May 27, 2025; Matthew 5:13-37

Daily Dose of Hope

May 27, 2025

Day 2 of Week 8

 

Scripture - Matthew 5:13-37

 

Prayer:  Holy God, We rejoice and give praise for the ways you care for us.  We rejoice and give praise for how you continue to forgive us and give us second and third chances.  Help us seek lives characterized by your holiness.  Help us seek pure hearts.  Lord, in these next few moments of silence, hear our prayers and help us bring together all our scattered thoughts and focus on you...It’s in your name we pray, Amen.

 

Welcome back to the Daily Dose of Hope, a Deep Dive into the Gospels and Acts.  Today, we are working on part 2 of Matthew 5, as we continue to discuss the Sermon on the Mount. 

 

Today’s portion of Scripture begins with a discussion of salt and light. Jesus tells his followers, “You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.” During Jesus’ time, salt was extremely important. It was a seasoning, a preservative, a disinfectant, a component of ceremonial offerings, and because of its value, it was even used as a unit of exchange.

 

So what is Jesus saying here? He is telling his followers that God’s people should add some flavor and value to this world. If salt loses its saltiness or flavor, then it’s useless. If we lose our ability to change or influence the world, then are we useless? Well, we certainly lose what is at the heart of being a Christ-follower - making a difference for the Kingdom. We are meant to change the world around us for the better in the name of Jesus Christ.

 

Jesus continues, “You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden.” Salt improves food because it tastes different from what its being placed on. In the same way, light is useful to have because it is different from darkness. Light casts out darkness. Light makes a difference. If light is hidden, it loses what makes it valuable. Likewise, if we fail to be different in a positive way from the culture around us, then we are Christians in name only.

 

So what does this mean in practical ways?  Well, we are to be change agents, going out and doing all we can to bring God’s Kingdom values here, right now. Remember what we say in the Lord’s Prayer, “His kingdom come, his will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” The disciples and the early Christian church took these words seriously. The early Christian church lived in a way, lived a lifestyle, that was so distinctly different from the world, that the world could not help but notice it. They lived out the values of the Kingdom. Acts 2:42-47 reads, “They devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and to fellowship, the the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lor