Matthew 5:13-16
I feel so grateful to have become friends with X. We met through WAG! It was not till a year and a half later where we connected as friends. As our friendship continue to grow, I have learned what it means to have intimate friendships sharing the love for God.
Refreshing, empowering and poetic are some of the words I would describe it so far. I have wished for friendships that could be emotionally intimate. Where “jokes” were not at the expense of putting others, myself and themselves down. Having a god-based friendship has been blissful. Sharing my thoughts on the Bible and continue to learn has been fueling for me.
There were a lot of verses in Matthew that I wanted to focus on. It is truly poetic when he blesses those who are hurt, in pain etc. One verse that stuck out the most to me was
Matthew 5:13-16.
Salt and Lamp
13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.
16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
Why this verse stuck out to me:
R Jesus is giving a sermon, comparing his followers to the salt and light.
E Examining this verse was SO fun!
Scientifically speaking, salt is composed of NaCl. It is:
1. Highly soluble
2. Changes environment, preserves, transparent
3. An essential nutrient in the human body
4. NaCl (salt) is considered a very stable compound. Notice how it is not the most and the least. Just very stable.
How come he does not compare us to any other spices but rather salt? It got me thinking.. Its shelf life is insane. It preserves and changes the environment of where and how much it is in. Not only that it is soluble mixture as well. Scientifically speaking when you add salt and water, the water becomes diluted. Dilution causes the salt to be less “salty” losing its purity and the properties to preserve.
Jesus comparing us to light
I am a light that Jesus sees, even when I do not see it within myself. Sometimes, due to my own overthinking or others projections I would dim my light and be afraid of being authentically me. This part of the verse reminds me that I do not need to hide my light when I am following him.
He called us a town. It got me thinking why a town and not a city or village. So I googled it and a town is comparable to the genetic human body how a town has 1-2 shops rather than multiple. Like our heart we only have one, our hands we have two etc. thennnnn I was like omg he said I am a beacon of light not to be hidden or put away!!
Anyway.. To be continued.