SATURDAY, APRIL 27, 2024
Ibonio D’Souza
In the sermon on The Mount, Jesus called upon his followers to be the salt and light to the world around them. Our world today is in darkness. Every day we hear of international terrorism, arms race, burgeoning violence in society, economic exploitation of the poor, hunger, disease, drugs, man-made environmental disasters, and so on. We have a mission to fulfill, a responsibility to make our country, and the world, a better place by preserving all that is good as given to us through God’s word. We are to be people not to make others proud of us, but who think and put the “kingdom of God” first. That is what being “salt” and “light” is all about. However, we can only do this if we are prepared.
These are Jesus’ words: “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty. It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out trampled by men. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill 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 same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (Mt. 5:13-16).
Jesus emphasises to the disciples that they have both the calling and the responsibility to be influencers in the world. Salt is used for seasoning so as to bring out the taste in food. Christians bring flavour and meaning to life in our pleasure-crazed culture, people are finding life dull and boring. No worldly pleasure can satisfy. Christians reveal to the world that life without Christ is tasteless and unsatisfying. The real meaning to life is in Christ.
There is little room for those who are Christians, but have lost their saltiness, or their “edge”. Without the testimony of lives lived out with integrity and consistency with the principles that Christians claim to follow, the testimony of our lips is useless. But be clear: this does not require us to be perfect: knowing our sinfulness, and knowing our need to confess it and be cleansed of it is a vital part of the Christian gospel.
As “salt”, Christians are to counteract the power of sin. As “light”, we are to illuminate or make visible. Our lives are to be an on-going witness to the reality of Christ’s presence in our lives. When we love others as ourselves, and we do good without growing weary, we are lights shining. Man, today thinks himself so enlightened because of the knowledge he has attained. The tragedy of our times has been that we have concentrated solely upon one aspect of knowledge. Our knowledge has been of mechanical things, scientific things and knowledge of life in a biological sense. But man’s knowledge of the real factors that make life, has not increased at all. of man is the all important part of man.
Christians are called to rise and shine. Christians are to be torch bearers in a dark world. One should not try to hide the light which God has lit in our lives. Rather, we should shine so that others may see our good deeds and praise God. Shining does not mean self-propaganda, self-publicity, self-glorification, but bearing fruit in our life, bringing life and light to others.
