Salt, Light, and Bread:
Gospel of St. Matthew 5:13-16
“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. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. 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. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. I am that bread of life.6:49 Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man ma yeat thereof, and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.( (Gospel of St. John 6:48-51)
Salt: ACompound 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. It’s 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 new 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, 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 two 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 savour 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. It’s 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.
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.
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.
Jesus is the Manna (Bread) of Heaven. He is our sustenance. We feed on the Word of God. Christ is the Word of God (John 1:1)
Our bodies must have nourishment to live and be strong. The physical bread we eat provides that health.
Our spirit must feed on the Bread of Heaven (Jesus Christ – the Word of God) In the Word is all power and spiritual nourishment to keep our souls safe in a wicked world.None other bread has come down from Heaven for our goodness and profit.
To be on safe and secure ground as Christians, we need three very valuable characteristics:
1) We must be as salt providing the essentials of life to a dying world. We must look like salt, and act like salt.
2) We must be a source of Light in darkness. The world is a wilderness of darkness. Though our candles be few, we can be a haven of light in a dark place.
3) We must be sustained by the Bread of Heaven – Jesus Christ. He is the Word, Alpha and Omega. He is the Bread of our Spiritual lives. Without that daily bread, we shall all perish without hope or future.
Does your life reflect those three spiritual natures that Christ has given us?
In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. AMEN.
