Salt and Light (Matthew 5:13-16)

The first question to work out concerns who Jesus is speaking to here. We find an answer to that question by noting the use of the plural personal pronoun. He is speaking to the same people as he addressed in verses 11 and 12. In those verses, he speaks to his disciples as those who will be opposed and persecuted and maligned. We would deduce from that description that they would not have much influence. Therefore, we can say that those who are salt and light don’t need to have much influence in order to be salt and light.

Another detail we can observe is that some of the disciples have only been his followers for a very short time. Those who have been his disciples the longest have only been so for just over a year. Yet Jesus says to them that they are the salt and the light. He does not say to them that they should become salt and light. Instead they already are.

Moreover, his disciples probably had never left the land of Israel when this description was made of them. Yet Jesus does not say that they are the salt of Canaan or the light of Israel. Instead they are the salt of the earth and the light of the world despite never having left the country to which they belonged.

The above details would suggest that being salt and light has nothing to do with a place of influence in society or how long they had been disciples or where they lived. To those items we can add that it has nothing to do with their numbers either because when Jesus said this the number of disciples was not large.

Of course, the number of disciples would grow and eventually appear in thousands of places throughout the world. Today there are millions of Christians and many of them are persecuted. Which are the salt and the light? Those who are opposed or those who are not so opposed (because every Christian should be opposed to some extent)? The correct answer is that both groups are because being salt and light does not depend on their circumstances.

Today, in our society, Christians are being sidelined. Does this mean that they are no longer salt and light? No, because there being salt and light does not depend on their involvement in the power structures of the world. Even if no one listens to them, they are still the salt and the light where they are.

Who can be salt and light?

Jesus reminds his disciples that when they have the characteristics listed in the Beatitudes they will be salt and light. This means that when they are humble, penitent, passionate for righteousness, compassionate, holy, and peaceable, they will be the salt of the earth and the light of the world even if they are persecuted by it.

In passing, we can observe the preaching methods of the master preacher. He used two everyday commodities as illustrations. Perhaps he had thought of those details before or maybe this was the first time that he had used them. But we can see that they are simple to understand and likely to remain lodged in the minds of the people who heard them, which is the point of using an illustration.

The two illustrations inform us of the nature of the world as well as of the spiritual state of his disciples. The use of salt illustrates that the world is rotten and the mention of light illustrates that the world is in darkness. The cause of these effects is sin, and since sin is always present, there will always be the need for salt and light.

The illustrations also say that God’s people and the world are radically different communities. Christians are not rotten nor are they in the dark. This is a reminder of the profound changes that Christianity makes in sinful people. The difference between a Christian and a non-Christian is the difference between light and darkness.

Yet Jesus is also pointing out that his people are not to live in isolation from the world. Isolationism is always an attractive option for Christians because it separates them from the evils of society. It is very easy for us today to exist in isolation. Indeed, pressure is put on us to do so, and we are often told that we can have our religion in private and to tolerate alternative groups. But if we are isolated to our own group, we might as well be in a monastery.

The illustrations also indicate what Christians will be like if they are not like salt and light. The way for salt to become useless was to mix it with other elements such as sand. If that happens, says Jesus, it was only useful for making a path and not for preserving food. A Christian who is not salt has no effect on society. Similarly, light can be wasted if not used properly. If a candle is placed inside a basket, it does not give light. It may burn for a while, but not for any good reason.

Jesus taught that there could be two consequences for his followers. The first is, become a different person and you will represent him in the world; the second is, don’t change and you will not only be useless as salt and light, you will be despised by the world.

Christians as salt (Matt. 5:13)

Salt had a variety of usages in the ancient world and we can get an overall picture by considering them. First, salt was used in confirmation of a covenant. Note this question in 2 Chronicles 13:5: ‘Ought you not to know that the Lord God of Israel gave the kingship over Israel forever to David and his sons by a covenant of salt?’ The salt symbolised the contents of the covenant. In David’s case, it was a picture of the permanence (salt preserves) of the prominence (the role) that God had given to David and his descendants – they were to be the rulers of God’s people. A third feature of the covenant relationship was that of peace between the parties. 

We can see how this meaning of salt can apply to the followers of Jesus. Believers are the evidence of God’s covenant to save sinners; they are a permanent reminder to others that God has that plan; and they will be that reminder as they live together in a community marked by peace (this third point is illustrated in Jesus’ teaching to his disciples in Mark 9:49-50, that his disciples should ‘Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another’).

Second, salt was used in the ancient world to make the ground of enemies incapable of growth. For example, in Judges 9:45, the writer comments: ‘Abimelech fought against the city [Shechem] all that day. He captured the city and killed the people who were in it, and he razed the city and sowed it with salt.’ The reason he did this was to ensure that they could not use the land again for crops. In applying this to Christians it would suggest that they are to prevent wickedness appearing. The presence of a group of Christians in a community should cause some sins to disappear.

Third, salt was used as a preservative in preventing food from going putrid. Christians are God’s preservative for preventing a society descending into nothing but sinful practices. Obviously, the higher percentage of Christians the greater their influence for good because they will cause good things to become normal activities.

Fourth, it was and is well-known that salt seasons food, that it enhances the enjoyment of a meal. Paul writes in Colossians 4:6: ‘Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.’ It is not only our actions that need to be flavoured, so do our words as we witness to other people.

I read a story about D. L. Moody who went into a barber shop in which a prominent American politician was having a haircut. Neither the politician nor the others in the room recognised Moody. The politician commented afterwards that the way Moody spoke and the subjects he spoke about and the interest he showed in the person cutting his hair transformed the atmosphere in the barber’s shop. Some sins were not committed that day in the barber’s shop because Moody got his haircut.

It is essential in a sinful society that Christians function as salt. This is why Jesus has placed them in their time and place. We have already mentioned what salt indicates they should be. How can we continue as salt in our society? Many features could be suggested but I would mention three. The first feature that is essential for Christian witness is clarity. People need to know what we believe. Second, there must be consistency, that we live up to biblical ideals daily. Third, there must also be compassion, for we want the world to taste the mercy of God.

Christians as light (5:14-16)

Later, Jesus would say that he is the Light of the world, so there is an obvious allusion to Christlikeness when he says that his disciples too are the light of the world. In order to function as lights, believers need to become like Jesus increasingly. We know how this comes about – by spending time with him in his Word and by speaking to him in prayer.

Imagine a world without light, where there were no candles or electricity or other forms of light. It would be a desolating experience to live in such a place. I grew up in a town and never really experienced darkness. Then when we moved to Scalpay, we found ourselves living in a manse on a road without street lights. Of course, we had the benefit that we could see the stars. But it was strange to be in complete darkness. That is what the world would be like spiritually without Christians.

When we think of light, what elements come to mind? Here are three. Light gives warmth, light gives vision, and light gives life. So Jesus gives great encouragement to his followers because he assures them that if they live according to the Beatitudes, others will see their lifestyle and begin to praise God.

When a Christian displays the graces listed in the Beatitudes he becomes a source of warmth to those who experience the chill of the world’s self-centredness and indifference. This point is stressed in Isaiah 58:7-8 concerning sharing with others: ‘Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?  Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.’

Similarly, when Christians exhibit these graces, they give vision to others. This can occur in different ways. For example, when a Christian lives like this, others get a visible presentation of godliness or Christlikeness. Along with this, they find spotlighted the deficiencies in their own sinful lifestyles, as Paul teaches in Ephesians 5:13-14: ‘But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”’

Another way in which sight is given is that others see that our interests are primarily with the kingdom of God, that all we aim to do is serve Jesus Christ. Living according to the Beatitudes tells others that our goal is to please Jesus Christ.

Christians functioning as light also show to others the way back to God. By living in dependence of the Lord, they show to others that this is the way to live. By holiness of life and personal testimony to the Lord’s grace they show sinners how to be saved.

Some applications

Jesus in using the illustrations of salt and light reveals that his followers will influence society. He reminds them of their responsibility not to spoil or hide their influence. Yet they are the instruments that he will use to bring change.

Salt is small in size, but its influence far exceeds its size. A Christian may say to himself that he is unlikely to have much influence. When he thinks like that, he should recall that Jesus enables him to function as salt. And he does this by having the character listed in the Beatitudes.

Light is effortless in its influence. While a lot of work goes on to produce the light, say in a house having electricity, once the work has been done the light shines. The background work has been done in the life of a Christian once he comes to know Jesus. He has become a new creature and the Holy Spirit is sanctifying him, enabling him to become a person marked by the Beatitudes. Jesus commands his disciples to ‘let their light shine’ – ‘let’ is not usually a problem activity.

When Christians are salt and light, there will be a certain outcome, one that is very challenging. The Saviour affirms that when others see it, they will ‘give glory to your Father who is in heaven.’ A life expressing the Beatitudes has an effect. When I reflected earlier this afternoon on the Christians who had an effect on me before I was converted, I realised that they were marked by the features listed in the Beatitudes.