SALT AND LIGHT OF THE EARTH
SALT AND LIGHT OF THE EARTH
Anybody who knows me well knows that I absolutely love good food, and even more I love cooking good food. Combining fresh ingredients together to make a delicious meal and then sharing it with family and friends is a very rewarding experience, especially during this festive season when most of us are home for the holidays.
Let us imagine, you are the designated chef for New Year’s dinner, you have done the grocery shopping, bought all the ingredients and condiments to the last detail. However, while cooking you realise that you don’t have any salt, you checked all the drawers and cabinets and there is still no salt anywhere, all the shops are closed and there is no place to get salt. What will you do? You could add all the seasoning and condiments but nothing does it quite like salt. That’s exactly our role as Christians on earth, without us, the earth loses its flavour.
The bible says in Matthew 5:13 The Message version
“Let me tell you why you are here. You’re here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavours of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You’ve lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage.”
The way salt is added to bring out the flavour of food is the same way our presence as Christians should bring out the God-flavours of the earth. If we lose our saltiness, people can’t taste godlines and for them life will be bland. Not only will this have an effect on the earth, but it will also affects us. If we lose our saltiness, we lose our usefulness and we end up where other useless things do, in the garbage.
Our role on earth is not any ordinary role, in comparison to a meal on New Year’s dinner, we are supposed to be salt in the whole earth. What an honour and a privilege which should not be taken lightly.
Now, for emphasis sake, let us further go on to imagine that the New Year’s dinner is a candle lit dinner. After you light up the candles, instead of placing them on the table you put them under the table and cover them with a bucket. Everyone including you has been deprived of seeing.
Matthew 5:14-15, The Message Version
“Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colours in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearer, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand – Shine!”
God has made us light-bearers to show the God-colours of the earth. We shouldn’t keep God a secret, we should shine. God has set us on a hilltop which is already a high place, He has now further put us on a light stand to be seen by the whole world.
The food on the table lacks salt and there’s no light on the table, your guests cannot taste the flavour of the food and they cannot see either. Salt gives taste and light enables us to see. “See what”? you may ask. The Goodness of God, that is what. As Christians when we lose our saltiness and hide our light we hide the Goodness of God from the earth. The bible says in Psalms 38:8 The Message Version, “Taste and See that the LORD is good;” We can never have enough of God’s goodness because His mercies endure forever.
January being a new month and also the start of a new year comes with all its expectations. Some of us love the feeling while some of us don’t love it as much. But wherever we stand, let us not dismiss the month or put too much pressure on ourselves.
For a good start, I can advise us to be salt and light of the earth. You may say “I live in a small town”, or “I am from a remote area, how could I possibly be salt of this big earth?” Well it starts from somewhere, first be salt of your small town and light of your remote area and your community can taste and see the Goodness of God through you.
May the grace and blessings of the Lord be upon us in this new decade and year 2020.
HAPPY NEW YEAR.
IFEOLUWA JAIYESIMI ©
The Revolutionary Righter ©