Christian Salt Shakers

February 9, 2014


Matthew 5:13-20
Mt. 5:13 “You 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 by men.
Mt. 5:14 “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Mt. 5:15 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. Mt. 5:16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
Mt. 5:17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them. Mt. 5:18 I tell you the truth, 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. Mt. 5:19 Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practises and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. Mt. 5:20 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.

The Sermon on the Mount is loved by Christians. It describes the life of faith. Because we believe in Jesus as our Savior, our life is different than unbelievers. Our life is like that of Christ. Mount Sinai in the Old Testament and the Sermon on the Mount in the New Testament are different. On Mount Sinai God revealed the Law to Moses. The Sermon on the Mount is not a new Law. On Mount Calvary God revealed his love in the death of Jesus on the cross. Because Jesus died and rose again we are freed from the Law of Moses. That does not mean we have a new Law of Christ. The Gospel is not Law. If the words in the Sermon on the Mount sound like commands it is just because Jesus is telling us to believe in the Gospel and to let the power of the Gospel shape our life.

Jesus said, Mt. 5:13 “You 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 by men.”

He did not say “You must become the salt of the earth.” He said “You ARE the salt of the earth. Right now, already you are the salt of the earth.” We already have the blessings of the Gospel to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world. The life of a Christian that is depicted in the Sermon of the Mount is because we have Jesus as our Savior, and so we are like salt and light for this earth. And that means that the earth, this world, becomes better because we give it seasoning and taste and light and joy.

As a Christian, we are like a salt shaker. As a believer in Christ, we are filled with the Holy Spirit. We are filled with God’s love. This salt/Holy Spirit/love is for the earth. It is not just for our personal use only. Salt that is in a salt shaker is pretty, but it gives saltiness to nothing. It has to come out of the shaker to effective. In other words, if the love of Jesus is in our heart, that is great, but when that love comes out and sprinkles other people, it makes the world a better place.

There are many kinds of salt shakers. Some people collect salt shakers whenever they travel. It is their hobby. My mother had a collection of spoons, but she never used them to eat with, the spoons just hung on the wall in a collection. Salt shakers that sit on the shelf are pretty, but they do nothing to help season our food. Some people are like that. Some Christians are like that. They have salt in them, but they just sit on the shelf. They do nothing for the Kingdom of God.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells us to start shaking! Sprinkle those around you with the Gospel, with love, with the Holy Spirit! This is done both in words and in deeds.

1. We might do that with words when we tell people about Christ. When we tell children about Christ and bring them up knowing about God, this is like salt that will season their whole life. It will shape their behavior and morals and ethics. We comfort sorrowing people with words of hope in the resurrection and the presence of Christ for our lives. Words of forgiveness can melt away fear and pain. Words that tell how Jesus died on the cross to forgive our sins can take away the fear of death and the fear of hell. But be careful. If you put too much salt on your food it is hard to eat. Sometimes if we put too much salt in our words people will not appreciate our opinions. When words of love are heard as words of condemnation, even if it is the Gospel truth, some people get afraid. So use your wisdom and follow the recipe which Martin Luther gives in the meaning of the Ten Commandments. “We should fear and love God so that we do not hurt or harm our neighbor…..etc.”

2. We sprinkle the gospel with our actions. We do not have to speak a word sometimes, especially if people already know we are Christians. Jesus said, Mt. 5:14-16, “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.” In other words, Jesus says that we should live as a Christian. Just be yourself. Some people use that expression to justify their selfish behavior. “I got to be me.” But for a Christian, that should mean that when I am me I am Christ. So don’t be a pretender. Do not be self-centered. Be yourself, be Christ.

Amen.

Michael Nearhood, Pastor
Okinawa Lutheran Church


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P.S.

There is a Beatles song, “Shake it up, Baby, now, twist and shout.” That should be the excitement of the Christian life.

Finally, just to confuse things a bit, there is a Christian sect called “Shakers.” They broke away from the Quakers in 1747 in England and came to America. They have a charismatic style of worship from which they get their name. They are a sect, they forbid marriage as they wait for the second coming of Christ, so their members have dwindled to only three in 2012 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shakers).