Sunday Worship Service Livestream


November 2, 2025
  • Welcome and Announcements
  • Praise
  • Prayer of Invocation
  • Who You Say I Am
  • Whom Shall I Fear
  • Scripture Reading: Matthew 5:13-16
  • At The Cross (Love Ran Red)
  • Pastor's Message - Out of the Saltshaker
  • Nothing But The Blood



Matthew 5:13-16

  • 13 "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by people.
    14 "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;
    15 nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.
    16 Your light must shine before people in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.


SERMON NOTES - Out of the Saltshaker

INTRODUCTION
  • The beatitudes describe the character of a person who is a true believer, a Christian. And Christians are called to live in a way that often goes against the grain of the world.
  • A possible outline of the Sermon on the Mount: verses 3-9 emphasize character, verses 10-12 describe conflict, and the rest of the sermon is about conduct.
  • "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven."
  • Jesus uses two different metaphors, salt and light, to teach this same principle or truth: Christian are influencers.

THE MEANING OF THE METAPHORS
  • How does salt lose its saltiness?
  • Salt taken from the Dead Sea had many impurities and was never completely pure. If exposed to humidity or water, the actual salt could dissolve and leach away, leaving behind a tasteless residue that looked like salt but wasn't useful. When that happened people who were accustomed to unusable salt would gather it up and cast it out in their fields to use as fertilizer. Sometimes they would throw it out the door to harden the pathway that led to their front porch.
  • Jesus said that when salt become tasteless (literally foolish), when it loses it's strength, when it becomes ineffective, when it loses its purpose for which it exists, when salt no longer functions as salt, it is no longer good for anything.
  • "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven."
  • If the purpose of salt is to be salty, the purpose of light is to shine, more specifically to dispel darkness.

THE REASON FOR THE LOSS
  • The question remains, what could happen to cause a Chrisitan to lose their influence?
  • I want to point out that it is not salvation which is in view. The metaphors are not about losing salvation but losing influence.
  • Keeping with the emphasis on the essential nature of salt and light. I would suggest it means losing the distinctiveness of what it means to be a follower of Jesus. It is when what sets us apart and makes us different is no longer recognizable.
  • What would cause that to happen? Worldliness, lukewarmness, A third reason for loss of influence may sound unusual, because unlike being like the world, it is avoidance of, lack of interaction with, and retreat from the world.
  • "But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God's OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; for you once were NOT A PEOPLE, but now you are THE PEOPLE OF GOD; you had NOT RECEIVED MERCY, but now you have RECEIVED MERCY."
  • We are to tell people about Jesus. We affect the world in which we live. We are to be an influence in the lives of people who need to know Him.
  • We are to be busy about influencing the lives of people who need to know Jesus.
  • The result is that people will glorify God. Later in this sermon Jesus condemns good works that are done with the motive of being seen by others. Here the emphasis is on good works that give glory to God. These are good works done publicly for God's honor and the implication is that even unsaved people will glorify God when Christians live in a way that visibly reflects God's goodness in the world.