I am so excited to blog on this scripture for today! Matthew 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 underfoot.
14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 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. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
This little section of scripture simply blows me away!
This is at the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount which was spoken in the beginning of Jesus preaching ministry before He had even called by name the 12 disciples. The people listening to Him, beginning to follow Him and be discipled by Him had to have a lot of questions. They were magnetically drawn to Him but couldn't have really understood at this point who He was and what He was about. In this context Jesus speaks these bold visionary words to those people and about those people, "You are the salt of the earth... You are the light of the world..."
They were His plan A for influencing the world with "Jesus-ness" and there was no plan B. If the salt loses its saltiness how can it (the earth) be made salty. Jesus saw in this group of followers and all who would come after them far more than they saw in themselves! Let me say that again - "Jesus saw in these people far more than they saw in themselves!" Jesus saw a movement infiltrating the world with God's reign! We are still experiencing this movement today that started with a rag tag group of followers living out salty light bearing lives.
Our God is one who sees in us far more than we see in ourselves. To put it another way, Jesus trusts His transformational work in our lives more than we do. He trusts what we can become under His lordship more than we do! Jesus envisions far more of a people-impacting life for me than I can imagine!
As we approach Serve the City day here at Point of Grace I want to keep this in mind! As I approach every day I need to let go of my limited thinking and my confining box. I really don't miss the opportunities God has for me! My limited confining "in the box" thinking can find so many excuses, reasons, justifications for not being radically available. I can think I am too tired, too busy, need to veg, not in the mood etc. and totally miss God-oppurtunities right in front of me - like Serve the City day at PoG.
So I desperately need a God who has a vision for me that is so much bigger than my vision for me! I desperately need a God who "sees in me far more than I see in myself"!
I have a big "salt and light" life to live today that is much bigger than me!
WOW!
delton