What It Means to Be Salt and Light, Part 2

TEXT: Matthew 5:13-16

In this section of His Sermon On the Mount, Jesus compares His followers to salt and light. As salt, we are the protectors and preservers of all that is good and godly in the world. But, we must not be contaminated with the sin of the world, or else we lose our effectiveness and become of no use to both God and the world. The world doesn't need more Christians trying to be like it; it needs more Christians trying to make the world like Christ. The term "salt and light" was often used by the Jews to describe the Old Testament Law -- the rules of God that people were to live by in a sinful world. In a way, Christians are the living law of God today. If we behave as we ought, our behavior brings conviction to the world. Our lives ought to be an example to the lost of what it means to "live godly in this present world."