Jesus said to his disciples:
“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.
You are the light of the world.
A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden.
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.
Just so, your light must shine before others,
that they may see your good deeds
and glorify your heavenly Father.” MT 5:13-16
Following the beatitudes, the true way to happiness, the kingdom of God, Jesus teaches His disciples that God’s plan to glorify Him and bring all created souls back to Him is through us. We first become learners or disciples. Then, with the spiritual power of intellect we gain knowledge of God and His plan for salvation. When we recognize His love for us, we choose to love Him back with our free will. We glorify Him when we use our free will to love. When we are baptized and make vows to reject Satan and follow Jesus more closely, today Jesus reminds us of our extraordinary role to bring heaven to earth, to continue His mission with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We are true be the salt of the earth. If humanity stops recognizing God as Creator and Jesus as Savior, not allowing ourselves to be open to the Holy Spirit, God has no instrument to work through and the salt loses its taste. That puts the world in a very awful state. He goes on to say we are the light of the world. As young people, we are being formed in the faith, so that when we are adults we can be that light in our homes, businesses, and communities. He did not say we are the light of one room in our house, but of the whole world. A person completely in love with Jesus and is willing to give up all for the kingdom of heaven can influence an entire community, country, or even the whole world. One who has courage to believe and not back down brings all people hope. Jesus Christ did not influence one family, community, country or world, but all of humanity for generations. With God’s grace, anything is possible. We are afraid to change. We are afraid to die to self and let God work through us. We don’t believe we can conquer our sins. We fall short. Jesus is giving us a pep talk today about our role, our responsibility, our duty as His followers. We have amazing spiritual powers and with God’s grace we can change the world, too! It is what God made us for!
Today’s challenge: Be the light of the world. Be the salt of the earth. Be the city set on a mountain for all to see. Do not be afraid! Get ready for a great adventure!
Be a servant, become a saint!
Christian YOLO
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