Anglican Morning Devotion for 15 November 2021 Anno Domini
A ministry of the Anglican Orthodox Communion Worldwide
“Ye are the salt of the earth: But is the salt have lost his savor, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. 14Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick, and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. 16Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” (Gospel of St. Matthew 5:13-16; all scripture quoted is from the King James Version)
SALT:
Salt is a compound composed of two deadly elements: Sodium and Chlorine.
Sodium: yellowish, soft metal never found in its own form in nature. Will be always joined to some other element such carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen, or, even chlorine. If taken into the body, it is deadly poison to the consumer.
Chlorine: a deadly, invisible gas. First agent to be used in chemical warfare in WWI. Its presence cannot be discerned by smell or sight. If breathed into the lungs, it kills instantly.
NaCL: Sodium Chloride – table salt. Either of these elements are deadly taken alone, but combined in a chemical bond, they form a compound that essential to life.
Salarius: Old Roman term for the salt allotment given to soldiers. This is the origin of the word – salary.
Christ did not speak lightly when He compared His people to the Salt of the Earth. He knew of the chemical agents of which He spoke, for he created them all.
We are the Sodium of this chemical bond. God is the Chlorine.
Sodium: If we remain apart from God, we will join ourselves to some other element of the world. We will not be a life-giving source for the world. If we remain apart, we will die of our own nature, because we are poison.
Chlorine, if it remains alone, is likewise deadly to all into which it comes into contact. If we are not joined to God as Sodium is to Chlorine, we shall all die because our eternal lives depend upon our relationship to God.
Salt makes us thirsty. It also attracts water. Salt seasons food and is used to kill germs. It has healing properties. It is valuable. It is not commonly found in general, but must be toiled after, searched out, and mined at great labor. It must be delivered to the place of need.
We should not be common citizens of the world, but naturalized citizens of the Kingdom of God. If we are the salt of the earth, we are valuable to Christ, and must be purchased at a great price. This Christ did for us on the cross.
Salt, if left in a bag contacting the soil, will slowly loose the electron bond it has joined the two elements together and the Sodium will begin to join itself to other chemicals of the soil. That is precisely what happens when the Christian becomes too much associated with worldly concerns: fashion, indecent romance, revealing clothes, too much cosmetics, drugs, alcohol – all these will change our Christian natures into something that is not pleasing to God. Thus, the salt loses its savor and is worthless.
LIGHT: Light cannot be hidden. If it is, it requires unusual effort to hide it. Light has no limit on its distance. Even a candle on earth can be seen from the moon if it is not obscured by surrounding lights of brighter force.
Light travels in a straight line. It is honest and pure. Light possesses no material value. It is a mystery to science. They can describe its behavior, but not its essential nature.
According to Einstein’s Special & General Theory of Relativity, Light is the only constant in the Universe. Its speed is constant and unchanging. It is like God. God is Light! And He is unchanging. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. (Hebrews 13:8)
Darkness has no power in the presence of Light. Satan has no power in the presence of God. One small candle will disperse a roomful of darkness. If our candle is strong, our power over Satan will be strong for our light is not OURS, but the imparted Light of God.
The only impediment to Light is Matter. Like the Moon, if we allow the Earth to come between us and the Sun, our Light will be eclipsed. Worldly considerations block out the heavenly beams of light.
Like the Moon, we have no light of our own. Our Light is a reflected Light from that great generator of Light – the Sun. Do we reflect the Light of the Sun of Righteousness in our Lives?
We need to keep our lamps filled with oil (Holy Spirit) to dispel the darkness when it comes.
