Salt and Light

Salt, monochrome by andrew.cameron

One summer evening, as I walked home, looking forward to spending supper time with the family, the idyllic scene played out in my mind. We would sit outside in the back yard, enjoying a dinner of roasted chicken with garlic, lemon and herbs. Perhaps some new potatoes, a green salad, a glass of wine…

As I opened the fridge, my daydream was shattered by the putrid stench of rotten meat. I unwrapped the chicken and the smell immediately made me retch. I ran for the bin, appalled at the foul aroma, and sadly resigned to the prospect of a disappointed family, and a meat-free salad!

This trivial example reminded me of a simple, but important principle. Without proper preservation, meat will quickly rot and decay. Society, of course, is no different.

The United Kingdom has the highest level of drug addiction in Europe. The number of couples getting married has reached its lowest point since 1862. Schools send home 2,200 children a day for disruptive behaviour in the classroom. Violent crime by women has reached an all-time high, with on average, 250 women being arrested each day. 58% of 14-17 year olds have viewed pornography, and 40% are sexually active. Over 41,000 women under 18 fall pregnant each year, and 49% of them have abortions. Since abortion was legalised in the UK just over 40 years ago, seven million children have been aborted. Everywhere you look, there are signs of decay.

This epidemic is not isolated to my own country. Many similar statistics, are echoed in other nations. As a result, we have to ask why the church is not making more of a difference. 

Jesus told us to be salt and to be light. These are evocative pictures of how the church is to be in society. Salt preserves; it holds off decay. If the Church were being as salty as it should, we ought not to see such levels of corruption in society. Light penetrates darkness; it brings revelation and helps people to see the truth. The Church should be a beacon of hope, showing up sin for what it is, and bringing revelation through the preaching of the gospel.

It has always been important to us to build excellent churches but our influence should also go far beyond our buildings and our meetings, and have a tangible effect on the society around us.

This means that as individuals, we need to take responsibility for the environments in which God has placed us; our workplaces, our university campuses, our streets and our schools. We need to be a positive influence through our actions, and our proclamation of the gospel. As local churches we need to impact whole communities, through social action projects and care for the poor, providing for the needs of society and being a positive presence in their midst. One of the benefits of working together across nations is that we can also look to make a difference at a broader national and international level as God leads us.

This is not a new innovation, but a core component of what we were made to do in Genesis 1. On the sixth day, God created man and instructed him to ‘fill the earth and subdue it’ (Genesis 1:28).

“Fill the earth”. Clearly this was a command for Adam and Eve to have children. From the beginning it was God’s intention that the whole earth be filled with people who bear His image and represent His handiwork.

Today there are over seven billion people on the planet, so you could be forgiven for thinking we’d filled it enough! But many of those living on the earth today do not know their creator, and God’s image in them has been marred by sin. Jesus has come to restore the image of God in man, so in addition to giving birth to physical children and raising them in a godly manner, we are called to give birth to ‘spiritual children’ through evangelism, conforming people to the likeness of Christ through the gospel.

“Subdue the earth”. The term subdue is a rich and multilayered word which speaks of cultivating, protecting, taking responsibility and bringing order. Adam was placed in a garden and told to cultivate it.

Today our call remains the same. We are to cultivate the environment around us for the glory of God. Even the most beautiful garden, if left untended, will soon become overrun with weeds. God’s creation mandate is this; you are to be gardeners! Pull up the weeds, tend the plants, draw out the beauty of creation. Be salt. Be light.

The implications of this are vast. We have a God-given responsibility that goes beyond simply building churches and winning the lost. We are called to shape the whole of creation. This will require all of us to play a part, using our different backgrounds, talents and passions to bring order to this world.

John Cadbury understood this principle. In the 1820s, alcoholism was rife in England. Water was so polluted that people drank gin in large quantities, and society was plagued by drunkenness, which led to poverty and crime. Cadbury took it upon himself to find a solution, and so established a business, providing cocoa and chocolate as alternatives to alcohol.

For many years the Cadbury family was actively involved in social reform; campaigning against the use of children to clean chimneys, and fighting for the rights of the underprivileged. They set high standards for the care of their workers; paying generous salaries and providing education, healthcare and pension schemes. For half a century they even ran Bible readings and morning prayers.

In the late 1890s John’s sons purchased a large plot of land and built affordable housing with space for gardens and trees, for employees and non-employees alike. By taking responsibility and striving to be salt and light, the Cadbury family had a remarkable and lasting impact upon their society.

We need to live with the same kind of vision. Fill the earth and subdue it. Be salt and light. We dare not focus on one to the exclusion of the other. Instead we must evangelise and transform culture. We must preach the gospel and care for the poor.

As individuals we need to be salt and light in our localities. We need to ask ourselves the question ‘how can I cultivate the area of the world in which God has placed me?’ For some it may be by becoming an outstanding worker for your employer, or as simple as refusing to gossip in the office. For others it may mean visiting an elderly neighbour or being a positive influence amongst other parents and teachers at the local school. One time I started a neighbourhood watch scheme that made the area feel secure to live in and broke down the barriers between the different ethnic communities that lived on the street.

As local churches we need to impact our communities in practical ways so that our neighbourhoods are better places to live. The streets should be safer, neighbours more trusting, children able to play safely in public spaces. Unbelievers should miss your church deeply if it were, for any reason, to close!

We will also need real wisdom to know how to use our resources at a broader regional or national level. We must remember that there are times when the local church should be supporting those championing change rather than leading the way itself. This is not because we have suddenly lost faith in God’s bride, Rather, local church elders may find themselves lacking the complex skill set necessary to campaign for some sorts of structural reform. On other occasions, they will find they need to identify too closely with political parties or have to raise large amounts of money that might swamp the local body. On these occasions we should not be afraid to release the next generation of reformers into their calling, supporting them with prayer and encouragement, as they become the Wilberforces or Shaftsburys of our generation. 

The breadth of the commission to be salt and light is immense. It is all-encompassing, and it requires us all to play our part. The gospel needs to work its way into all areas of society. Salt gets deep down into the cracks, and light can penetrates even the smallest and darkest of places. No part of this world should be beyond the reach of God’s rule. No inch of creation should escape His redeeming touch.

The potential is enormous. I am genuinely excited about all that God will achieve through us as we commit ourselves to being salt and light in the world. It is my hope and dream that as a movement our names will be deemed worthy to be listed alongside the nation changers of ages past, as we strive to bring God’s rule to bear on all of His creation.

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