When you are living in community, you never know when you'll be inspired. When you'll meet someone critical to your life. You'll never know when a connection sparks you to move forward. Community is Humanity's body lived in life. We are not meant to live alone in isolation. We are meant to live in community, live in relationship with others, live dependent upon one another while we become the body - the unit, the ecclesia, the gathering, the assembly, the congregation - that God intended us to be.
I have many communities in which I live and operate. One that regularly inspires and refines me is my Wednesday morning prayer group where we discuss what we see God doing in our local community, pray over the community and speak into one another's lives. Frequently, I may be reflecting on something or wrestling or walking through something and my prayer partners will say something that provides the missing puzzle piece or connects a dot for me or provides confirmation to me so that I understand what God is revealing. It's an amazing part of being "in the body".
So what does being in "the body" have to do with living life?
Physical activity is a way to exercise your body; train it to endure, go beyond what you mentally think you're capable of doing and improve your physical performance. When you finish a tough workout or physical activity, sweating out of your system water, fluids and minerals, replenishing your body with fluids to hydrate yourself is essential to recovering quickly from the activity. If the physical activity was very strenuous, the hydration keeps your muscles from cramping, nausea from setting in, prevents headaches, dizziness, heart palpitations, fainting, the inability to sweat and worse. Without replenishing the fluids you lost, dehydration sets in. Dehydration occurs when the body loses more fluids, mainly water, than it takes into the body. While hydration keeps your body from shutting down so it won't rob other body parts in search of water.
One of my friends has a keen insight on the science behind the necessity to hydrate. She grew up under a scientist's influence; her Dad invented Gatorade as he was trying to solve a serious dehydration problem among the 1965 University of Florida Gator football team members. In the process of determining why the football players were suffering from dehydration following workouts, Dr. Robert Cade and his team of scientists created a beverage that changed the beverage industry bringing us Gatorade which launched an entire industry on beverages that help with human performance.
(Here is the story behind Gatorade captured by ESPN's 30-for-30 Shorts called "The Sweat Solution".)
The best part about the story of Gatorade is that Dr. Cade was a believer and follower of Jesus Christ who lived a generous life led by compassion for others and awe for God. He was a "Love-God-Love Others" kind of man, from what I gleam from stories about him.
One Wednesday while talking with Phoebe about our faith lives, as she was mentioning the role-model her parents played in her life, I asked her, "Why Gatorade? Aside from your Dad being a strong Christian, why did God bless Gatorade which transformed an industry?" Her answer was so profound, so filled with Godly wisdom, so discerning and insightful that I heard God speaking through Phoebe. Since she uttered her explanation over two years ago, I have continued to nudge her to write the explanation down and share it through her speaking engagements because it's powerful. In a sense, she said Gatorade is the Gospel in a bottle.
Phoebe related that her Dad learned the body needs salt to hold water. Her Dad discovered that a simple drink of water, sugar and salt could hydrate a body more effectively than drinking only water. In simple terms, the scientific solution is the sugar in the drink carries the water into the body and the salt in the drink allows the body to hold onto the water to hydrate itself. In short, without salt in the body, the body cannot hold water. Along with water, one of the vital minerals lost during sweating is salt. It was critical that in the process of hydrating after strenuous activity, the body needed salt along with the water so the body could actually hold the water to re-hydrate. When the body cannot hold water, the body becomes dehydrated becoming inefficient, cannot perform to its potential and eventually can lead to serious health issues. With this explanation, Phoebe said, "...science always catches up with the truths in Scripture."
Suddenly Jesus saying, "You are the salt of the earth," had real meaning! It was a "Bam!" moment.
"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." Matthew 5:13
It's been explained that salt in this verse of Scripture is meant to be a flavor in life and/or a preservative. Some taught that salt is an antiseptic. Certainly Jesus meant something more than flavor, preservative and antiseptic. True; salt is a flavor additive and can help enhance the taste of foods. True; Christians over history have enhanced or improved the lives of humans considerably, motivated by what God had done for them to now do for others. True; salt is a preservative and an antiseptic which can help fight bacteria thereby slowing the disease and decaying process of food especially during the pre-food-processing and pre-refrigeration times of life. True; salt is an antiseptic used to fight infections in humans before medications were discovered. And, true; as believers, our presence in the world keeps the world from going into complete anarchy and debauchery. Because, God's presence in us keeps us from becoming completely self-absorbed and depraved. When we have God in us, then we should be reflective allowing us to act out of gratitude to assist others in the world. That point of "God in us" is really the crux of being followers of Christ.
Although I agree in part with these salt interpretations, believing Jesus called us merely a flavor, antiseptic or preservative never sufficiently interpreted the Scripture. This was one of those passages that nagged at me to better understand. There seemed to be considerably more in what Jesus was saying than what our 21st Century context was discerning. Owning salt during the times of Christ was akin to possessing currency or something of wealth. The word salary comes from the word salt when soldiers were paid a salary allowing them to purchase critical items such as salt which was expensive yet a needed commodity for survival. Food, water and shelter were critical to life and the ability to afford such were the difference between life or death. In desert regions, water rises in importance over food and shelter. Perhaps it was a known practice to ingest some salt to help hold the water in your body so as not to sweat out the water before you can replenish it at another water source?
I remember when my family moved from Massachusetts to Maryland where the summers could get considerably hotter than anything we ever experienced in the Boston area. In the 1970's, it was still commonplace to hear of people using salt tablets to help them fight the effects of heat. Perhaps this was the practice in Biblical times and why salt was so valuable and why Jesus said we are the "salt of the earth"? (This will require more research.)
When Jesus uttered these words "You are the salt of the earth," it was at the beginning of His teaching we call "The Beatitudes". I love His teachings in the Beatitudes because Jesus begins to really describe God's character, His truths, the difference between God's truths and man's interpretations. Jesus corrects the misperception that bad things happen to someone because that person sinned against God and God is enacting a punishment; that if good things happen to you and/or you were wealthy, then you must be a good person in good standing with God. In His teachings we call The Beatitude, Jesus says "not so" and literally turns the relationship of God and man upside down making the relationship between God and man a heart and body issue. (Love God because God loves you and treat/love others as God treats/loves you.)
With His statement "you are the salt of the earth", Jesus begins to describe the role we all have within the body of believers and what role the body has within the world. The relationship with God and man is intimate, personal and individual yet, it is also corporate and communal.
For us who follow Christ, we are the body parts and we form the gathering, the congregation, as God calls us individually and corporately to Him. This gathering was named "the church" which was not meant to describe a building for worship. The church is to be a body of God's believers throughout the world who follow Jesus Christ as the leader of that body. And within the body of believers, we each have our role and purpose based on the abilities God bestowed on us, coupled with our life experiences.
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Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgement, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If it is serving, let him serve. If it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing, let him give generously; if it is leading, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully. Romans 12:3-8
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The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body - whether Jew or Greek, slave or free - and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. If the foot should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as He wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!" On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is favored, every part rejoices with it.
Now you are the body of Christ, and each of you is a part of it. And in the church God has appointed first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having the gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with the gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all have the gift of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? But eagerly desire the greater gifts. 1 Corinthians 12:12-30
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It was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Ephesians 4:11-12
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When we think of the Holy Spirit, we may think Him as being simply the breath of God or perhaps the conscience of God. He is also the "living water" of God which gives life to the body allowing us to individually and communally live and, quenches the thirst for God to be in our lives. The Holy Spirit is the ever continuing connection to the source of life - to God because the Spirit is God. Without being connected to the ever flowing source of life then simple faith in something cannot withstand the struggles of earthly life. It's like a body being exercised strenuously without being rehydrated.
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The whole Israelite community set out from the Desert of Sin, traveling from place to place as the Lord commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. So they quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.”
Moses replied, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you put the Lord to the test?”
But
the people were thirsty for water there, and they grumbled against
Moses. They said, “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and
our children and livestock die of thirst?”
Then Moses cried out to the Lord, “What am I to do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me.”
The Lord answered Moses, “Go out in front of the people. Take with you some of the elders of Israel and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink.” So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel. And he called the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites quarreled and because they tested the Lord saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?” Exodus 17:1-7
Then Moses cried out to the Lord, “What am I to do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me.”
The Lord answered Moses, “Go out in front of the people. Take with you some of the elders of Israel and take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink.” So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel. And he called the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites quarreled and because they tested the Lord saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?” Exodus 17:1-7
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Moses and Aaron went from the assembly to the entrance to the tent of meeting and fell facedown, and the glory of the Lord appeared to them. The Lord said to Moses, “Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can drink.”
So Moses took the staff from the Lord’s presence, just as he commanded him. He and Aaron gathered the assembly together in front of the rock and Moses said to them, “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank.
But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them.”
These were the waters of Meribah, where the Israelites quarreled with the Lord and where he was proved holy among them. Numbers 20:2-13
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Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters. Isaiah 55:1
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Now He had to go through Samaria. So He came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as He was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon.
When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)
The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)
Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked Him and He would have given you living water.”
“Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?”
Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.” John 4:4-15
When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)
The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)
Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked Him and He would have given you living water.”
“Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?”
Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.” John 4:4-15
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On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." By this He means the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified. John 7:37-39
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Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; He will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Revelation 7:16-17
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He said to me: "It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life. He who overcomes will inherit all of this, and I will be his God and he will be my son. Revelations 21:6-7
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Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and His servants will serve Him. They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever. Revelation 22:1-5
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The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life. Revelation 22:17
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We "the church" members are to take what God is teaching us and go live outside in the real world; the dry, dark world that thirsts for something magnificent while feeling its way around in the darkness. We are simply to live lives that are lived through the lens of "Love God; Love others over yourself". When someone is in need, help him. When someone falls down, pick her up. If someone is hurting, love on him. If someone is celebrating, celebrate with her. If someone is trying you, show patience. If someone is persecuting you, show mercy. If someone hurts you, forgive him of the offense. Live life in community, generously and freely giving what God gave you; gave me.
We are to be both salt and light. God gave us the ability to carry Him, however we can wrap our minds around that truth, and we are to carry Him wherever we go. Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. Because we are now made alive through God imparting His Spirit into us, we are now living through God's ability and for His purpose which is to love others so they too will want to become part of His gathering, His body, His family.
So, be salty. Be a big, bright light. Engage your community, both the community of believers and the community of non-believers. Be the hands and feet of God. Don't worry if you're doing the right thing or not according to conventional church traditions. Ask God, "Lord; you have placed this action on my heart/this person on my heart. Guide me as I go out. If I am doing something against Your will, correct me. Help me to see what You want me to see. Hear what You want me to hear. Align my thoughts and intentions with Your thoughts and intentions. Let my words and my actions reflect You; let me glorify You. You are with me as I go. You are my ability and my strength; thank You." Then just live outside and live this amazing life filled with God. He will do the rest.
Matthew West "Do Something"
Lecrae "Send Me"
While walking into an event on August 11, 2016 I saw the following sticker on a car. God always confirms what He's teaching me through several ways.
Just as water hydrates the body and without water, the body dies, the Spirit gives life to the soul; without the Spirit the soul dies for a lack of connection to the source of life. When we read the life of God or the Spirit of God as being a spring of living water or a stream of water, it is to represent a never-ending source of life. When we drink earthly water, our body is quenched yet, it naturally will thirst again. However, when we connect with God and drink in His life, it's as if we are connecting to a never-ending source of water to quench our souls' desire to be alive and live.
We read that we are created in the image of God where God is Spirit/soul, mind/character and body/human. We too are created as body, mind and soul. However, with the sinful nature of our natural selves, our souls are dead - stillborn - until we are given life through our connection to God through belief in Jesus Christ and what He did for us.
In a sense, we thirst to be able to live in the right standard of creation which is free from faults, failures, defects - sin which is the inability to live up to the standard of God. We thirst to be accepted by God however, only God can grant that acceptance yet, we only need to ask Him to accept us into life with Him and He graciously and lovingly does. God gives us the cup of cool water to drink - the cup of forgiveness and reconciliation; the cup of salvation - which gives life to our soul rehydrating it. He then imparts a portion of Himself into us - His Spirit - thereby connecting us permanently to the never-ending source of life - Him. Now, we live eternally and out of that realization of what God has done for us, we should be living in a way that does the same for others placed into our lives. Living lives that nourish the world; lives of compassion, reconciliation, forgiveness, hospitality, mercy, justice, gratitude, all guided by an unconditional love.
Brigham Young University Singers "I heard the Voice of Jesus"
"I heard the voice of Jesus say, "Behold, I freely give the living water; thirsty one, stoop down and drink, and live."
Brigham Young University Singers "I heard the Voice of Jesus"
"I heard the voice of Jesus say, "Behold, I freely give the living water; thirsty one, stoop down and drink, and live."
So many times, we view the commands of God - the Laws of God - as commands we must "do" in order to "get to God"; in order to become Holy and acceptable to God. What Jesus taught us is that the Law of God should reveal the character of God - the mind and heart of God - and reveal our true selves without being connected to God. We should look reflectively at the Law and say, "I can't do that; help me do that, God." God will say, "I can do that. Here is my ability. I love you. Walk with Me doing for others what I have done for you." Instead, we try to live our lives without God which is a misperception of what life is. A life with only body and mind and without a living soul.
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My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken Me, the spring of living water, and they have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water. Jeremiah 2:13
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Without God living in us, without being connected to the source of ever-living life, we die for a lack of connection to life; to God. We dry up and return to dust, so to speak. We started life as dust and when we disconnect ourselves permanently from the source of life by disowning God, we will return to dust having written our names into the dust. God, based on our choice, sadly then blots our names from the Book of Life.
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O Lord, the hope of Israel, all who forsake you will be put to shame. Those who turn away from you will be written in the dust because they have forsaken the Lord, the spring of living water. Jeremiah 17:13
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Jesus answered her, “If
you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you
would have asked Him and He would have given you living water.” John 4:10
"If you knew the Gift of God which is the abundant, perfect and forever life and, the One who asks you for a common drink of earthly water, the very One who can connect you to the source of this Gift, you would have asked Me instead for what I can give you rather than what you can give Me and, I would have gladly, willingly and freely given you this forever life. Connecting you to the Source of life that never runs out or dry." Rose's paraphrase
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God has granted us some great gifts without condition upon acceptance. He grants us the Gift of Life, connecting us to Him the source of ever-living life where upon acknowledgement of the need for Jesus Christ and acceptance of His actions for us, God imparts His Holy Spirit into us thereby resurrecting our dead spirits. He equips us for a worthy purpose here on earth where, all of the experiences we have in life - good and bad - become useful as we relate to others in this world showing mercy, compassion, forgiveness and hospitality. Individually we enjoy our relationship with God and share that relationship with individual people throughout life. He also calls us into His community, His family of believers, where we enjoy a communal relationship with Him and the other members of the body while together we operate corporately within the world bringing God into the world. This is the saying, "we are the hands and feet of God". In this communal role, we are a body-part assignment based on our giftings and we also have our role as salt where we hold the Holy Spirit - the water of God - within the body of believers carrying and imparting that living water into the dry, thirsty world. Our goal? In the process of living life with God and together as a community, people will see the effects of God and want to be a part of Him and us. We are the salt of the earth.
And yet, Jesus also stated that salt can lose its saltiness which renders it useless. So what does that mean?
While in the midst of reflecting on what God is teaching me, once again He used Phoebe to speak to me. As I was relating to Phoebe what I was learning about being the "salt of the earth" she said that we must continue to be refined to remain salty. In other words, when we "lose our saltiness", it's not that over time that the potency of our saltiness decreases. Instead, our saltiness decreases when more impurities from the world become mixed into our salt. The more impurities we add to our lives, the more things not of God we allow into our lives as acceptable, the proportion of impurities to salt changes. Over time, if we continue to add impurities, then the proportion of world-to-salt increases or, in other words, the proportion of salt-to-world decreases and we lose our saltiness. We become more worldly and less salty thereby losing our saltiness.
Spending time with God both individually and within the church is an integral part of the refinement process where we continue to reflect on God and ourselves placing the things not of God into the right perspective, priority and relationship within our lives. We should be picking out the impurities from our lives, whatever those impurities are, as God reveals those to us during our reflection time; our refinement process. Typically the impurities are how we view God, ourselves and the world. It's not necessarily what we do but the lens by which we make decisions to act. We are to live "in the world" and not become "part of the world". We are to continue to be refined by God. Our lives with God and with others through the divine assistant of God should continue to mature; continue on being sanctified by God as He moves us from a state of "glory, to glory, to glory", as it's said. Our salt must continue to remain potent while our lives hold the Gift of Life in it as we operate in the environments of this world who lack God's presence and/or are lacking a maturing relationship with God. We are to live the "salt life".
As God would have it, He gave me a visual to reinforce this lesson. As I was refilling my salt grinder, I noticed that my salt had impurities in it. When I can reach those impurities, I will pick them out of my salt because should they end up on my food, they will not enhance the flavor at all. The impurities are of no good but to be thrown out.
"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." Matthew 5:13
Immediately after this portion of Scripture, Jesus also calls us the "light of the world". Once again, what Jesus says seems obvious yet, there seemed to be more in what He conveyed to His audience some 2,000 years ago. What are we missing? What is Jesus saying to all of us? How does this relate to being salt? Is this an individual or a corporate description?
"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." Matthew 5:14-16
Once again, a friend within my community opened the door for me to better understand what Jesus was saying here. While visiting one of my prayer partner's (Jacob's) church and listening to him give his congregation a message, he read Matthew 5:14-16 and substituted 'you' with 'Gainesville church.' That substitution was enough to bring clarity to the Scripture. "Gainesville church; you are the light of the world..."
In western cultures, we think that the "church" is a building where a particular denomination meets on a given day, typically Sunday, to "worship God." Those of us who belong to these churches, think people not involved with a denomination should come to our building and join us inside the four walls to pay homage to God with set prayers, music, preacher messages and, with giving money to support this operation. However, this scenario is not the church and this liturgy is not worship.
Over the last ten years, my family and I have been moving towards denominations that operate outside of the four walls where members of a congregation practice living as God says we should. "Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and; love others as yourself. And; be in the world not of the world." Seeking God and His rule in life first then benefiting others over self out of gratitude for what God did for you, even if the others don't deserve benefiting, while living outside of the conventional "four walls" of the church. This is worship; this is how we are to live.
Yet, in our conventional church culture now, we think all the God stuff happens within the church building and once we leave that building, we go back to living as the world dictates. Then we bring all of our incorrect thoughts about God, all of our impurities from "the world" back into the church where the body isn't working together to refine one another so our "churches" and ourselves lose our salt potency. We display no impact from God in our lives and then we wonder why the world isn't showing improvements. We do not salt the world. We do not light the dark world.
What Jesus is saying about being the light of the world is this:
You, all of you that I have called and am calling into this congregation of My followers, this body of believers, you are to operate individually and corporately out in the world; out in the place where people do not know Me and do not believe in Me. You carry My Spirit within you and your role is to provide people the water it needs when people thirst for God; and light up the dark areas so people can see God and believe in Me. I did not give you a light so that you go inside a building with other lights, close the doors then only light the building for one hour a week. No! I gave you that light so that you would go outside into the darkness, be able to see your way and in that process, light the way for others to see. Don't hide your light inside this building you call the church. People don't place lights under a bed to light their bedrooms. Lights are placed on a table to light up a room. So, take your light and go light your world! (Rose's interpretation.)
Chris Rice "Carry Your Candle"
And yet, Jesus also stated that salt can lose its saltiness which renders it useless. So what does that mean?
While in the midst of reflecting on what God is teaching me, once again He used Phoebe to speak to me. As I was relating to Phoebe what I was learning about being the "salt of the earth" she said that we must continue to be refined to remain salty. In other words, when we "lose our saltiness", it's not that over time that the potency of our saltiness decreases. Instead, our saltiness decreases when more impurities from the world become mixed into our salt. The more impurities we add to our lives, the more things not of God we allow into our lives as acceptable, the proportion of impurities to salt changes. Over time, if we continue to add impurities, then the proportion of world-to-salt increases or, in other words, the proportion of salt-to-world decreases and we lose our saltiness. We become more worldly and less salty thereby losing our saltiness.
Spending time with God both individually and within the church is an integral part of the refinement process where we continue to reflect on God and ourselves placing the things not of God into the right perspective, priority and relationship within our lives. We should be picking out the impurities from our lives, whatever those impurities are, as God reveals those to us during our reflection time; our refinement process. Typically the impurities are how we view God, ourselves and the world. It's not necessarily what we do but the lens by which we make decisions to act. We are to live "in the world" and not become "part of the world". We are to continue to be refined by God. Our lives with God and with others through the divine assistant of God should continue to mature; continue on being sanctified by God as He moves us from a state of "glory, to glory, to glory", as it's said. Our salt must continue to remain potent while our lives hold the Gift of Life in it as we operate in the environments of this world who lack God's presence and/or are lacking a maturing relationship with God. We are to live the "salt life".
As God would have it, He gave me a visual to reinforce this lesson. As I was refilling my salt grinder, I noticed that my salt had impurities in it. When I can reach those impurities, I will pick them out of my salt because should they end up on my food, they will not enhance the flavor at all. The impurities are of no good but to be thrown out.
"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." Matthew 5:13
Immediately after this portion of Scripture, Jesus also calls us the "light of the world". Once again, what Jesus says seems obvious yet, there seemed to be more in what He conveyed to His audience some 2,000 years ago. What are we missing? What is Jesus saying to all of us? How does this relate to being salt? Is this an individual or a corporate description?
"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." Matthew 5:14-16
Once again, a friend within my community opened the door for me to better understand what Jesus was saying here. While visiting one of my prayer partner's (Jacob's) church and listening to him give his congregation a message, he read Matthew 5:14-16 and substituted 'you' with 'Gainesville church.' That substitution was enough to bring clarity to the Scripture. "Gainesville church; you are the light of the world..."
In western cultures, we think that the "church" is a building where a particular denomination meets on a given day, typically Sunday, to "worship God." Those of us who belong to these churches, think people not involved with a denomination should come to our building and join us inside the four walls to pay homage to God with set prayers, music, preacher messages and, with giving money to support this operation. However, this scenario is not the church and this liturgy is not worship.
Over the last ten years, my family and I have been moving towards denominations that operate outside of the four walls where members of a congregation practice living as God says we should. "Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and; love others as yourself. And; be in the world not of the world." Seeking God and His rule in life first then benefiting others over self out of gratitude for what God did for you, even if the others don't deserve benefiting, while living outside of the conventional "four walls" of the church. This is worship; this is how we are to live.
Yet, in our conventional church culture now, we think all the God stuff happens within the church building and once we leave that building, we go back to living as the world dictates. Then we bring all of our incorrect thoughts about God, all of our impurities from "the world" back into the church where the body isn't working together to refine one another so our "churches" and ourselves lose our salt potency. We display no impact from God in our lives and then we wonder why the world isn't showing improvements. We do not salt the world. We do not light the dark world.
What Jesus is saying about being the light of the world is this:
You, all of you that I have called and am calling into this congregation of My followers, this body of believers, you are to operate individually and corporately out in the world; out in the place where people do not know Me and do not believe in Me. You carry My Spirit within you and your role is to provide people the water it needs when people thirst for God; and light up the dark areas so people can see God and believe in Me. I did not give you a light so that you go inside a building with other lights, close the doors then only light the building for one hour a week. No! I gave you that light so that you would go outside into the darkness, be able to see your way and in that process, light the way for others to see. Don't hide your light inside this building you call the church. People don't place lights under a bed to light their bedrooms. Lights are placed on a table to light up a room. So, take your light and go light your world! (Rose's interpretation.)
Chris Rice "Carry Your Candle"
We "the church" members are to take what God is teaching us and go live outside in the real world; the dry, dark world that thirsts for something magnificent while feeling its way around in the darkness. We are simply to live lives that are lived through the lens of "Love God; Love others over yourself". When someone is in need, help him. When someone falls down, pick her up. If someone is hurting, love on him. If someone is celebrating, celebrate with her. If someone is trying you, show patience. If someone is persecuting you, show mercy. If someone hurts you, forgive him of the offense. Live life in community, generously and freely giving what God gave you; gave me.
We are to be both salt and light. God gave us the ability to carry Him, however we can wrap our minds around that truth, and we are to carry Him wherever we go. Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. Because we are now made alive through God imparting His Spirit into us, we are now living through God's ability and for His purpose which is to love others so they too will want to become part of His gathering, His body, His family.
So, be salty. Be a big, bright light. Engage your community, both the community of believers and the community of non-believers. Be the hands and feet of God. Don't worry if you're doing the right thing or not according to conventional church traditions. Ask God, "Lord; you have placed this action on my heart/this person on my heart. Guide me as I go out. If I am doing something against Your will, correct me. Help me to see what You want me to see. Hear what You want me to hear. Align my thoughts and intentions with Your thoughts and intentions. Let my words and my actions reflect You; let me glorify You. You are with me as I go. You are my ability and my strength; thank You." Then just live outside and live this amazing life filled with God. He will do the rest.
Matthew West "Do Something"
Lecrae "Send Me"
While walking into an event on August 11, 2016 I saw the following sticker on a car. God always confirms what He's teaching me through several ways.
