Matthew 5: 13-16- God’s light and our life: Willing to share our Faith ebc 3 29 09
Video of street lady helping a homeless person on ABC’s What Would You Do? 
A simple light for a person in darkness.  Powerful. 

Jesus uses two common images to help us think about our life and influence in this world. 
Meaning?  Jesus: w/out God we live in a dark work of corruption and moral decay.  He calls us to be salt & light. 

* SALT:  cheap today but very valuable in Jesus’ day. 
-Many relate image to seasoning: as Christians we’re called to add life, flavor, fun to our worlds which is often opposite of how Christians are seen.

-Purity:  salt connected to purity because of its glistening white color, like a white wedding dress.  Romans said salt was pure because it came from the sun and sea.  Christians are called to a higher standard of purity and integrity in our thoughts, words and deeds.  This was part of Jesus’ thinking because he says that salt can lose its saltiness/ purity and become good for nothing.  If you take a salt shaker and put just a little bit of sand or water in it, how well will it function?   To be effective, we must seek purity/ integrity.  Interesting: the Beattitudes precede this image:  integrity before influence.  Jesus has just said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.”  Impurity & sin blinds: Jn. 3

James 1:27:  “Religion that our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after widows and orphans in their distress (hurting/ homesless) and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

-Preserves: salt was primarily used as a preservative both in Jesus’ world & ours. Used to delay decay.
Health conscious people have to watch their salt intake because so many processed food use salt to give the food a longer shelf life.  Christians are called to seek to preserve those things that are good and right and true in a culture where corruption and deceit, greed and moral decay are all too common: 
Paul in Philiippians 4: “Whatever is: true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, praiseworthy.” Think on these

* LIGHT:   Jesus says, “I am the Light of the world.”  Then he says, “You are the light of the world.”  We shine not because we’re great but because God is great and we reflect God’s light/ glory.  Moon to sun

-Lights must be lit: basic, simple but true. This candle remains dark/ useless unless it allows this match to light it.  Imagine the candle moving around, avoiding the light, making excuses, I’m fine like I am.  Do you remember when God lit a fire in your soul?  When the lights came on/ you believed/ received?
Jesus: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness/ God, for they will be filled.”  You?
Have you had a transforming Transfiguration moment?(Mk 9) Peter, James & John saw Jesus shine like sun on mtn.

-Light must be lifted: Jesus goes on to say that once lit, we should lift our light up to all to see.  No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bowl but rather on a stand so that it brings light to all in the house.  Lights are meant to be seen, to light a dark room or place.  Likewise, we are not to be ashamed of our faith but to shine openly for God in a natural way, just being who we are because of God’s light in us.  The best way to lift our light is to engage is simple acts of love and kindness… not so that people will see us and praise us but so that people may be pointed to God and give praise to our Father in heaven.
Never called to put on a show or to impress others by serving but just be ourselves in love.  Jesus when you give, fast or pray, don't do it for show.

We shake our salt and shine our light through practical acts of love.  Be wise.  Don’t overdo it.  Too much S ruins the food and too much L blinds the eyes.
Swindoll: Shake don’t pour. Shine, don’t blind.

My grandmother Ermie: “Dark, dark it is in the world.  We must shine.  You in your corner and I in mine.”

Madeleine L’Engle:  “We do not draw people to Christ by loudly discrediting what they believe, by telling them how wrong they are and how right we are;  but by showing them a light that is so lovely that they  want with all their heart to know the Source of it.”   That’s the key:  Shine a beautiful light.

Practical points:
* Our influence depends on our being distinct from the world around us, not identical.  We become ineffective if we just try to fit in, not question or challenge anything.  Postmodern influence: I’m okay, you’re okay.  Surveys: Christians are becoming just like the world.  People don’t see a difference, so?  We live in a culture that says:  religion is personal and private, don’t impose your beliefs on others  Jesus:  “What does it profit a person if they gain the world, but lose their soul?”  We must shine!
Randy:  If you were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?   

* We must always be open and ready to shine for God in a dark world.  Willing to engage people in spiritual conversations whenever the opportunity presents itself. 
1 Peter 3:16, “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give a reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect…”  We must be who we are in love sharing our lives with grace,  willing to serve and sacrifice.  Are you willing to shine for God today?  Or have you put a bowl over your light?

“Thy Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”  One way we shine is by knowing/ sharing God's Word with others like the Gideons do.
Jesus said, “If I be lifted up, I will draw all men unto me.”  Another key to sharing is just lifting up Jesus and then letting the Spirit bring conviction. 
Anytime we stand up to preserve the good or shine a light, we will get a reaction, often negative…
Like the older lady who was held up/ robbed in the WalMart parking lot & began to share with the robber while he had a gun at her head…

Dante’s famous poem, The Divine Comedy, opens with the memorable lines, “Midway in our life’s journey, I went astray from the straight road and woke to find myself alone in a dark wood.” 
* Many people are experiencing darkness in their lives today.   Many people are struggling.  When you’re in the dark, you feel lost, can’t see where you are, you lose your bearings, you don’t know if you’re going forward or drifting backwards.  You begin to dwell on doubts, which leads to despair and finally depression where you fear the worst and you wonder if you’re destined to remain in darkness. Darkness: relationships breaking up, health fails, work hard to find, finances strained, future is dark.    Newspaper:  Army suicides at 3 Decade High:  many of our soldiers are coming back home hurting:

Remember coming back from Haiti in ’94 we got caught in a blizzard, a white out on Rt 68 outside of Morgantown.  Horrible.  Dark.  Snow cut visibility to zero.  You couldn’t stop because someone would hit you from behind and you couldn’t see to go forward because all the road signs and reflectors were covered.   Kids in car: look out for bridges/ ditches.  We were all scared when a big 18 wheel tractor trailer rumbled by our car on the left.  The trucks lights were set up high.  We all filed in behind him and crawled ahead.  That’s what we’re called to do as Christians:  come along others in their darkness and crawl forward.  Jesus in John 12: 46, “I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.”  Many people are gropping in darkness, hopeless, we have hope, light, life to share.

English pastor was struggling to lead his church during the Nazi bombings of WWII.  The church building had been bombed/ destroyed.  Struggling, then he found a poem by Robert Browning that gave him hope: "If I stoop into a dark tremendous sea of cloud / it is but for a time. / I hold God's lamp close to my heart / its splendor soon or late will pierce the gloom. / I shall emerge one day."

The light we share guides people to the truth that God is real and alive and he loves them.  We share this guiding light not just with our words but with our lives.  The light we share acts a warning, like the warning light on your car dash, we shine our light into the darkness and let people know that they are driving toward a cliff and if they don’t stop, they are going to die both now and eternally….end of John 3:  This is the verdict, Light has come into the world...

* Love people until they ask you why. We shine our light as we serve, share grace to people in need.
The disciples when from the light of the mountain, to the dark valley where people were hurting/ help.
Practical acts of compassion: SA meal. Necessity Pantry.  Benevolence Fund.  Christmas projects.  Gabriel Project. Women’s Care Center. DivorceCare.  Young Life is coming.  All preserve good, shine light.  A way we can offer * LIFE to the world is by offering Lifegroups: these support groups can become a light for others

I pray we will always be a church leaves an empty chair at the table and the porch light on.  Our new project allows people to find their way in and we’re definitely leaving a light on at night.  Are we open, looking around, ready to receive and help those who might find their way in.  These are hard times and people are struggling to make it. We’re afraid of the future. This is a time to pull together.  Usually, when we circle for prayer, we hold hands facing in.  Christians, hold hands and look outward. 

Back in 1989, Romania was under struggling under the weight of a ruthless communist dictator.  A pastor named Laszlo Tokes became to preach the gospel of hope and people came.  The gov police began to notice the size of the church (5000) and they surrounded the church on Sundays carrying machine guns.  Pastor Tokes was beat up and threatened, finally in Dec. ’89, they decided to send him into exile.  But when the police arrived to remove the pastor and his family they were stopped by a wall of humanity.  Members from other churches, Baptist/ Adventist, Pentecostal, Orthodox and Catholic, had surrounded his house to protest.  The police tried to disperse the crowd, they held their ground all day and into the night.  Then, just after midnight, a 19 year college student named Daniel Gavra pulled out a box of candles.  He lit one and passed them on the person beside him.  One by one the burning candles were passed out to the crowd.  Soon the dark, cold December night was pierced by the light of hundreds of candles.  The pastor looked out his window and was overwhelmed… all these people from such diverse backgrounds, all coming to his defense.  It was a dramatic display of Christian unity.

On the second day, the police finally broke through, beat up Pastor Tokes and then paraded his wife and family to waiting gov vans.  But the people were not done protesting.  They streamed into the city square and began a full scale demonstration against the communist government of Ceausecu.  Again, young Daniel was there handing out candles.  Troops were brought in who opened fire on the crowd.  Hundreds were shot.  Daniel Gavra felt a searing pain as his leg was blown off.  But the people of Timisoara stood their ground, the entire population of Romania was inspired, and within the days the communist government was toppled. Daniel celebrated in the hospital where he was learning to walk with crutches.  His pastor came to offer him sympathy, but Daniel was looking for pity.  He said, “Pastor, I don’t mind so much the loss of a leg.  After all the country is free and I was the one who lit the first candle.” 

Old saying, * “It’s better to light a candle than curse the darkness.” 
I love this story because it reminds all of us that just by lighting a small light in dark and dangerous place can change the world.  By standing up and seeking to preserve and protect those things are a good, and true and right, we can make a difference… it might not seem like much but God will use it.

Prayer:

Closing Hymn:  “We’ve A Story to Tell to the Nations”

Related Scriptures: 
John 8, “I am the light of the world.  Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” 
Jesus: “Come unto me all of you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.”  
Heb. 13:5, God says to each of us, “I will never leave you or forsake you!” 
“God is light and in him there is no darkness at all.” 
Luke 9: 26, “If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, then I will be ashamed of them when I come back in my Father’s glory surrounded by the holy angels.”  
John 3: 19-21, “This is the verdict:  Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.  Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.  But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.”
John 12: 35, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer.  Walk while you have the light before darkness overtakes you.  The man who walks in the dark does not know where he is going.  Put your trust in the light while you have it, so that you may become children of light.”