{"id":475,"date":"2022-09-16T03:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-09-16T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/?p=475&2022"},"modified":"2022-09-13T18:00:10","modified_gmt":"2022-09-14T00:00:10","slug":"the-goal-of-salt-and-light-matthew-5-13-37","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/the-goal-of-salt-and-light-matthew-5-13-37\/","title":{"rendered":"The Goal of Salt and Light: Matthew 5:13-37"},"content":{"rendered":"
Focus Passage: Matthew 5:13-37 (NIV)<\/div>
\r\n

13\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cYou are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.<\/p>

14\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cYou are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15\u00a0<\/sup>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. 16\u00a0<\/sup>In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.<\/p>

17\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cDo not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18\u00a0<\/sup>For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19\u00a0<\/sup>Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20\u00a0<\/sup>For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.<\/p>

21\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cYou have heard that it was said to the people long ago, \u2018You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.\u2019 22\u00a0<\/sup>But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, \u2018Raca,\u2019 is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, \u2018You fool!\u2019 will be in danger of the fire of hell.<\/p>

23\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cTherefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24\u00a0<\/sup>leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.<\/p>

25\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cSettle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26\u00a0<\/sup>Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.<\/p>

27\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cYou have heard that it was said, \u2018You shall not commit adultery.\u2019 28\u00a0<\/sup>But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29\u00a0<\/sup>If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30\u00a0<\/sup>And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.<\/p>

31\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cIt has been said, \u2018Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.\u2019 32\u00a0<\/sup>But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.<\/p>

33\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cAgain, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, \u2018Do not break your oath, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.\u2019 34\u00a0<\/sup>But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God\u2019s throne; 35\u00a0<\/sup>or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36\u00a0<\/sup>And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37\u00a0<\/sup>All you need to say is simply \u2018Yes\u2019 or \u2018No\u2019; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.<\/p>\r\n

Read Matthew 5:13-37<\/a> in context and\/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!<\/p><\/div><\/div>\r\n

In our passage for this post, it opens by sharing two metaphors for how we are to live in the world. These two ideas are so well known within Christianity that they have almost become meaningless clich\u00e9s, but even while they have lost much of their impact, they are still challenging to us when we look closer at them.<\/p>\r\n

The first idea is Jesus calling His followers \u201cthe salt of the earth<\/strong>\u201d in the opening of verse 13. He is quick to point us to salt\u2019s function \u2013 be salty \u2013 because if salt looses that which makes it salt, it is no better than dirt or sand. In the same way, if Christians lose the core of who we are, we become just as useless as \u201cunsalty\u201d salt.<\/p>\r\n

The flip side of this first idea is that when we are salty, we blend into just about everything, but we change it and make it different. With salt as the metaphor, Christians should not fear going into any situation and in any situation Christians are in, there should be a clear distinctiveness to their actions that improves and uplifts those around them.<\/p>\r\n

The second idea is that Jesus calls His followers \u201cthe light of the world<\/strong>\u201d in the first part of verse 15. This stands in partial contrast to Jesus Himself being the True Light. Calling a Christian or group of Christians \u201ca light\u201d might seem as though we are pulling the spotlight away from Jesus, who is the Light who came into the world, but Jesus started it by drawing this type of attention onto His followers.<\/p>\r\n

The purpose of a light is to not hide, but to be visible and easy to see \u2013 just like a city on a hill. As Christians, we should not fear showing our \u201cChristianity\u201d to others. Using this metaphor, some people may prefer darkness and will dislike the Christian light, but others will like it and be drawn to it.<\/p>\r\n

The key goal of being salt or light is found right as Jesus begins to transition to a different topic. He closes out this portion of His message by saying, \u201clet your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.<\/strong>\u201d (v. 16)<\/p>\r\n

The goal of being salty or filled with light is not to draw attention to ourselves, but to bring glory to God. It is to display good deeds that point people towards our Father in heaven. This means that all of us Christians are called to be \u201clesser lights\u201d that point others to the One true \u201cGreater Light\u201d!<\/strong><\/p>\r\n

This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus<\/strong> \u201cReflective Bible Study\u201d package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here<\/a> and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!<\/em><\/p>

Subscribe<\/a> to this blog and never miss an insight.<\/em><\/p><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In our passage for this post, it opens by sharing two metaphors for how we are to live in the world. These two ideas are so well known within Christianity that they have almost become meaningless clich\u00e9s, but even while they have lost much of their impact, they are still challenging to us when we […]","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-475","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-text"],"nelio_content":{"autoShareEndMode":"never","automationSources":{"useCustomSentences":false,"customSentences":[]},"efiAlt":"","efiUrl":"","followers":[],"highlights":[],"isAutoShareEnabled":false,"networkImageIds":[],"permalinkQueryArgs":[],"series":[],"suggestedReferences":[]},"yoast_head":"\nThe Goal of Salt and Light: Matthew 5:13-37 - Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/the-goal-of-salt-and-light-matthew-5-13-37\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Goal of Salt and Light: Matthew 5:13-37 - Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In our passage for this post, it opens by sharing two metaphors for how we are to live in the world. 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