Sunday 8 February 2026
"You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? " (v. 13)
Background
This section of Matthew forms part of the Sermon on the Mount. It is a great block of teaching at the beginning of his gospel that covers a wide range of instructions and interpretation of the Jewish scriptures.
This section starts with salt and light. These are most likely metaphors for the people of God (as in the Jewish nation) and for us – modern-day readers who choose to follow Jesus.
Salt would have been used daily for food preparation and preservation. To be 'salt in the world' for the Jews meant to follow the scriptures and adhere to the words of the prophets. For us today, it is to follow the way of Jesus. To live differently in the world, living as a holy nation and royal priesthood in the world.
To lose the thing that makes you 'salt' is to lose the very thing that makes you different. Salt without saltiness is just a useless white crystal. In the same way, a set-apart people who look and act like everyone else are no use either.
Being light in the world follows on from above. If we hide the way we live and the light that shines from us as we seek to live God’s way in the world, then we fail to show others the good things of God. If we are living as salt in the world then we need to allow the light to shine out for others to see, and to allow them to give glory to God for the blessings they see.
The last section tackles 'the law and the prophets'. This phrase is shorthand for the Hebrew scriptures which we know as the Old Testament. Jesus' emphasis is that he has not come to abolish the law but instead to fulfil it. It may be that the focus is not on the minutiae of every law and command in the Old Testament. It may be that Jesus instead is wanting us to focus on the fulfilment of all that these focus on as a whole.
To Ponder:
- Both parts of this reading focus on putting faith into action. What examples of people living as salt and light do you remember? How have they inspired you?
- In what ways have you sought to learn about the Jewish faith? How has that shaped your faith in Jesus?
Prayer
Jesus, you said that we should be like salt in your world. Help us to walk in the way that you would walk, say the things that you would say, and never lose our saltiness. Amen.
Bible notes author: The Revd David Wynd
David Wynd is a Methodist minister serving in Cullercoats, in North Tyneside.