EXPLORE THE TEXT
Kingdom people make a positive impact on the world for God’s glory.
13 “You are the salt of the earth.
But if the salt should lose its taste, how can it be made salty?
It’s no longer good for anything but to be thrown out
and trampled under people’s feet.
14 You are the light of the world.
A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden.
15 No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket,
but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house.
16 In the same way, let your light shine before others,
so that they may see your good works
and give glory to your Father in heaven.”
Identify the Sermon on the Mount
as the first of Jesus’s major discourses in Matthew.
Salt and light are the primary metaphors in the verses.
Summarize the following information (PSG, pp. 42-43)
to explain the importance of salt and light in the first century:
“Salt was a valuable substance,
often traded as a part of transactions for goods and services. .
. .
In Jesus’s day, the primary use of salt was for preservation.
Lacking refrigeration, salting meat was essential to preserving it. .Chemically it is impossible for salt to lose its salty taste,
but it certainly can be “defiled.” . .Jesus reinforced this word picture [of light]
by pointing out that many towns were built on the summit
or side of a hill where they were seen from a distance.
They were visible by day, and the light from every home would make the cities visible at night.”
As salt, believers reflect God’s kingdom values.
As light, we reveal Christ to the world around us.
By being salt and light, we point people to Jesus and bring glory to God.