SALT & LIGHT: Matthew 5:13-20

The verse is paralleled in Mark 9:50, and Luke 14:34-35.

" Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again? You must have the
qualities of salt among yourselves and live in peace with each other." ( Mk 9:50)

"Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again? Flavorless salt is
good neither for the soil nor for fertilizer. It is thrown away. Anyone who is willing to hear should listen
and understand. (Mark 14:34-35)

There are a wide number of references to salt in the Old Testament.

Leviticus 2:13 Season all your grain offerings with salt. Do not leave the salt of the covenant of your God
out of your grain offerings; add salt to all your offerings.

A permanent provision for the priest. The phrase " covenant of salt" remains obscure (2Chron 13:5).

In Leviticus 2:13 the salt that must accompany grain offerings is called " the salt of the covenant."

Ezekiel 43:24 You are to offer them before the LORD, and the priest are to sprinkle salt on them and
sacrifice them as a burnt offering.

Exodus 30:35 ...and make a fragrant blend od incense, the work of a perfumer. It is to be salted and pure
and sacred.

Numbers 18:19, and 2Chronicles 13:5 all represent salt as a sign of God's covenant.

Exodus 30:35, Ezekiel 16:4, Ezekiel 43: 24, and 2Kings 2:21 all represent salt as a purifying agent.

Salt had two purposes in the Middle East of the 1st Century.
1. PRESERVATION: to preserve food especially meat which quickly spoils in the desert because of two
much heat.

It was most used as a preservative. This use was important enough that salt was sometimes even used
as currency, from which the word salary originates.

The common interpretation of this verse is a reference to salt as a preservative, and to thus see the duty
of the disciples as preserving the purity of the world.

2. Flavor: They were also instructed to give flavor. Salt naturally enhances taste by intensifying certain
flavors and decreasing others. If a seasoning has no flavor, it has no value. If Christians make no effort
to affect the world around them, they are a little value to God. Christians should not blend in with
everyone else. Instead, we should affect others positively, just as seasoning brings out the best flavor in
food.

What does salt mean in the Bible...

The role of salt in the Bible is relevant in understanding Hebrew society during the OT & NT periods.

Salt is a necessity of life and was a mineral that was used since ancient times in many cultures as a
seasoning, a preservative, disinfectant, a component of ceremonial offerings, and as a unit of exchange.

How does salt lose its saltiness?

Salt might lose its flavor under certain conditions when it contains chemical impurities. Other possible
reasons might be: Salt might have absorbed humidity and eventually evaporated and left behind a
substance that looked like salt but did not taste like.

Most of the salt used in Israel came from the Dead Sea and was full of impurities. This caused it to lose
some of its flavor.

What does salt represent spiritually

The Bible contains numerous references to salt. In various contexts, it is used metaphorically to signify
permanence, loyalty, durability, fidelity, usefulness, value, and purification.

Light of the world

You are the light of the world. A town built onahill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and
put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand,and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the sae
way, let you light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in
heaven. (vv. 14-16)

Although Jesus himself fulfilled the mission of the Lord'servant to be "a light of the Gentiles" (Isaiah
42:6), he expected his followers to carry onthe work).

Can we hide a city that is sitting on top of a mountain? Its light at night can be seen for miles.

If we live for Christ, we will glow like lights, showing others what Christ is like.

So the implication was clear. Our faithfulness should be evident to all. The behaviorof God's people
should be a light that draws others to it. Outsiders should be drawn to praise God when they see our
good deeds. Be a beacon of truth-don't shut your light off from the rest of the world.

How are we as God's light?

" The methapors of salt and light specifically addressed the impact faithfulness should have in the
world. It should illuminate and preserve. Like both salt and light, our relationship with God should have
an obvious impacton everyone who comes in contact with it.

Jesus is not just calling us to be devoted, He's encouraging to have influence everywhere we go."

Jesus fulfilled the law

If Jesus did not come to abolish the law, does that mean all the Old Testament laws still apply to us
today?

Inthe Old Testament, there three categories of law: ceremonial, civil, and moral.

1) The ceremonial law related specifically to Israel's worship. We can read itin Leviticus 1:2,3, for
example). Its primary purpose was to point forward to Jesus Christ; these laws, therefore, were no
longer necessary after Jesus' death and resurrection. While we are no !onger bound by ceremonial law,
the principles behind them-to worship and love a holy God-still apply. Jesus was often accused by the
Pharisees of violating ceremonial law.
2) The civil law appliesd to dailty living in Israel, ( Deuteronomy 24:10,11 for example). Because modern
society and culture are so radically different from that time and setting, all of these guidelines cannot be
followed specifically. But the principles behind the commands are timeless and should guide our
conduct. Jesus demonstrated these principles by example.

3) The moral law ( such as the Ten Commandments) is the direct command of God, andit requires strict
obedience (Exodus 20:13, for example). The moral law reveals thenature and will of God, and it still
applies today Jesus obeyed the moral law completely.

V.19 Some of those in thecrowd weree perts at telling others what to do, but they missed the central
point of God's laws themselves. Jesus made it clear, however, that obeying God's laws is more important
than explaining them. It's much easier to study God's laws and tell others to obey them than to put
them into practice.

How are we doing at obeying God?

5:20 The Pharisees were exacting and scrupulous intheir attempts to follow their laws. So howcould
Jesus reasonably callusto greater obedience than theirs? The Pharisees weakness was that they were
content to obey the laws outwardly without allowing God to change their hearts (attitudes). Jesus was
saying, therefore, that the quality of our goodness should be greater than thatof the Pharisees. They
looked pious, but they were far from the Kingdom of Heaven. God judgesour heart as well as our deeds,
for it is in the heart that our real allegiance lies.

Let us be concernedabout our attitudes that people don' t see aboutour actions that are seen by all.

So, Jesus says to us...

that, we his people needed a different kind of obedience altogether (out of love for God), not just a
more intense version of the Pharisees' obedience ( which was mere legal compliance). Our obedience
must

1) come from what God does in us, not what we an do by ourselves,

2) be God-centered, not self-centered,

3) be based on reverence for God, not approval from people, and

4) go beyond keeping the law toliving by the principles behind the law.

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