*Dan is away for a summer sabbatical – a time of rest, rejuvenation and reverence. Please enjoy one of our favorite Friday Fragments. This Fragment was initially published on February 18, 2011.
“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.” ~ Matthew 5:13-15
In the waning moments of a dinner conversation the subject turned to dessert. Since our location was Florida, the focus became Key Lime Pie. In spite of the fact that this was one of the options on the menu, we declined because a wonderful meal with new friends had left us full. The seed, however, had been planted… deeply. Key Lime Pie.
When we returned to our hotel later that evening I turned and looked at Mary and in an instant, we knew… we both wanted a piece of pie before we closed the curtain on the day. We obliged the urge.
A word, deeply planted, can be powerful. It stirs in our mind before it impacts our behavior. Most of the time the implications are more significant than a few extra calories at the end of a busy day.
Throughout my life I’ve been a witness to, a participant in, and a recipient of words that indict and paralyze, and words that inspire and motivate. All of us have been.
I find it comforting to know that Jesus was both the target and the dispenser of powerful words.
Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. ~ Mark 6:3
Dismissive and pointed… even our Lord endured the poison.
This fuels the bonfire of truth that Jesus declares in His most famous sermon… “You are the salt of the earth…” and again “You are the light of the world…”
Although the facts indicted us; Jesus commissioned us. Although our sin condemned us; grace transformed us… to be salt and light. And Jesus told us so. He used His words to nestle the seed deeply in our soul, to germinate, to sprout, to grow and to ultimately bear fruit.
Jesus wasn’t the biblical version of a motivational speaker… for His words riveted and convicted before they inspired. He polarized just as He united. Truth extinguishes the flames of arrogance and hatred, just as it launches sacrificial courage and love. It exposes sin, while it proclaims Good News. Yes, Jesus spoke…
It started with Key Lime Pie… but the lesson landed squarely in my soul.
You are…
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