social media.  We are responsible for something, we have loyalty to it; we hold and preserve its salt, we shine its light.  Where do you go with that?