Shake and Shine

“You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor?
Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.
You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden.
No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket.
Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house.
In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see,
so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.”
Matthew 5:13–16

Jesus offered the only strategy that would counteract the world system. How in the world can soldiers armed with humility and contrition, gentleness and righteousness, mercy, purity, and peace ever make a lasting impact in a world that is so angry? The answer is found in the words you just read: by shaking salt and shining light.

I repeat, to make a lasting impact on the world’s system, one must be distinct from it, not identical to it. Jesus puts it so simply: “You are the salt of the earth. . . . You are the light of the world.” Not just salt for your neighborhood or for the city where you live. There is enough salt to salt the whole world! Not just a local streetlight but enough light to light the entire earth! Incredible statements. And so simple. But don’t miss that emphatic “you” in both statements: “You are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world.”

Let’s go further. It doesn’t say, “You can be the salt,” or “You should be the light.” It says, “You are.” You don’t even need to pray, “Lord, make me real salty. Lord, make me a bright light.” You already are. Meaning what? Meaning, get at it. Shake the salt! Shine the light! Simple though it may seem, that is the game plan God has set up for counteracting a world that “lies in the lap of the evil one.”

Slowly but surely our world is rotting from within. Not only are civilizations in the process of decaying, but mortals are as well. If Rip Van Winkle were still sleeping and awoke from his nap today, he would be shocked at the eroding standards of our time. What our culture accepts as the norm would have been considered scandalous back when he went to sleep.

The worse our world becomes, the greater is its need of salt because, in the case of the salty Christian, it makes the surrounding world thirsty for the very water of life. And, by the way, I’m not just talking about huge piles of salt (like big churches and evangelistic crusades) that make folks thirsty for the things of God. I’m talking about a consistent, everyday lifestyle.