Matthew 5:13-16
13 "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.
14 You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden.
15 Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house.
16 Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.
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This is the opening of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5, 6, 7). This passage is immediately after the Beatitudes, and it is a challenge to all of us.
We are the salt of the earth, but we are not good for anything if we lose our taste. To me, that begs the question ... how do we keep that from happening? When we read the parable of the vine and the branches (John 15), we saw Christ's answer -- we are to remain in Him. We remain in Him by following his commands.
Look at Jesus' words closely, We are the light of the world. We are not to hide ourselves, and put our light under a bushel basket. He says that our light must shine before others. He didn't say it "should", or "could," or "it would be nice if" ... he said that it must shine.
There was a time in my life where I was growing in the Word of God, but I'd just let that thought pass over me. Of course, that's flat-out wrong. My Lord, my King, my Refuge, my Shepherd, and My Redeemer has told me that my light must shine. Once again, Christ forces you to make a choice. If you're going to follow me, he says, you must do what I say. If I want to grow in His love, I need to make that commitment.
